Elder Mary Lee

Mary’s English name is “Mary Lee.” She is from Pelican Lake, in northern Saskatchewan. Mary has five children, and together they have given her twenty-three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren – what an incredible legacy. Mary has dedicated her life to supporting girls and women though cultural traditions and ceremony – supporting numerous colleagues, professionals, and agencies. On many days, Mary can be found walking in the bush, harvesting trees to make tipis or harvesting medicines to share for healing.

Mary states: “there are women older than me who are sometimes made to feel that, because they don’t have the English language or education, they don’t have a right to speak. But those are the powerful ones, the sacred ones, because they were not disrupted in their journey. My mother was one of those women. Her knowledge was pure, uninterrupted by residential school. It wasn’t written knowledge; it was a life she lived.”

Mary’s mother spoke only Cree. From a very early age, she instilled in Mary and her siblings the value of Cree culture and language. As children, Mary and all her siblings were taught to speak Cree and attended ceremonies such as the Sun Dance and the Sweat Lodge. Many of Mary’s teachings were related to the sacredness of motherhood and how to help women raise healthy children in the world. She retained these teachings because her life was not interrupted by residential school, having not been forced to attend. Mary states: “all of my teachings, everything I know, that it came from my mother.”

Mary worked at the former Native Survival School and Oskayak High School as Elder and Counselor for over 38 years. Many of the students at Oskayak struggled with identity loss. She helped to instill – in them – the teachings that she learned, especially teachings that were needed by young women. Mary has mentored a countless number of people; teaching them about protocols, ceremony, values and kinship. Mary has also supported the leadership at the YWCA of Saskatoon.

In addition to her work at Oskayak, Mary also supported women in the provincial women’s jail, Pine Grove, where she provided counselling and cultural teachings. During the time Mary spent with women in institutions, she talked to them about the tipi teachings. She used these sacred teachings to help the women begin their healing process and to begin decolonizing from the shame and guilt that are often imposed on women.

In this way, Mary practiced traditional counseling. She didn’t rely on book-learned counseling methods that are founded in European and Caucasian health models. Mary preferred to use counseling methods that the old people used. They believed: “you never trick the brain or work with the head to make that person think they’re okay. You work with the spirit because the healing of the spirit will carry that person longer.”

Namarta Kochar

Namarta Kochar is a driving force for positive change, strengthening the community through transformative leadership, volunteerism and tireless community building. From assembling food hampers for Secret Santa, providing meals and winter essentials to those in need, fundraising for the YWCA, championing women’s economic empowerment through Dress for Success and advocating for equity as former Chair of the City’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Advisory Committee, she turns compassion into action. Recognized with the Saskatchewan Volunteer Medal, Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal, and Community Leadership Award, among others, Namarta’s unwavering commitment continues to empower action, uplift communities, and inspire meaningful change.

Dr. Michelle Pavloff

Dr. Michelle Pavloff is the Director of the Centre for Health Research, Innovation and Scholarship at Saskatchewan Polytechnic. With a PhD in Nursing and a recent graduate from Harvard Medical School’s Post Graduate Medical Education program, she is dedicated to improving health inequities. Dr. Pavloff is the Principal Investigator of the Saskatchewan Farmer and Rancher Mental Health (FARMh) Initiative and co-founder of the SaskAgMaters Mental Health Network Inc. As a nurse scientist and leader in rural nursing research, she has secured over $1.6 million in research funding since 2018. Dr. Pavloff currently resides with her husband and children in Saskatoon.

Dr. Ingrid Pickering

Dr. Ingrid Pickering is Chief Science Officer of the Canadian Light Source and professor of Geological Sciences at USask. Ingrid is one of Canada’s most influential environmental chemists, whose cross-disciplinary research propels innovative synchrotron technologies to investigate toxic metals and improve human health on a global scale. In 2018, she received the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation Achievement Award and was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, among Canada’s highest academic honours. Ingrid passionately uplifts fellow female scientists through mentorship and promotes inclusive learning environments to build lasting foundations for future women in STEM.