(Ottawa, ON) – September 17, 2025 – The Legacy of Hope Foundation is pleased to announce the release of our fourth episode in an 8-part series called Classrooms of Injustice. Gordon connects with his friend Erroll Kinistino as they discuss old memories, history and share reflections. Erroll is from Ochapowace First Nation in Southern Saskatchewan and shares what life was like going to a one-room Day School and why it was important to him and his community to build a new school on the reserve.

Erroll is an artist and a natural storyteller. He also loves to study history and in this conversation,  he effortlessly draws connections between the past and contemporary relevance. Erroll always loved learning and in a one-room classroom, he would take in the lessons from the other grades. Erroll shares how his grandfather helped build the school and how in the late 1950’s, it was the only building with electricity. As a result, the school was also a community gathering place and many Christmas concerts were held there.

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Erroll recalls graduating from university and feeling so proud to have learned his Cree language, and yet at the same time, feeling stunned by the real challenge of revitalizing Indigenous languages when that connection had been disrupted for so long. Erroll acknowledges some of the positive steps which have been taken towards Reconciliation, noting that it is up to the coming generations to determine what the next steps will be.

This special podcast series is made possible with funding from the Indigenous Screen Office. Under the umbrella of the Roots and Hoots Podcast, this series features Indigenous scholars, historians, Survivors, and knowledge keepers from across Canada to hear their first-hand accounts, perspectives, and knowledge of the Federal Indian Day School System.

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 Indigenous Peoples.

The LHF has 30 educational exhibitions that promote awareness of Indigenous history, which are free to borrow, and we are working on making exhibitions available online. LHF also has curricula for K-12 and for adults, along with Activity Guides, Workshops, and Training, 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