 My name is Brenda Jador. I am the Music Director here at Savannah Way, Giganamuugam. I teach music from grades 2 to 12. I do four courses in the senior high at the province level. The other courses in music I teach from 2 to 9 are provincial based, plus I have created Aboriginal curriculum from various First Nations and Inuit and Métis people, composers, performing artists, visual artists, so I accumulate that into each grade in a different unit. But with the senior high, I stick basically to the provincial guidelines. When I came in 1980, there was no pavement. There was nothing. Just houses, very happy people, very humble people. And I was asked because I have music background, but I teach music. So coming from St. John's, I said, oh my gosh, I'd be delighted. So I got in my little Honda Civic and I drove to Con River and I didn't realize that the gas sign at the end of the road says, check your fuel. So I barely made it here because there's no service station anywhere. So I came up on and then I saw the dirt road and I went, oh my goodness, I could have had a job in St. John's. I could have had a job anywhere. I said, I wonder where this road is going to lead me. So I thought about Robert Frost, two roads diverged in the Yellowwood. And I was thinking, this is Adam. I had two choices. So I said, no, I could do this. And it was the best decision of my entire life. When I arrived in the classroom, probably three or four days later, I walked in and I was like, okay, this school is different. Why is this school lacking? Because I didn't see the resources. I saw no, absolutely no sign of art resources, visual art resources. And then of course, I was music based. So I went to the, at that time, was a principal because we were under provincial regulation at that time. So I went and I said, Mrs. Wetzel, what are we going to do with the music program? I have no piano. I don't have a keyboard. I don't have a little drum. I don't have a triangle, not even thinking about band instruments or choral risers or anything. So she said, that's why you were chosen because you're going to invent these things. You are going to create a music program. And I said, wow. So anyway, about five days later, I was going to church here and there was a historic individual that sat outside the church. He was an elder, a village elder, fluent in Igama. And as I was going in, he nodded his head at me. And to me, that was a sign that I was meant to be here. So anyway, I just went on into church and there was no music. And so I said, okay, the first thing I'll do is start a church choir with the children. So something inspired me about that man because when I got the children together, they had no experience, no background, no pitch, nothing. So anyway, I taught them what I could without the piano. And my God, it was like every one of them were born with this perfect pitch and would give me goosebumps. And but they were going, are we good? Are we goodness Brenda? I couldn't get over it. So I remember the hymn was, what is it in English? Come by here Lord. But in Igama, I wanted that was my very first hymn. I wanted to translate it right away before we sang it in the church. So it was Jugawei niskum. And where did I get that from? That elder outside the church that because I asked him, like, can I speak to you? And he said, sure. And I said, I want to put the language in the church. I said, all I need to know is to translate it because you know, that song is so repentant. Someone's hungry, someone's thirsty. And he said, ah, no problem. Jugawei niskum. Gaui zing. Gaui zing. I said, good, good, good. And you know, when somebody tells you that you're doing something good, you get that feeling. I got a spark. And that was the beginning of it all. So then I left Con River because I had a really very lucrative job offer in the south coast of Newfoundland. And I taught at a beautiful primary school, all all 350 students did music. Most of them had training and piano at that age. So it was like, wow. So I stayed there for five years. And I got married in between the five and my husband was a police officer still on the reserve. So after the fifth year, Con River was recognized as a First Nations reserve with full land and all the acts in the Indian act would be a buy to buy the provincial and federal government. So I got a call, guess who calls me? Mrs. Edwina Wetzel, the principal. Now she's moved to director because she doesn't work within the school board anymore. They are in charge of their own education. So I said, yes, she said, I need a need a favor. We need you back. And I said, Oh, gosh, I've got like 35 piano students. I have four choirs. I had like, absolutely wonderful success, like at the different competitions and stuff. And the parents, oh my God, they were so, so resourceful. So she said, but you started the language here in music and five years we've gone without it. So I said, I'm coming back. So I told my husband, he was, he was so, so, so happy. And I had two little girls at that point. They were very young, three and about two months old. And I came back and not much had changed. But the self-esteem of everybody here changed for the better. Because if somebody was finally recognizing that these were Aboriginal people who had their own history, who had their treaties, who had a right to education health, but on their terms. So I was honored. I said, wow, the