(Ottawa, ON) – May 28, 2025 – This week on the Roots and Hoots Podcast, we welcome Charlene Raven Tolley from the Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation. Charlene is an expert beader and owner of Raven’s Nest Arts and Crafts. She is a published author, workshop facilitator, drum maker and creates beautiful traditional and lighted dreamcatchers.

For Charlene, beading is more than a craft – it is a healing and meditative practice rooted in a family tradition that spans four generations of women beaders. In this episode, Charlene shares her love of beading and how it is tied to well-being. She reflects, “every bead you pick up, is an ancestor that has your back.” Charlene beads every day and talks about the joy she experiences from being at cultural and community events with her daughter.

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Charlene has been showcasing and selling her beautiful designs at Pow wows and events for years. She speaks about the great honour and career highlight of being commissioned by Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation to create medallions – one of which was gifted to the late Gord Downie. Knowing that her work is cherished brings joy to Charlene as she talks about the lighted dreamcatcher she recently made for a music festival in Ottawa. 

Charlene and her family are community minded, and the intention that goes into each of their creations is just as important as their skill and craftsmanship. On the topic of Reconciliation, Charlene feels that more awareness and empathy is needed towards Indigenous Peoples, so that we can all come together and forge a better path forward. To learn more about Charlene’s beautiful designs, you can visit her Facebook page, Raven’s Nest KZ, or visit her booth at upcoming Pow wows this summer.

The LHF is a national, Indigenous-led, charitable organization that has been working to promote healing and Reconciliation in Canada for over 25 years. The LHF’s goal is to educate Canadians about the history and existing intergenerational impacts of the Residential and Day School Systems and subsequent Child Welfare System on Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) Survivors, their descendants, and their communities to address discrimination against Indigenous Peoples, and to promote hope and healing in Canada. The LHF works to encourage Canadians to address discrimination and injustice to contribute to the equity, dignity, and respectful treatment of all.

The LHF has more than 30 educational exhibitions that educate Canadians about Indigenous history and that are free to borrow. LHF also has curriculums for K -12 and for adults, along with Activity Guides, Workshops and Training, and two Podcast series, all aimed at educating Canadians about Indigenous history and the shared history of Residential and Day Schools, the Child Welfare System, and other colonial acts of oppression. The LHF works to develop empathy and understanding to eliminate ongoing racism against Indigenous Peoples and to foster Reconciliation in Canada.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Teresa Edwards, B.A., LL.B / J.D.
Executive Director and In-House Legal Counsel
Legacy of Hope Foundation
tedwards@legacyofhope.ca