Honouring a Steward’s Journey Through Challenge and Renewal
Auntie Louise joined our Community Steward training in 2024 with a full heart and the hope of bringing ceremony to her community. That year, her family experienced a profound loss, and she was unable to host the event she had planned. Like many new Stewards, she carried the teachings quietly with her through that difficult time, trusting that her path would unfold when she was ready.
Even in her grief, Louise found ways to share the medicine of the Moose Hide Campaign. To honour her daughter’s memory, she and her friends created small hide badges and gifted them to those who gathered in support. Inspired by Moose Hide Campaign teachings, the badges became a way for her community to hold love, remembrance, and responsibility close to their hearts.
In 2025 she stepped forward to lead A Sacred Walk in the Park on Moose Hide Campaign Day in Wakefield, Quebec. Community members gathered at the La Pêche River and walked together into Gatineau Park, guided by the steady heartbeat of women’s drums. Along the forest trail, they offered prayers for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQ+ relatives, and for all those impacted by gender-based violence. The ceremony concluded with each person offering tobacco to the river — a shared act of healing and community care.
Louise’s journey reflects the heart of the Community Stewards program: a path that honours life’s realities, personal healing, and the many ways people can contribute. You don’t need to lead a large gathering right away. You can start by carrying the teachings, sharing the medicine in your own way, and stepping forward when the moment is right.
As Louise reminds us, “Every small action done with love will have great results.”