music education is going to be left up to me. So I wanted paramount. So then started the drum group. I wanted a Paribuskin drum because I had traveled to sister nations, Eskasoni in Nova Scotia, and I saw the floor drum. So I went to the chief and we sat down and we chatted and I said, I want you to build it with the children. Not a problem. We'll do it on the garden. So we went to the chief's garden, seven little boys. They're all like somewhere in the Marines are all very, very well placed in society right now. They made the first drum themselves. They got the animal, they skinned it, they stretched it, they cleaned the hide, they soaked it, they made the wooden frame. It was absolutely a life-changing experience. And when they made their sticks, the elder invert was because I had just leather and he said, no, no, no, no, soften up. I have sheep. I'm going to give you some sheep for her skin. I said, really? Anyway, he gave me the coverings and that's what we started with. That one floor drum that was 1993 perhaps, around that. And I had the boys involved. So I said, there's no English. And they said, oh, no, no, there's no English. Oh, we're going to listen to them, other people. No, you're not. You're going to sing the songs of your people, the meagomal. I said, what are you here on? It was tape recorders at that time. It's like Ojibwe, Crete, and they have the right to their own music. But so do you. So what I did, I went to Eskisoni the very summer and I was taught by three knowledgeable elders. And I lived there for two weeks in the household and I wasn't allowed to speak English. And Wilford Prosper was one of them. And he would start seven o'clock in the morning as soon as I had my breakfast. Okay, okay. Now, this is what we have to do. We have to do how great our work today. I said, oh, I love that. But he was saying all this in meagomal. And I was saying, think, think what it was so beautiful. And at the end of the day, that's that him was transcribed. And then of course, we did the amazing grace. And then so on and so on with the sacred music. So I walked away that summer with seven beautiful brand of sacred pieces. So I established a church choir of children, like from the ages, I think they were probably nine to 16 years old. And they sang in the church, then they sang in a funeral. So I went back the following summer, and I wanted more sacred music. So I learned how to sing the glorious mysteries in meagomal. And I learned how to sing Ave Maria. And all these classical pieces, because this Wilford Prosper, he was so gifted. He was a very knowledgeable elder. So I brought it back and we did that. And then the boys were there saying, how about the drum songs? I said, yes, we know the honor because I taught them the honor song, then I taught them the gathering song. And then we did the friendship song. And then we did the circle of friendship. And they were saying, are we going to learn any more teacher? And I said, well, the only way I can do that is if I get somebody to come in and instruct drum songs. Because it's not so easy. It's not like any other piece of music. You can't pick up a sheet and go, okay, I'll preview this. It's not, it's not, it's all oral tradition. So we had a Michel Doucet come in from Mescasone. He's a spiritual leader there. And he taught the boys and he brushed up some of the meagomal that I had done. A remarkable job. And he still comes to this day. He was here last year and he'll come over and he'll sit at the drum. And since then I'm after having so many drum groups. Right now we have 31 drummers in different factions of the school. Yes, because the primary students, as they're going through, they hear the junior high, the high, they're like, wow, I'm going to be a drummer. Hey, Miss Brenda, you're going to put me on the drum. Hey, Miss Brenda. And we do like I have a unit of traditional drumming in every course I teach from grade two to grade nine. So by the time they're in grade nine, they're polished. So I can put them in like different, we went to Japan and Ottawa and Halifax. And we did like the major gatherings for meagomal people like the member two 400. And we've done, we've sang for other meagomal people. And that's very difficult. Because if you're singing for polished language resource people, you have to be like, exact. So we were at Antikinish. And I was at El Nui Sultanage, which is a language conference for meagomal speakers. And the choir was invited to open it up as the key, after the keynote. And so we did, and we did, I did something strange. I took the amazing grace, Ule Udi, and I crossed it with Pacabel's Canon. So then I did the harmonies and stuff. So they sang all in meagomal. And on the Pacabel's Canon section, they danced. And it was absolutely touching. And there's a sister Dorothy more of their renowned educator and linguist as well. And she came up and she had tears in her eyes. And the children just, they were so ecstatic. We must be good. I said, you're good and good. You're fantastic. You're wonderful. Because I said, you're not just singing. You're passing on a culture. You're keeping it alive. You're rejuvenating it. Wow. And they stayed to the grade 12. I had every single one still. Nobody left the choir until the grade 12 thing. And then I had like really, I had one little girl, I had her for 12 years. And she was in grade 12. And she said, what will I do next year? I said, well, do you really love the music that you're doing now? Yes. I said, apply to music school. Oh, I have to audition for that. I have to do, I said, yes, and we're going to get you ready for that. And anyway, she went in, she did the opera program. And then we sent kids in Western Canada doing the Broadway programs. And then we had one audition in New York. So although it's done in big amount, the standard is still there. I make sure the standard has to be equitable, right? Same as any other type of music. Beautiful interpretation, intonation. I do all of that. But it's from them. And it's theirs. And the, the, when we go on the road, we take both the drummers and the chanters. The chanters that we use now, like this year, would be the people who dedicated their time to do koanas. They have to do a minimum of five pieces in order to be in the chanters group. So we had some new hand drums arrive and they're performing for APT and I think it's later today. So they've, they've, they're just so happy. But I tell you, this wouldn't work everywhere. It's the parents. No matter what you, what layer you peel away, it's the parents of those children or their guardians who did that. Not me. It's those parents. They bought the ribbon shirts and they bought the ribbon dresses and they bought the, the jewelry or had it made. There's an elder here in Martina Marshall. And if a child went up to get moccasins and they'll say, Oh, look at the bottoms of these moccasins. There's holes in them. What have you done? What's Miss Brenda done? And they say, it's good. Hey, because she said that we traveled many miles. So that's how much we shared with other people. And she would always make like, if we were going to something say sacred, like a sacred gathering, she would ensure that every one of those little ones had exactly what they need and understood. Like if they wore a medicine pouch, if she sold them a medicine pouch or she gave it to them and she gifted it, she would explain, now this is what you're holding. And this is what you do when you hold this. So it's a whole community resource. It's totally different than the music I did on the South Coast, which was all composition based and the adjudicators understood it. But that too was a downfall because we do the Kiwanis in central Newfoundland. And we've been carrying the drum, I'd say for what 15 years and every time we get a adjudicator, I can't adjudicate that. And it kills them. It kills the boys. If I had to put a mark on, I don't know where to mark it because I don't have a score. So I would say to him and to the committee, you have to develop empathy. If you're serving this coast, you have to be cognizant of exactly who's coming to this festival. But no, we didn't make headway yet. So the drum hasn't gone now for the past five years. And the chanters, well, I put them in the, like we could say 18 years and under acquires. So they will be singing the Gloria or like God made my these hands or some beautiful piece. And then mine will go in and say they, they might sing the Ave Maria in Mi Gama. They'll always come on and say, my God, that was stunning. I couldn't write anything on the paper. The pitch, the interpretation. And I didn't understand a word you said, but I can't mark it because I don't understand it. I'm like, wow, how many people, how many adjudicators know every language like 12 languages that a pope or somebody would know. No, it's, it's, so that's what we have to do as educators. Is not only educate our children, we're doing that. We've got to get them to develop the empathy and the ability to share all of this. Because if not, some children, when they hear comments like that, they withdraw and they, and it has happened. But I've managed to bring them back, but it hurts. It really hurts because on the way back in the bus, they'll say, I wonder what mark we would have gotten Miss Brenda. And I said, well, in my heart, you've got the highest mark. Oh, next year we should do an English song then an Amigama song. So that's what I've been doing. I'll do one English and one Amigama, but not happy with that at all. No, not happy. It's shocking. It's very sad, especially since we're associated with the festival for 35 years. We've been sending kids back and forth because I've been teaching for their 39. Five was in Maristown. So four is there, 34 years. It just hurts. It really, really hurts. Do the best we can. Basically, that's it. I have to teach the dancing and the traditional drumming, the hand drumming, the chanting group, the sacred choirs, the traditional, well, I also have choirs like class choirs. And they also sing an Aboriginal piece and an English piece. But it's very, very difficult like to find the Aboriginal pieces for sacred two, three, four, five and six. Where are they? Because there's only so many Amigama songs out there. So what I've been doing lately is taking thematic songs intended for teaching people about First Nations people like Pocahontas' Colors of the Wind. The lyrics in that are stunning. So we've done that one year and they were so happy that it was done. But the problem is that there's not enough resources because I need to be retodd in order to teach more. I need, I'm hungry, but I haven't been sent anywhere to learn more in many, many years. So that's the drawback for me. I would love to learn more. I would love to pass on more. But that's it. The indigenous education is the ability to install in every little child the ability to understand where you came from, what the treaties are, what TRC means. And out of TRC comes the residential schools. Every Aboriginal child doesn't even understand the truth yet. Truth Reconciliation Commission, what's the truth? What's the truth teacher? And I always would put the, in the older school, we just moved here, I would have the treaties around my music group. And, you know, you would direct when you're teaching a certain piece, you'll say, wow, didn't know we had those land rights. So just watch. Look, in 1752, this was written. And this is what this means. And look, it's signed. It's signed by your people and the federal government. So you have the right to do this. I think that's the first thing in indigenous education. They have to figure out what the truth is before they can take the next step and say, now, where do we go from the truth? We have, we can't shroud it in negativity. We'd like the residential schools. Nobody understands unless they were actually at these schools. And that's what's so powerful. And I think music and performing arts could bring a lot of that out, right? Put a nice turn to it. Just like Gord Downey did. There needs to be like a thousand Gord Downeys as music teachers. And then they bring that to the children and say, okay, let's, let's compose. Let's do a composition. Let's do a composition about the little girl who waited and waited for Christmas to come. And then when Christmas came, she was told the day before, no, you're not going home. You're staying here at this school. And she was devastated. And then there's so many other stories, right? And you could turn that into song because song is prayer and prayer is light. So you're giving light to people who need to know the truth. And then they can start reconciling. They'll understand each other. But without knowing your history, what actually happened and the history and knowledge of other Aboriginal groups, that's why this NCCIE works because it's a network that connects not just for teachers, oh no, for elders who think it's all lost. They just got to key in and say, oh, look, they're doing that out in Manitoba. Wow, look what's happening in PEI. Oh my God, our history is not forgotten. But it's only through these types of organizations that that happens because right now we're seeing TRC, TRC, which is wonderful, but we have to bring it back. And we have to do truth first to our children because we weren't part of the residential school. But we should be empathetic towards those that were. And because I am musically inclined, I think music is the key to that. I think it will open the soul of all those dear people who suffered immensely. And there are people and the elders, because I've gone to conferences for education, Aboriginal and Atlantic Native Teachers Education Council conference. And I've sat there and I've been thinking, oh my God, the resources in this room. Like even when a person says, we don't teach at a moccasins in ours. And I'm like, I bet she could say that minimum. So after I went home, I said, could you say what you spoke up in the conference? Can you say that? Oh yeah, yeah. And then she went, I said, do you know something? You should say more in Megaman. That would make more people stop and listen. And then probably in five years, whoever's the prime minister, there might be more aboriginal content in what you call the caucus and the cabinet so that the very few that are there, especially if they're female, are understood because they want things done right. And that's what's happening now. We're seeing a shift is like there's almost a new divide starting. So they're taking what's happening in cabinet and saying that's women. That's aboriginal. And it comes out if they don't understand the truth. That's what happens to through aboriginal history knowledge. So musical cure all that if I live to be a hundred. Yeah, everything is grounded in positivity because you start with the chief, traditional chief and administrative chief, Michelle Joe, whatever he does, whoever comes in front of him, he will never ever divide and say a professional person, it deserves more dignity than say a ditch digger. No, everybody is equal here. No matter what, this is how he operates his community, the power he has and the knowledge he has. So they're really, really, and we're so lucky that he's still the chief after so many years, but he's there every second Monday to welcome his community, whatever's on their mind, whatever stream of life they're from, they sit in the council chambers and they listen to their people. And that's what's missing in the outside world, though. But we could do it. We could do it. Municipalities can do it in little sections. My vision for this school would be, it would be at least 60% full-time, megamospeaking, children, teachers, educators, resource people. There would be more acknowledgement of the treaties around teaching the treaties, teaching the residential school. Everybody in 10 years time should have developed that empathy that's needed and they should know about their history and their culture, their genealogy even. Like, because we've been here for time immemorial and a lot of students, when you step off the reserve and you go back and say, oh, I came from Ireland and my, because my grandmother