Debbie Houle [windspeaker confidential]

Windspeaker: What one quality do you most value in a friend?  
Debbie Houle: Honesty

W: What is it that really makes you mad?  
D.H: Greed.

W: When are you at your happiest?
D.H: I am most happiest when I am hanging out with my son, Darren.

W: What one word best describes you when you are at your worst?
D.H: Fugly!

W: What one person do you most admire and why?
D.H: My mom. She raised five kids on her own and we’ve all turned out pretty good.   She takes care of my mosom, Albert, who just turned 99 years old this year. I admire her for her determination, selflessness and strength.

W: What is the most difficult thing you’ve ever had to do?
D.H: Say goodbye to my son’s dad, Darren Pennington Sr. He passed away when Darren was six weeks old. I was super blessed to have a loving support system, my family and friends, who stuck pretty close to us. We’re grateful for each and every day, for our health, our home and pretty much everything the Lord has blessed us with!

W: What is your greatest accomplishment?
D.H: Being a single mom and raising my son Darren.  He’s 15 years old and just got his learners. He started his first job at Burger King a couple months ago. But most of all, I’m proud of the person he is inside.   

W: What one goal remains out of reach?
D.H: Getting a business degree. It’s totally achievable. I just need to take it one course at a time!

W: If you couldn’t do what you’re doing today, what would you be doing?
D.H: I would be building a race track for my son so he could go dirt biking all year long.  Still doable!

W: What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
D.H: Face your fears.

W: Did you take it?
D.H: You bet! I’ve been skydiving, did public speaking, ran Mud Hero, rode on some crazy rides, travelled the world, jumped in the Mediterranean Sea, and now I'm on a path to health and fitness.

W: How do you hope to be remembered?
D.H: As a super fun and happy mom who loved her family, friends and community.

Debbie Houle started her life in Edmonton, but was raised on the Elizabeth Métis Settlement, just north of Cold Lake, Alta. and on the East Prairie Métis Settlement, southeast of High Prairie, Alta. “We had a farm and raised cattle, horses, pigs and chickens. We all had to pitch in to work in the fields hauling bales with my dad. My mom grew a garden and we helped her take care of the garden. My mom and dad divorced when I was nine. My mom worked really hard to put herself through school while raising five kids.” Houle grew up in a musical household. “My mosom, Albert Collins, played the fiddle. My uncle Archie, August and my mom played in the band Halfbreed for several years. My brother Rory has been a musician all his life. Music has always been a part of Métis culture and I’ve always had a family I could learn from. I grew up singing, dancing the two-step and Red River Jig and I can still do some mean changes.”

Houle formed a vocal ensemble of women called ASANI who sing a cappella. ASANI is taken from the Cree word “asiniy”, which means “rock.” The group went through numerous formations from their inception in 1997, but in 2001 they solidified ASANI as the trio of Houle, Sherryl Sewepagaham, and Sarah Pocklington. Since then they have been performing near and far, including Carnegie Hall in New York and the Kennedy Centre in Washington, D.C. Their first CD was nominated for 11 music awards including a 2006 Juno nomination for Aboriginal Recording of the Year. They also received the Canadian Aboriginal Music Award for Best Female Traditional Cultural Roots Album in 2005. Their audiences have included the Dalai Lama and Queen Elizabeth II.

“I knew that if I was going to get anywhere, that I needed an education. Graduating high school was an expectation of my parents. Dropping out was never an option.” With all that she does now, asked where she sees herself going from here, she says, “I have always had strong and determined women to look up to. My mom, Violet Collins, my auntie Irene Collins, and Lillian Parenteau. These women instilled a strong set of values about who I was meant to be and how hard I needed to work to get there. It is important for me as a Métis woman to keep my son connected to his roots and his family in Elizabeth. Elizabeth Métis Settlement will always be my home and I am grateful to have been raised there.” As to the question of her career goals and further education, she says, “I graduated high school and will be working toward a degree in business. I am inspired to study business because I believe that is how we will be stronger in our community. I want to be part of building Aboriginal businesses in Edmonton and to do that it is important to know all of the different factors that work together in building a strong economic environment. I will work toward my degree in business and keep on singing!