STORIES TO INSPIRE

Empowering Our Little Sisters - Creating Opportunities, Changing Lives

By Michelle Boivin

Source: Grassroots News, January 23, 2007

If I close my eyes, I can still smell the soothing aroma of lavender, cedar and sage inside the sweat lodge. Elder Mae Louise tosses it onto the crackling stones as we sit in the circle. The water sizzles and evaporates on the 13 grandmothers, rising into a comforting steam that we breathe in deeply.

There are fourteen of us huddled around the grandmother stones on this cold Sunday morning. It is the last day of October and the snow has begun to lightly dust the ground.

It will be the last sweat of the fall at Grandmother Moon Lodge. And we are here, together as women and girls, to begin an important teaching and healing process that will see us come together many times in the weeks and months ahead.

The women and girls are part of “Empowering Our Little Sisters” – a community based mentorship and empowerment program for Aboriginal girls, by Aboriginal women.

Created in response to the suicide death of an eleven year old female Aboriginal child in 2005, its purpose is to help young girls gain confidence, self-esteem and self-knowledge through positive activities, cultural awareness, mentorship, friendship and relationship building.

Offered in partnership with Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Winnipeg, the program is the first of its kind in Winnipeg. By pairing together Aboriginal “Big Sisters” with “little sisters”, young girls and their mentors are able to share similar life experiences while developing friendships that will last a lifetime.

And judging from the laughter and singing inside the lodge, it is also a moving experience that impacts not just the girls, but the mentors too - as they give of their time, connect with their “littles” and listen to the teachings and wisdom of our Elder.

On this, our very first gathering, we also have moms, daughters and sisters sharing the day with us. Although their girls have not yet been matched with a “Big Sister,” mothers, aunties and grannies are encouraged to participate in such gatherings to strengthen existing family relationships while connecting to their culture. 

Back inside the lodge, the drumming and rattles are soon drowned out by our singing and chanting.  The sense of belonging and connection to mother earth is powerful. For many, it is their first time inside a sweat. But the grandmothers are gentle and we lose track of the many rounds as the songs carry our prayers of thanks and healing to the creator.

Looking back, that day proved to be one of the most powerful and moving experiences of my life. 

Seeing women come together with a common purpose and vision – to nurture and guide our young girls, our future life givers on their journey to womanhood - there are no words to describe what I witnessed and felt on that beautiful day. And by reliving that moment through this story, my faith and belief in the strength of our people and communities is confirmed once more.

Time and again, I have seen the power we hold as a community when we come together in unity to respond to the challenges we face. Great things can and do happen. Empowering Our Little Sisters is but one example.

So, if you would like to experience what I have shared with you – where you are a part of something that can truly change lives, consider becoming a “Big Sister”.

The personal joy and satisfaction that you will gain by giving of yourself is second to none. I guarantee it!

To get involved in this wonderful program, please visit our website for more information at www.empoweringsisters.com or contact Jacquie Lylyk, Program Coordinator at 988-9203, 799-5329 (cell) or email jacquie@bigwinnipeg.com .

And if you would like to learn more about Grandmother Moon Lodge, please call Elder Mae Louise at (204) 668-9442.

As an Aboriginal mother, business owner and community organizer, Michelle Boivin has worked to support the growth and development of Winnipeg's urban aboriginal community since 1997.  In her professional capacity, Michelle is President of Boivin Communication Group Inc., a full service communication and event planning company that specializes in providing creative solutions for Aboriginal, not-for-profit and small business groups across Canada – www.boivingroup.com