Indian Residential School/Boarding Homes/60s Scoop Survivor’s Gathering

In partnership with the Buffalo People Arts Institute, the MacKenzie Art Gallery hosts this gathering to honour the voices of Indian Residential School, boarding home, and Sixties Scoop Survivors. Since 2021, Buffalo People has convened six gatherings in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action.

Coordinated in alignment with the spring equinox—a moment of celestial transition and renewal—this gathering recognizes the ongoing impacts of residential and day schools, boarding homes, and the Sixties Scoop. Together, we remember those who never returned home, and we honour Survivors and their families.

The MacKenzie is honoured to hold space for this important gathering. We remain committed to creating safe, welcoming environments where Indigenous voices are supported, heard, and shared with our broader community. All are invited to listen, witness, and be present.

Event Schedule

9 AM: Ospagan (cannupa) ceremony led by community knowledge holders Dennis Omeasoo and Betty McKenna.

10:30 AM: Community panel discussion with Karen Ryder, Audrey Bellegarde, and Connie Ashdohonk.

11:45 AM: Healing activity with Jori Cachene.

12–1:15 PM: Lunch provided by Giroux Catering.

1:15–2:15 PM: Presentation by Ji-gaabiikwe (Where the Land and Water Meet Woman—Diane Campeau), Taken, Remembered, Reclaimed: Finding My Way Home.

2:15–2:30 PM: Nutrition break.

2:30–4 PM: Presentation by Jori Cachene, A Return to Self, including a meditative art component.

BIOGRAPHIES 

Karen Ryder 

Karen Ryder is a Nakoda grandmother from Cega’kin (Carry the Kettle) Nakoda Nation and attended Lebret Indian Residential School. She is 77 years old and has been retired from the Regina Public school system for 30 years. She is a respected knowledge keeper and elder within her community. 

Audrey Bellegarde 

Audrey Bellegarde is a Nakoda/Dakota grandmother from Cega’kin (Carry the Kettle) Nakoda Nation and a second-generation Residential School survivor. She attended school in Lebret, where prolonged separations from her family led to the loss of language, culture, and familial bonds. After graduating, Audrey pursued studies at Business College and built a career in public services. Upon retiring, she returned to her educational roots to reconnect with her Nakoda heritage, learning to read, write, and speak the Nakoda language.  

Connie Ashdohonk 

Connie is a Nakoda grandmother from Cega’kin (Carry the Kettle) Nakoda Nation and attended Lebret Indian Residential School.

PRESENTATATIONS  

TAKEN, REMEMBERED, RECLAIMED: Finding My Way Home 

In this presentation, I share my lived experience as a Sixties Scoop Survivor and how disconnection from kinship, culture, and identity shaped my life. I reflect on my healing journey – reclaiming culture, reconnecting to community, and learning from knowledge carriers – and how this process transformed pain into purpose. This journey led to the creation of Kayâs-isîhcikêwin, a nonprofit rooted in Indigenous ways of being, knowing, and doing, dedicated to supporting Indigenous children, youth, and their families. This heart story invites listeners to witness how personal healing can become collective care, and how reclaiming identity is both an act of healing and a gift to future generations. 

Ji-gaabiikwe (Where the Land and Water Meet Woman) Diane Campeau is a registered member of Yellow Quill First Nation. She is of Saulteaux, Métis/Cree ancestry. She is a mother to her daughter, Kenadee. Ji-gaabiikwe is the founder of Kayâs-isîhcikêwin (Returning to the old ways). As a Sixties Scoop Survivor, she has transformed her healing journey into a powerful movement of cultural reclamation and community wellness.  

A Return to Self 

Presentation is “A Return to Self” with a meditative art component by Jori Cachene.  

Jori Cachene is an artist, musician, and Certified Canadian Counsellor from the Yellow Quill First Nation. For over 20 years, she has been pursuing her passions in self-expression, creativity, and the search for meaning in it all. Her work as an artist and art teacher led to her master’s degree in educational psychology, after which Jori became a high school guidance counsellor for a number of years. Jori now works as a counsellor at her private practice, Deep Change Hypnosis and Counselling, where she helps people find themselves in all of the noise. Outside of counselling, Jori is a working visual artist and musician. Her current project is the creation of an album of her music. 

Buffalo People Arts Institution would like to thank the following sponsors: