Proudly recovering their cultural heritage
Sisters Gifts NL is helping celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day with a new “7 Feathers” Crosswalk in Grand Falls-Windsor.
Sisters Gifts is a store specializing in Indigenous inspired gifts run by Anishinaabe sisters Jennifer and Angela Kelly. It was their idea to have a “7 Feathers” Crosswalk installed in their hometown, taking inspiration from one they encountered in Coburg, Ont.
They were also impressed by the Pride crosswalk installed in town a couple years ago.
Jennifer felt a “7 Feathers” Crosswalk would be a great way to draw people’s attention.
“What better way to get the community involved and get the community aware of the Truth and Reconciliation activities and what needs to be done,” she told Central Wire. “And if you’re driving by and there’s feather there, it’s just a daily reminder.”
Sisters Gifts is partnering with the Town of Grand Falls-Windsor and the Demasduit Regional Museum to install the crosswalk at the corner of Crome Avenue and St. Catherine Street.
It will be dedicated at the Demasduit Regional Museum, 24 St. Catherine St. in Grand Falls-Windsor at 10 a.m. on June 21. There will be a land acknowledgement, an opening and closing prayer, information about the Seven Grandfather Teachings and an area for smudging. It is open to all Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.
The “7 Feathers” crosswalk will be painted orange with seven white feathers serving as the crosswalk lines. The seven feathers represent the Seven Grandfather Teachings which have been shared across many First Nations.
The seven principles are: humility, wisdom, respect, honesty, bravery, truth and love.
The dedication will be followed by a reception and barbecue at 11 a.m.
For the Kelly sisters, initiatives such as the crosswalk and the work they do with their business is a way to recover the culture they had lost. According to Jennifer, their grandfather attended residential schools in northern Ontario. When he moved to Newfoundland and Labrador, he never shared any of his culture with his family.
“We knew it was there, but we were always told growing up, ‘don’t ever tell anybody that you’re an Indian, don’t tell anybody that this was your culture,’” explained Jennifer. “So, it was a lot of shame in that we tried really, really hard to assimilate, to be the white side of the family. We both were missing something for a very long time.”
When the process of Truth and Reconciliation started, then living in Ottawa, they devoted themselves to learning more about this piece of their lives that was missing.
“It’s been very, very rewarding,” said Jennifer. “And in doing that, we connected with some Indigenous suppliers and collectives across Canada.”
That set them on the road to starting Sisters Gifts, which they did after they moved back to Grand Falls-Windsor in December 2020.
“We have great products that we sell – all that’s fine – but it’s more about the personal kinship that we’re finding through this,” Jennifer explained. “Not only are we connecting with our culture through the learning of the ceremony and the art and everything else, but we’re also connecting with a lot of people in the community that have similar stories and similar ideas and wants about finding our culture. It’s really great to share that.”
Last fall, while attending a market in Springdale, a little girl came up to their table who, Jennifer estimates, was about eight or nine years old.
The girl had long, dark hair and Jennifer recalls she was obviously Indigenous. When she saw one of their pieces on display, featuring a woman’s long dark hair, she quickly ran off. Jennifer and Angela were left puzzled but five minutes later, the girl returned with cash in hand.
“She was like throwing it at my sister and going, ‘I gotta have it, I gotta have it, it looks like me!’” recalled Jennifer.
The experience resonated with them. She notes when her and her sister were that age, they didn’t have the same sort of opportunities to celebrate their Indigenous heritage. Now, they’re proud to bring those opportunities to embrace and celebrate their heritage to younger generations.
To learn more about Sisters Gifts visit their website sistersgiftsnl.com or the Sisters Gifts Facebook page.