came from Ireland, but my grandfather came from Scotland. So here, it's all, we came from Con River, we came from the Joe plant, the Judo plant, stuff like that. So it's wonderful. Like you said, the humming is because they know who they are. They know what road, they know what they have to do to succeed because they, like there's a doctor. And now he's just starting to be a neurologist from Con River. They have lawyers here. They have nursing practitioners, nurses. And we have so many that we don't have enough jobs. Like our recent graduate, now Adriana, she has to go to Nova Scotia because our clinic is filled with our own people that are doing the nursing. So, you know, we're, Anna, really like the humming. Thank you. We're on that path of we got to continue this humming, but we have to make sure we proceed at number one, the language to me. It's the heart and soul of everything. The language was born on, this is my belief on the country. Why the country? Because in days gone by, long before our time, that's where the language originated. Did you bring enough taboo away? Butter. Oh, bees away, salt, pepper. And that's where it started. And they would go hunting and they would share stories. And they'd become probably weeks on end. Then they would bring back their hunt. And then the language was there and it was so rich. So we need to re, we need to re-associate some of these kids with the land portion, the trapping, the hunting. It's still taking place, but not as a business, but as a way of life, as a culture. So that, I think that's important. 10 years time, I'm hoping to be here. I'll be the oldest teacher probably in Canada, seriously. And I'm hoping that the admin team here, which are phenomenal, that's another thing. See, if you have a school and your admin team really believes in you and gives you so many experiences with the outside world as well as within, you will succeed. And that's what's happening here. Everybody's voice is heard. There's no way anybody could say, I didn't know so-and-so was doing that to a uniting way too. And we would say, oh, yeah, they always do the elder story. They always interview the elders or whatever portion they're doing. Everybody knows what everybody else is doing. It's just like a perfect braid. Everybody works together. And like this morning, the girls are coming in because they have to do something with APTN. And the teacher came down. She said, it's so spiritually uplifting when they come in with their beautiful jewelry and their hair braided and carrying their garment bags. And she said, I brought my drum. I said, you didn't. She said, yes. I said, now, to me, that's so powerful, Kayla, because you were one of those when you were a pre-kindergarten. And I took you right through. You went down to the States and you studied music down in the States. Now you're back here teaching. She said, got up. I had to take the drum. I knew those kids today would be performing. So this is what happens. It never leaves them. Once you ignite that spark within them, it gives them such confidence. And in 10 years time, we've got to have a bigger music program, really. It's the only thing that will work. That's my visual arts. Visual arts is so important. But now I'm being biased because I teach music. But I've seen such successes I really have. And you can go and you can do basketball, volleyball in any school anywhere. But can you come to any school and find out who you are, where you came from in your own language and what you can pass on? Because the Aboriginal people and this collaboration is absolutely needed. And it needs to go on for at least 10 years. Because this is all some people have as resources. And we look at those videos and we take, wow, didn't know they were doing that there. I'm going to get into spire in November. I'm going to connect with that person because that's what I've done. Because it's so powerful a network and we have to have that to make sure everybody has a voice. Because way up north where Kayla taught last year, it was so remote, but what she brought back for stories. And what does this offer? A chance for her experiences. And it will open doors to teachers who go up north, which is absolutely wonderful. But one big regret I got, I have to add, is that our province is Newfoundland and Labrador. So Labrador, I would love, love to go and learn the Inu and do the musical program there. If I could have a second life, I would go to Labrador. I went to a conference, oh, jeez, a few years back now. Anyway, it was an Aboriginal conference and every student from every part of Labrador descends on Goose Bay. And we have this Aboriginal Arts Festival. And I was so lucky to be chosen to go there. And I was just beyond. I was so happy. I was like, oh, God, this is going to be so, all the stories I could tell. So anyway, I sat down and Mud Lake came on first. And there were seven of them. And I was like, seven children. Wow. And they sang this song. And it was the most beautiful song in the whole world. And every time I think of them or see anything on the news about Labrador, I'll always think of Mud Lake. And then you have Paradise River. And then you have Shashi. How much music is in Shashi? Look at the Moravian that the missionaries did. Who's doing that now? And sadly, last year, that was closed off. Isn't that sad? That's why this organization can actually, if they can bond