Discovering my way forward as a nurse and Indigenous leader

For most of my life, I moved through the world without fully understanding my roots.

My grandmother was taken to a residential school at the age of three. Like many families, that experience resulted in loss of language, culture and teachings.

Growing up, I never learned about my heritage. In some ways, I was assimilated and shaped by a system that separated Indigenous people from their identity.

I built a life, a career and a family (including my dogs) and have been a registered psychiatric nurse for nearly 25 years. I love my work because I can listen to people’s stories, care for them and be present in some of the hardest moments of their lives. Being a nurse has always felt like a calling.

But alongside that calling was a quiet desire to learn my roots. I started small by attending powwows and visiting my grandmother’s home, Lil'wat Nation, in Mount Currie.

I then realized that even when culture is interrupted, it is never truly lost.

That desire opened more when I was invited to participate in Creating the Fire Within, an Indigenous leadership program at Fraser Health led by the Indigenous Recruitment and Retention team.

I remember walking into the first session feeling nervous. I did not know anyone. I had never been in a talking circle before.

It started with drumming and I cried almost immediately. The drum is healing and it connected to my heartbeat. I closed my eyes and just let the tears go.

That moment changed something in me. When we were in that circle and sharing stories, I felt a sense of belonging and shared experiences. It was a place to be seen and heard. Holding space with others who had experienced racism, loss and disconnection was a sense of belonging I never felt before.

I learned about ceremony, trust, vulnerability and community. By the end of the program, we were recognized as Indigenous leaders.

Shortly after, I shared my experience with my team and facilitated a talking circle with my colleagues. It was powerful as people shared deeply with gratitude, openness and connection.

Today, I’m still figuring out what comes next.

I know I want to give back to Indigenous communities. I want to continue supporting Indigenous people within health care. I don’t have all the answers yet, but I trust that the path will reveal itself because something has shifted in me.

On B.C. Indigenous Nurses Day, I reflect on my role as an Indigenous nurse paddling on this beautiful yet harsh world. My story is not finished, but I am walking forward with intention, honesty and heart.

And for the first time, I truly know that I belong.

Thursday, April 10, is B.C. Indigenous Nurses Day, which celebrates the contributions of Indigenous nurses to health and wellness. April 10 was chosen to celebrate Charlotte Edith Anderson Monture, who was born on that day in 1890 and was the first Indigenous woman in Canada to become a registered nurse.

At the time, most Canadian nursing programs excluded Indigenous women and the Indian Act was a significant barrier faced by Indigenous Peoples who wanted higher education. Edith graduated first in her nursing class at New York’s New Rochelle Nursing School and was one of only a few Indigenous women to serve overseas during World War I with the United States Army Nurse Corps. She was also the first Indigenous woman to gain the right to vote in a Canadian federal election.

Indigenous Recruitment and Retention

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