Top News - February - 2002
Powwow princess Bayli celebrates the new year
in style at the Canadian Native Centre in Toronto
Photo:Bartleman: Ontario's first Native Lieutenant Governor
Aboriginal runner part of Team Diabetes
Six Nations singer to perform at Olympic games
THE ENTIRE CONTENTS OF WINDSPEAKER ONTARIO FEBRUARY ISSUE
ARE ONLINE IN THE ARCHIVES - ACCESS IS RESTRICTED TO SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.
CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE SUBSCRIPTION INFO.
Bartleman: Ontario's first Native Lieutenant Governor
Abby Cote , Windspeaker Contributor, Brussels
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien named Rama First Nations own James Bartleman as Ontario's twenty-seventh Lieutenant Governor on Jan. 10.
In his new capacity as the Queen's representative in Ontario, Bartleman replaces Hilary Weston, who was appointed to the post five years ago and whose term has expired.
Bartleman, the father of three, was born in Orillia and raised in Port Carling. He is Canada's most senior Aboriginal diplomat and with this appointment Bartleman will be returning home from Brussels, leaving his current post as the head of the Mission of Canada to the European Union.
Prime ministers as far back as Lester B. Pearson have relied on Bartleman's advice. He is a seasoned career diplomat and political advisor who has served several years in Chretien's cabinet as the Prime Minister's handpicked foreign policy advisor. Bartleman has also served terms as Canada's High Commissioner to South Africa and Australia, as well as terms as Canada's Ambassador to Cuba and Israel. Bartleman has seen service as Canada's director general of security and intelligence during the Cold War.
With this new appointment by the prime minister, Bartleman has achieved the highest rank in Ontario of any Aboriginal public servant.
In 1999, the Canadian Aboriginal community recognized Bartleman's achievements with a National Aboriginal Achievement Award in the Public Service category.
In the 1970s, he designed the first ever action plan to bring First Nations people into the public service. Today, decades later, he's still working hard at this cause.
"I have never felt that my Aboriginal background has either helped me or hindered me, but as an individual I think that it has given me a much richer life, knowing what life as a Aboriginal is like," said Bartleman in a 1999 interview. "It gives me tremendous pride to be a member of the First Nations community," said Bartleman from Brussels.
"It is a tremendous sense of honour to have been asked to take on this responsibility, something that I had never expected, but I will do my very best to represent the people of Ontario," Bartleman said.
Bartleman received the news of his new appointment in a phone call from Prime Minister Chrétien. He then called his mother to give her the news.
"He calls me every morning to see how I am. When he called me the second time, I knew something was up. He asked me if I was standing up or sitting down and then he told me. This (appointment) comes as a surprise, but I'm happy for him and very proud," said Maureen Bartleman.
"James grew up in the bush in Port Carling," said his mother. "The Chippewas of Rama used to travel here every summer to fish and hunt. Way back this used to be our traditional summer camp. James comes home as often as he can, but he wishes that it could be more often. I am fortunate to be able to still speak Anishnawbe. James, however, wishes now that he had learned his language as he is very proud of his Anishnawbe heritage. James worked hard, very hard to achieve all that he has done. He believes that a good education is the key to making great accomplishments."
Bartleman's appointment has been noted by Ontario's Aboriginal community, as well as Native leaders across Canada. Union of Ontario Indians Grand Chief Vernon Roote said although he was happy for the recognition of Aboriginal people that comes with Bartleman's new position, he hoped that this appointment would allow Bartleman to highlight some of the issues concerning Native people in Ontario.
Bartleman has said that he will be particularly interested in Aboriginal and mental health matters during his term as Lieutenant Governor.
Aboriginal runner part of Team Diabetes
Cheryl Petten, Windspeaker Staff Writer, Six Nations of the Grand RiverWhen Sandra Juutilainen travels to Rome this spring, she'll be seeing the Colisseum, the Piazza Venezia, the Roman Forum, and the Vatican. But she probably won't have time to stop and enjoy the view.
Those are just some of the sights to see along the course of this year's Rome marathon, which Juutilainen will be competing in to raise money for the Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA).
Juutilainen, a member of Oneida Nation of the Thames, is one of 50 people from across Canada participating in the March 24 marathon as part of Team Diabetes Canada. Although this will be Juutilainen's third time running in a marathon, it will be her first as a member of the team.
Team Diabetes Canada is a new fundraising program, launched by the CDA in 2000. Through the program, people from across the country can join the team and compete in marathons, mountain bike relays, adventure races or an ironman triathlon, while raising money for the CDA at the same time.
