Swan River Native a foster mother to many

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Dorothy Walker runs a foster home in Grande Prairie.

Her oldest ward, Mike Michalzuk was born in 1910. Her youngest, Cassy Kiwassew, is handicapped and "only eight years old," Dorothy commented.

A member of the Swan River Indian band at Kinuso, Dorothy has been a foster mother for over 22 years. Her efforts earned her the provincial volunteer of the year award in 1983.

But what makes a woman like Dorothy dedicate most of her life to helping others?

It's no secret, she says, that she likes to work with people, especially children, even if it means simply volunteering her services.

"I took after my grandmother, Marie Louise Dumont. Marie always took in the homeless. I was brought up seeing my grandmother do all these kind things. She was such a wonderful lady," Dorothy remembers fondly.

Raised in Faust, Dorothy has three children of her own -- one daughter Darlene Bruno passed away in 1983. Not only did she raise her daughters, but when they had children of their own, many times "grandmother Walker" took care of her grandchildren.

"I also had a foster child I raised and when my daughter passed away I raised her four children. They're all grown up now," she says.

Dorothy says that by raising her children and foster child, it helped her understand how important it is for people to have a place they can call home.

"It's sad when you know there are so many people available to help others, but they don't do anything.

"You have to have a heart, especially for children. I love children and always take in strays," Dorothy says humorously.

Before funding became available for Dorothy to open her home to disabled and homeless children, she proudly admits her late husband Ernest Walker provided for the children they had taken in.

"Ernest was employed with Imperial Esso at Kinuso. When Kenford bought them our, we moved with the company to Grande Prairie. He worked for them for 29 years. We always had food on the table for all of us," she says.

Not only was Ernest a great provider but so was Dorothy.

For 16 years she was a cook for a Kinuso lodge.

"We never wanted for anything and neither did the people we took in," says Dorothy, adding her husbands was always there for her and "for them."

Dorothy's dedication to the disabled and homeless won her the hearts of everyone in the Grande Prairie area as well as the hearts of those everywhere, who have come to know about the work she does.

Her friend and provincial health care worker for the Lesser Slave Lake area, Doris Courtorille, said that "she has the greatest sense of humor and is very witty. For all the work she does, one needs a good sense of humor."

Today, Dorothy has 12 people she takes care of and with funding from Alberta Mental Health Care she manages to get by.

"They've been funding me for about 12 years for looking after handicapped people. It's sort of a special rate I get on some of my bills," Dorothy says.

Dorothy's love for people, who need to be cared for or who need to be "just helped to get back on their feet" could come from a long bloodline of well meant relatives - especially one historical figure, Gabriel Dumont.

"Gabriel and Isadore Dumont are the uncles of my father Peter Dumont," she says with pride, while reflecting on the past when Gabriel Dumont let Metis people into battle in 1885 in Saskatchewan as Louis Riel's general.

Today, she has an adopted boy -- 14-year-0ld Jason Walker -- whom she has had since he was two weeks old. Her two daughters, Denny Morison and Wanda Johnson, live in Grand Prairie and with "all the love flowing around our house, we'll be all right," Dorothy laughs.

She is a lifetime member of the Grand Prairie Native Friendship Centre and once its president. Today she's the center's elder, a distinction she holds with pride.

Dorothy views herself not as someone special but simply as a person who reaches out a helpful hand to those who may need it.

"Somebody has to be a mother to these children, even my youngest, ike, who is 80 years of age."

"I care for them and when they hurt, I hurt."

"You ask how long I will continue to do this? As long as I can. As long as I can stand, I will keep care of them."

"I'm 60 but that's it. From now on, I'm 60 and holding."

"Someone once said to me, 'Dorothy, you're 60 but you have no wrinkles on your face.' I said thanks, but you haven't looked in the other place," she laughs.

Shyness does not belong in Dorothy's vocabulary.. Neither do the words homeless and handicapped.

"They will always have a home with Dorothy Walker," she vows.