Civic pioneer honored with Order of Canada

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When Theresa Stevenson receives the Order of Canada medal in October she will receive it with the thought in mind that these are the best years of her life.

The 67-year-old wife and mother of three had to overcome many hardships to achieve the recognition she received nationally with the medal.

This October, Stevenson will travel to Rideau Hall in Ottawa to be presented with the Order of Canada by Governor General Ray Hnatyshyun. She receives the honor for her outstanding work in the Indian community and especially for her role in starting the first school hot lunch program in Canada.

"The best years of my life are now," Stevenson said. "I feel that I have accomplished something and when it comes to helping needy children, I know that I'm offering a much needed service."

In 1955, Stevenson and her husband Robert, who are from Cowessess Reserve in Saskatchewan, moved to Montana because of the poor living conditions on the reserve.

"At the time, the hardest thing for Robert and me was leaving our three children behind," she said.

Stevenson and her husband returned to Cowessess six months later to pick up their children and return to Montana. The family stayed in Montana for 16 years.

"When we had difficult times in Montana, we were very fortunate because there was an organization that fed children on their lunch breaks from school," said Stevenson. "This is where I first got the idea of starting a program of this kind in Regina."

The Chili For Children program started nine years ago with Stevenson being the guiding force. Since then, similar programs have sprung up across the country.

"People from across the country have followed suit and now hot lunch programs can be found from Halifax to Vancouver," she added.

Stevenson is the executive director at Regina Indian Community Awareness Inc. and oversees various services the organization provides, including the Chili For Children program. She has a personal conflict to improve the convictions of life in her community by helping members receive basic necessities such as food, shelter, clothing and education.

Stevenson credits having experienced poverty and hunger in her youth with helping her be understanding and compassionate to others today.

And the gentle Cree woman's generosity is limitless.

"God has made me color blind," she said. "A person is a person and I will never close my door or my heart to anyone in need."

Stevenson said her staff of eight and two summer students have been "brainwashed" by her to keep in mind their most important clients are the children of the community...

Stevenson feels that some people who have followed her lead in feeding hungry children have done it for all the wrong reasons.

"After I started feeding the children, people in certain positions could not accept the fact that an Indian person could manage such a large task.

"I became fed up with these people and joined the Indian Community Awareness organization," she said. "Some organization will get the funding for a program such as this but they are more interested in filling their own pockets than the children's stomachs."

Stevenson is involved in all aspects of community life. If she's not serving hot meals to children, she can be found working as a literacy volunteer or helping patrons find low-cost housing.

The October event won't be the first to recognize Stevenson's humanitarian efforts.

In 1992 she received the Commemorative Medal of Canada and in 1988 she was presented with the Citizen of the Year award by the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations.

"I think it's a very good appointment." said Saskatchewan's chief of Protocol, Michael Jackson. "She certainly deserves it with her background in feeding children and helping the community."