Even before the commitment was made on paper and solidified in ceremony, talk of Indigenous reconciliation had been taking place in the Faculty of Health. However, it took the hire of an Indigenous Knowledge Keeper to give shape to a process that is sometimes not well understood and often difficult to begin.
That Indigenous Knowledge Keeper is Elder Myeengun Henry, formerly Chief of the Chippewas of the Thames First Nation and Indigenous leader at Conestoga College. His voice is soothing but forceful, and he looks like a man who has found his calling. Part grandfather, part sage, part friendly neighbour, he is a healer who came to Waterloo at just the right time.
Elder Henry is at a stage in his life where he wants to share his knowledge, experiences, language and culture. He wants to offset the damage of more than one hundred years when Indigenous culture, identity and languages were stifled, prohibited and criminalized. He tirelessly spreads the word through learning circles, ceremonies and even participating in every single one of the 20 convocation ceremonies this past spring. He does it patiently and cheerfully, but also pointedly when necessary.
At a Commitment Ceremony in June, 
Elder Henry and Dean Lili Liu planted a cedar tree and exchanged gifts: a sacred eagle feather for the Faculty, and a one of-a-kind beaded medallion for Elder Henry. They also unveiled a Wampum Belt that hangs in the Health Expansion building. The event formalized one of the signature commitments in the Faculty’s latest strategic plan: to create “an environment that invites and respects Indigenous ways of knowing.”
Reconciliation efforts are also being adopted throughout the University, with a University-wide Commitment Ceremony this past September, the first of its kind for a Canadian university.
The Faculty’s reconciliation efforts include commemorating events such as Red Dress Day, but also creating spaces that can be used by Indigenous students and others, installing Indigenous artwork to make students feel comfortable and accepted, and including Indigenous knowledge into the curriculum to make a difference in how we practice and deliver health programs and services.
“Give students a place to congregate, celebrate, smudge and be proud to be an Indigenous student in the Faculty of Health,” Elder Henry says. “I see a vision coming true, a formal commitment to making this come true. It will be longer than the life of a strategic plan.”
For more information, please visit the Faculty’s Indigenous initiatives web page.
