Educator, Indigenous elder.
Born in the Fisher River Cree Nation, she attended the Manitoba Normal School and received a teaching certificate in 1957. She later obtained a MEd degree. She taught at the Birtle Indian Residential School (1959-1961) then held a teaching position at the University of British Columbia, retiring in 1993. In recognition of her community service, she was inducted into the Order of Canada (1999) and Order of Manitoba (2007), and she received the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (2002) and Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012), and an honorary doctorate from the University of Manitoba (2008). She was selected as a Manitoba Women Trailblazer.
See also:
Book Review: Verna J. Kirkness, Creating Space: My Life and Work in Indigenous Education by Denise Fuchs
Manitoba History, Number 75, Summer 2014
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 21 June 2021
