‘It makes me want to cry’: Anishinaabe woman touched by cultural shift in Richmond Hill

Workshops by Indigenous-led organization, Odeiwin, fully booked within hours

Yorkregion.com
June 6, 2023
Melissa Wallace

In celebration of National Indigenous History Month, Metroland introduces readers to 30 Indigenous people who are making a difference. Meet them all online.

Growing up in Richmond Hill in the 1980s, Sarah Schuster told her teachers and friends she was adopted, but didn’t know much about where she came from.

Truth is, she did know.

Her biological family was from Lac des Milles Lacs First Nation in northwestern Ontario.

“It's an Anishinaabe nation, and the traditional lands were destroyed by intentional flooding by hydroelectric companies multiple times,” she said. “As the land was being destroyed, the community was being displaced everywhere and my family suffered enfranchisement, including my grandparents and my great grandparents.”

Her mother was taken during the ’60s Scoop at four years old, and Schuster was adopted and brought to Richmond Hill.

Fortunately, Schuster’s adopted mother was Anishinaabe as well, and her family made sure to stay immersed in Indigenous culture, attending powwows and ceremonies.

“I never felt safe telling people my story,” she said, of her school years. “And I really never thought that there would be a time when it would be something that was acceptable to talk about.”

She noticed a shift in people’s attitudes about 15 years ago, and began forming connections with other displaced Indigenous people.

“I didn’t feel so isolated anymore and it was then that I started to, as the saying goes, ‘pick up my bundle,’” she said. “It gave me a reason to want to make change and create spaces using the skills I have for a better future.”

In Toronto, she led a grassroots community group called Allan Gardens Food and Clothing Share, providing basic necessities to people who were homeless or in need.

Then last year, she began facilitating and co-ordinating programs with Odeiwin, an Indigenous not-for-profit organization that aims to improve the education, employment and socioeconomic gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities while ensuring a continued connection to Indigenous community and culture.

Launched in September 2022 by founder Jay Shea, James Bay Cree, the organization runs accessible programs in Richmond Hill that bring people of all nations together. Schuster, who thrives in making crafts and gardening, has enjoyed sharing her gifts with a community hungry to learn.

Odeiwin events are widely attended and often fully booked within hours. Examples include medicine garden planting, beginner beading and learning about smudge feathers. On June 25, the first Indigenous vendor market will take place at Richmond Hill Central Library.

“The response has been overwhelming to the point that we can’t keep up, but it’s beautiful and it makes me want to cry,” said Schuster. “There’s so much diversity and beauty that we can learn from each other as a community.”