Heidi Abramyk was searching for a sense of belonging – she found it at Coady Institute and in the Indigenous Women in Community Leadership (IWCL) program.
As a woman of Métis and Ukrainian mixed settler ancestry with Métis membership since the age of 15, she struggled to become integrated into her community and learn about the culture. This led Heidi to be self-conscious about making connections.
Over the past few years she has worked in First Nations communities, found support from a supervisor, and joined an online leadership group. That is where she learned about Coady’s work with Indigenous women. Victoria LaBillois, a former IWCL mentor and Circle of Abundance advisor, shared about the 2024 IWCL program.
“When I applied to IWCL, something deep inside me whispered that I needed to be there,” Heidi says. “I hadn’t grown up with visible or strong ties to my Métis culture, and I often felt unsure of where I belonged. But at Coady, surrounded by strong, brilliant Indigenous women, Elders, mentors, faculty, and staff, I felt seen. I felt accepted. For the first time since I was a little girl — before my Métis grandmother and aunties passed — I felt culture and community wrap around me like a warm, safe blanket.”
The IWCL program brings First Nations, Inuit, and Métis women together to reflect upon and share their experiences to deepen learning while building a circle of connection and support with one another. The program uses a holistic and Two-Eyed Seeing approach, meaning that teaching and learning practices are grounded in Indigenous worldviews, values, and teachings while sometimes using other tools and methods that align with those practices.
Key pieces of the program include the development of a community project and a mentorship opportunity with an experienced Indigenous woman leader. Participants meet online initially and then come together on campus for several weeks. They then return to their communities to complete a community project before gathering in an Indigenous community to wrap up the program.
Heidi initially was planning a project related to her work in First Nations housing but her mentor, Carmen Carriere (IWCL 2022), encouraged her to use her communications skills to help Métis people. She decided to develop www.mafamii.ca an online resource for Métis people. The website is an inclusive space where people can learn more about the Métis culture.
“This is an educational kind of site to help people understand a bit more about how the locals work, how you can get your Métis card, and shares items of cultural significance,” Heidi says. “I highlight some of the people that aren't necessarily in the mainstream, that also deserve a lot of recognition, some of the Metis women.”
Heidi is using asset-based community development and other skills learned at Coady to engage with the community from an Indigenous perspective.
“I am embedding some of their feedback or ideas into the work and, by working together, I believe it empowers the community more,” Heidi says.
She appreciates how Coady values learning in non-traditional ways with facilitators adapting to the needs of the cohort and creating an Indigenous space where participants learn from each other. She noted the program helped her from a professional standpoint and her understand more about the different ceremonies and practices.
“I came home transformed — more grounded, more confident, more connected,” Heidi says. “I’ve stepped into my Métis culture and into my power in ways I never thought possible. I no longer feel like an imposter. I feel more connected than ever to my Indigenous roots while celebrating and connecting with all my roots, stories, and ethnicities that make me, not being ashamed anymore that I am a mix, and a product of the land and people.”
This includes submitting the ribbon skirt made while at Coady to a Métis display at the local fair, organized by Gabriel Dumont Institute. The Central Urban Métis Federation Inc. in Saskatoon recognized Heidi with an award for Business and Leadership during Métis Days. She has also taken a new job as the Director of Communications and Storytelling for the Métis Nation–Saskatchewan.
“I've seen in my short time with this new role is just how much the Métis Nation offers citizens, and then how can we connect people with that information or hear more of what their needs are.”
Heidi says the other members of her IWCL cohort remain in touch and continue to learn from each other noting that these women are already making a difference in their communities.
“It's giving them more tools to make more change and empower more like a domino effect of more change in their communities and take that learning and practices and support,” Heidi says.
“The teachings on asset-based community development, cultural resurgence, mentorship, and leadership continue to shape my work every day. I’ve begun informally mentoring a young Métis woman in my community, and I’m excited to uplift many more.”