Juutilainen got involved in Team Diabetes Canada after seeing information about the program at one of the previous marathons she'd run in.
"There was information about Team Diabetes Canada, and it talked about raising money for the Canadian Diabetes Association and running marathons in different countries," she said. After learning more about the program, she signed up to participate in the Rome marathon.
Juutilainen said she decided to get involved in Team Diabetes Canada because it combined running marathons, something she liked to do anyway, with raising funds for the CDA.
"Plus the opportunity to go to Rome. That helped too."
As a registered dietician working in Six Nations of the Grand River, promoting a healthy and active lifestyle as a way to manage or prevent diabetes is something she does on an ongoing basis. It's also an important part of her life on a more personal level, because of the prevalence of diabetes within her own family. Both of her parents, and both sets of her grandparents, have diabetes.
Each member of the team going to Rome has to raise $5,500 through sponsorships and other fundraising activities. Juutilainen is organizing a silent auction to help her reach her goal. Approximately half of the money raised by each team member will be used to cover the cost of their race registration fees, airfare and accommodations, as well as to provide training and team uniforms.
According to Janelle Martin, co-ordinator of community programs with the CDA, no previous marathon experience is required to join Team Diabetes Canada. In fact, about 75 per cent of participants in the marathon events so far have been full-time runners.
In addition to helping raise funds, the Team Diabetes Canada program has also helped to raise the profile of the CDA, Martin said.
"The best way to prevent Type 2 is to lead an active lifestyle. And that's a very key message for our organization, that we want to make people aware that a healthy lifestyle is very important. And it's also very important in managing Type 1. And so in a program like this, where we have all these ambassadors, basically, out in the community, who are talking about what they're doing, really does help raise the profile of the organization."
To make donations to the CDA on Juutilainen's behalf, or to find out more about Team Diabetes Canada, contact Janelle Martin at 1-800-361-1306, ext. 486, or by e-mail at martin@diabetes.ca.
Six Nations singer to perform at Olympic games
L.M. VanEvery, Windspeaker Contributor, Six Nations
Representing Onkwehonwe people, singer Sadie Buck from the Seneca nation of Six Nations of the Grand River Territory and Tonawanda Seneca Territory in New York will perform in the opening ceremonies of the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics to be held in February.
Buck was asked by executive producer of the ceremonies, Don Mischer, to be a part of the Native American contingent that will perform the song and dance to welcome the athletes and the world to Utah.
Mischer had heard Buck's voice on the Unity Stomp, a track on Robbie Robertson's CD Contact from the Underworld of Red Boy. Her voice made such an impression on him that when he called, he said, "I've been listening to your voice for over a year." Then he invited her to sing a remix of that same song with Robbie Robertson (from Six Nations as well), Rita Coolidge and Walela (Cherokee) for the ceremonies. Buck will sing lead, as she did on the original CD and Robertson's band will provide musical accompaniment. The Unity Stomp is about four minutes in length.
With more than half the population of the planet expected to watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics, Buck appeared to be more excited than nervous and is taking her upcoming gig in stride. She has, after all, been performing traditional songs for her entire life.
"I've always been a performer and this is just one stop on the evolution of places I'm supposed to go," she said. Although as the lead singer and artistic director of the Six Nations Women Singers, Buck has been singing Unity Stomp songs for more than 35 years, she must still rehearse and learn the remixed version.
Buck is honored to be a part of the welcome portion of the opening ceremonies. She is thankful for the gift of song that the Creator has given her and believes there is a reason she has been chosen to be there.
She is not sure who chose the Unity Stomp to perform but believes in its appropriateness for the occasion. Unity Stomp is a string of songs created in the 1960s that unified nations of singers so that when they got together to visit, sing and dance, they all could take part by singing the same songs. The purpose of the songs was to promote awareness and unity among nations. Buck's hope is that it will serve that same purpose in Utah on Feb. 8.
The second part of the Native American welcome will consist of the five largest tribes in Utah (Paiute, Ute, Goshute, Shoshone and Navajo) giving a dance performance that is approximately five minutes in length.
Buck leaves her community on Feb. 2 for two days of rehearsals with Robertson, Coolidge and Walela in Los Angeles. She arrives in Salt Lake City on Feb. 4 for three more days of rehearsals before her performance at the opening ceremonies.
Sharing the same stage as the Native contingent and also performing at the opening ceremonies are Sting, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Utah Symphony, the Dixie Chicks, LeAnn Rimes, cellist Yo Yo Ma, a cappella group Eclipse and Utah's Deseret String Band/Bunkhouse Orchestra.
