Annie Evans, Inuk from the North Coast of Labrador: Annie was a Community Health Representative (CHR) for 17 ½ years and is now retired and considered an Elder. She gave the following counsel, “I know being an Elder, if you sit and don’t go out or do anything, it’s important for CHRs to come by and get us out and going again.” She added the importance of taking care of one’s body and stresses walking as one form of exercise that is beneficial to health. She suggested, “You can walk to church, walk to pick up bingo cards, and walk to the store. I have seen a lot of Elders doing that and I think that is how they keep mobile.”

Alice Smith, Mohawk, Oshweken, Ontario: Alice has worked for many years as a CHR on her reserve and is now retired. She recounts that when she began this work, there were only two nurses and herself working in the health field. Recently, she participated as an active member of the Steering Committee for the Coming Full Circle project.

Alice began her presentation by stating, “The elderly have been through a lot of things that our younger people aren’t aware of and they are capable of doing things.” She added, “Some of them are very strong and some of them, there is no reason why they can’t work through a lot of decisions. On the other hand, they need guidance and direction from the caregivers, CHRs, and family members.”

Viola Christmas, Nova Scotia: As a CHR for 19 years between 1981 and 2000, she worked mostly with the elderly. She recounts, “I would take them to the hospital, do home visits when they were sick, and find out what they needed at home, such as clothing.” Viola is now retired and is still an active member of her community. She fundraises for Elders’ trips, Christmas parties and other parties for the handicapped. She added, “There are five reserves in Cape Breton and we invite the Elders from those reserves to attend our community events.”

Amelia Frieda, Inuk from Hopedale, Labrador: Amelia shared the following, “I am a mother of six and have fifteen grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. I tell them stories of when I was growing up and how things were and they sometimes come to me for guidance. And I guide the hunting and fishing.” She reminisced, “In my day, the motorboats would take us to the fishing area and now it’s a lot different. They use speedboats and skidoos now.”

Eva Favel, Saddle Lake, Alberta: Eva has been a CHR for 24 years. She said, “The nurse left when I was there. I was all alone for a while.” She did not know what she was supposed to do, so she telephoned the head office and was told, “Just answer the phones and do what you have to.” She used wise discretion with that direction, as seen in the following accounts: “One day, three little kids came in to see me without their parents. One of them had a fishhook stuck in her mouth. Another time, three men came to see me for help. They had been burned and one of them was all black with burns. Both of these times, even though I wasn’t trained, so I took them to the town hospital.”

Patsy Gray, Mi’gmaq of Listuguj, Quebec: Patsy has been a CHR for 23 years and said, “I’m the community
grandmother because I’m involved in so many things. When someone dies, I guess I’m running around fundraising,
cooking dinner and doing a little palliative care with the
family.” She added that the band office still calls her to organize community feasts and dinners.

Patsy relates how she controls her diabetes: “I used to be very overweight and got diabetes, so I started walking. I didn’t follow a strict diet, I just walked at five in the morning and six at night over a period of five years.” She added that she lost quite a bit of weight that she attributes to this aerobic form of exercise.

Walter Prince, Northern Ontario: Walter was training in
welfare and administration before he moved over to health in 1965. He retired on June 17, 2001 and now looks after the band’s health program. Walter recalled, “The best thing that ever happened to my community was when the water system came in. We now have two doctors who come to visit twice a month, a nurse practitioner and foot care specialist. When I started, there was nothing, no Thunder Bay Zone.” He does remember seeing a nurse once a month.

Irene Lindsay, survivor of residential school: Irene has been on her healing journey for twelve years. She runs her own grandmothers group in the Ottawa area for residential school survivors and offers art therapy at the Wabano Centre for Aboriginal Health. Irene shared her experiences of being a front-line worker: “In 1985, I burned out and wasn’t able to go back to work— I didn’t protect myself. I know a lot of you are front-line workers and you need to be aware of the things we need to do for ourselves, to protect ourselves from burnout. We need to get in touch with ourselves, our spirit inside and ask, ‘What do I need to get rid of?’” Irene added, “This is what I do now, I look to see what I carry inside and what I don’t need, I just take it out of there and I don’t have to carry it.”