I experienced a lot of intergenerational trauma growing up as the child of a survivor of the Sixties Scoop. 

My mom was taken from her home and made a crown ward, being raised in many non-Indigenous homes. 

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She was raised away from her community and her culture. 

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My mother tried really hard to show me the importance of my culture despite not having the chance to grow up in it herself. 

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I remember going to my first powwow and it was so beautiful and mesmerizing! As I walked into the powwow arena, there were drummers in the centre and people dancing around them. I saw one woman as she was spinning. To me she was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen and I got so excited.

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I knew I just had to learn how to dance like that too. I asked my mom to teach me but she was sad she couldn’t help me, having not learned to powwow dance herself as a child. My mom suggested I follow these beautiful dancing women around and learn from them. So that’s what I did, until they eventually took me under their wings.

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And that’s how I came to learn the meaning behind these sacred dances.

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But it wasn’t all easy from there.

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My childhood and teen years were a struggle, as I spent time in foster homes and experienced extreme poverty. I had to learn how to steal just to have clothes and avoid being hungry all the time.

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Through dance, I found my way out and it gave me new hope. I have seen a lot of family and friends go through many struggles and challenges, so I am extremely grateful for the power that dance can have for healing. 

 

This is why I am so passionate about teaching the traditional ways of powwow dance to others. I have seen the difference it made in my own life and the lives of the students that I work with.  I believe that all Indigenous people should have access to learning powwow about dance and culture, even when growing up displaced from their community.

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My path has led me to working for the Toronto District School Board supporting Indigenous students and running a Powwow club for elementary students. I also mentor youth and taught powwow dance at the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto, for over 10 years.

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Now, through my popular YouTube channel and Jingle Dress Making course, I am able to reach even more people and share my culture in a way that has helped me to heal so much.

 

-Deanne