in with you guys, they will say, hey, we could do this. We've got a lot of support there. So that's an ultimate dream of mine is to go to Labrador in my next life. I sat on the design of the new Aboriginal Social Studies curriculum. And the representatives from Labrador would be up on one end of the table. And I was in, say, towards the middle. And we couldn't make that they would be so shy and they would be so humble. So we need to understand their truths. Unlock their truths. Show them, wow, you are a fantastic human being. Now let's bring it out. Let's bring it back to the community. And we could do that through music. Yes, all of the network is absolutely amazing as it is. And it's going to grow because of people like you. And it's going to get the right messages to the right people. That's so important. But the major of your acronym, the major word is collaboration. You took the time to come here. You will develop so many friendships after this. And so you'll get stronger. And now our community and our resource people and our beautiful elders will be understood. We'll have a voice. We'll have a voice now. We'll know, like, Verley, I have this idea to do this in my classroom. I don't mind doing that with you now. I would email you and say, I'm thinking about what do you think of that? Because you came and you humbled yourself. And everybody here loves you. They love you. And they know why you're here. That's what's so important. So the students came in this morning, like one little child was out due to sickness. And she said, Miss Brenda, please say I didn't miss my interview. I said, no, my love, I will give up my chair for you. Oh, thank you, Miss Brenda. She said, because I really need to speak. And I said, awesome. Because the people here, like I said earlier, like you have the top professionals. We have Indispire Youth Award winner here. Like, you know, we've done our thing. But in 10 years, the question was so rich, because you're not giving up. And you're not saying, good job. That's good. No, where are you going to be in 10 years? We're going to be at least 50 times ahead of our language and incorporating the music and the art and putting it all together and sharing it with others. That's what I see. So what we've done now lately is that Miel Bogek, Con River, has been successful in getting a living encyclopedia. One was done for Fogo, one was done for Potashua. But Con River has theirs now. So I was on the editorial team and working with these amazing people, Jerry Evans and Pam Hall. Yes. Yes. So that's exactly what they did. They went to the students. They trained the students how to interview, how to video, how to audio record, and then they sent them out in totally different genres within the community. Like some people might have done all kind of cooking, the moose nose, how is it done. And then so that's a pictorial history of the community because they covered everything. It is absolutely amazing. So soon be published. But anyway, that's exactly what those kids were done. They were trained to do this. But the only thing was that they were at the grade 12 level. So after the project, they were gone. So to me, I think we should lower it because if you want it passed on and just like the drum, oh my, will we be doing that when we get it? I'm going to be a drummer. They could look forward to saying, I'm hoping to be on that editorial team or on that recording team. Because my Nan told me a story and I want everybody to know that story. And I want to ask people questions. Look what you're doing. Look at the self-esteem you're giving them. And that's like those things once that did that. The product is going to be world-class because they left no stone unturned. But it's visual. So what you're suggesting is that we have to make the histories, how shall we say, literal. They have to learn other ways too. That was the picture. But it is very important that the histories are taught exactly what happened. So you're going to have the right resource people like these two people that came in here. They met with us, the chief and council, and then they picked their editorial team. And then we collaborated just like you're doing. Collaborate and say, now what is important or what do we want to the outside communities to learn about Miyabake? And I'd say they had 200 suggestions on their check papers. And her office was like, oh my God, it was just like the presidential suite just before election day. Everybody was up and saying, oh, we have to do this. And then they had to narrow them down. So I stood back and said, aren't we glad we have too much? Because a lot of people say all those Aboriginal people should that's all they do is just dance and sing. But that that that that knowledge there, which will be passed on pictorially. So we're hoping that your group and other groups like you will get the literal histories out of the stories. Stories and histories be written and orally transmitted in some circles. You know, if the elder can't read or write or whatever, right? But we got to get them before they're gone. Every day we lose an elder. We lose such knowledge base. So we have to do something very soon with that. Because to me, after all these years, you're the first one to say, we've got to get those stories and those histories down. Because once they're gone, those elders are gone. The culture is died. The stories are died.