We are worth being celebrated – our culture, our art, our people and our teachings – and so are the other Indigenous people across the world. Indigenous people aren’t just on Turtle Island. We’re everywhere, and in ways, we’re all connected. But we’re also different.  

I really wanted to show people at MacEwan that there are teachings from all over. In Edmonton, we mainly see Cree and sometimes Stoney Nakoda teachings, but many other perspectives are important too. That’s why I wanted to bring my grandparents here – so they could share Blackfoot language, culture and stories.

I applied for a MacEwan Community Engagement Grant and invited my friend, Shazeda Stamp, to help me organize a two-day event to bring my grandparents, who are Elders from the Siksika Nation, to kihêw waciston. 

It was the end of March. The weather was cold and snowy, and the roads were really bad. I never expected so many people to participate, so seeing everyone there felt really good. For two full days, Indigenous and non-Indigenous people gathered in kihêw waciston and listened to my grandparents tell their stories. Our Elders are at the very top of our communities – we’re supposed to respect them in every way. They’re getting older and won’t be here forever, so it’s up to our generation to carry the knowledge they give us. 

Shazeda and I were busy organizing those days, but now and then, we popped in and saw just how engaged people were. When you sit down with an Elder, you listen. It’s a storytelling atmosphere. You often hear about young people being glued to their phones, but not that day. Even when the sessions ended, lots of people stayed to talk. It was a beautiful thing. My grandparents loved the experience, and I think they made an impact. 

I never imagined I would do something like this, but it felt really good to see it all come together and to see so many people – both Indigenous and non-Indigenous – 100 per cent committed to participating, being engaged and having an open mind. It hasn’t always felt that way. 

During National Indigenous History Month, I hope people will think about our diversity, our talents, the beauty that is within our cultures and what we bring to the world. As Indigenous people, we are so much more than what happened to us. We are more than the intergenerational trauma we still experience. We’re more than the negative side of our history. 

Shazeda and I are parents, and we want our children to see that, too.

Having a child has made me so much more connected to my culture. I want my son to know who he is. I don’t want him to experience the identity crisis I went through in high school. I want him to be proud of who he is, where he comes from and the people who came before him. 

– Emma Rain, pimâcihisowin Foundation Program student

Rain and Stamp organized the Blackfoot Cultural Teachings event in the kihêw waciston Indigenous Centre in late March 2025 with support from staff at the centre and a MacEwan Student Community Engagement Grant. They hope to organize another event with Rain’s grandparents in the future. 

To be considered for a future Student Snapshots story, or to suggest someone we should feature, please contact our communications team at communications@macewan.ca.