(Ottawa, ON) – November 2, 2022 – The Legacy of Hope Foundation (LHF) is pleased to announce the release of episode 8 with Kerry Jean Murphy. Kerry is of Irish and Chippewa-Cree descent and hails from the Rocky Boy Reservation in Montana, USA. Kerry is an enthusiastic and infectious adult learner who shares great insight into the importance of seeking out resources and maintaining positive self-talk to encourage one’s own language and cultural reclamation. Kerry also shares a bit on the history of how Rocky Boy Reservation came to include a population of Plains Cree, descendants of Little Bear, son of Chief Big Bear of Saskatchewan.

As a youth Kerry did not have much access to the language, but as an adult, she made strides to reclaim it. Kerry shares how the sing-song method has been an important tool for passing on the language to her grandchildren. Currently enrolled in an adult learner program, she notes that the Total Physical Response method (TPR) has allowed her retention of the language to flourish. She also calls the learning environment very encouraging and positive. One where they have fun and don’t get too focussed on making ‘mistakes’. On the impact of learning, she shares:  “Something is missing in us and I have found, and even my classmates have said… When we come and learn this language and speak it, something happens to us. Like we found what was missing. The language is holy and sacred and it is a medicine in and of itself. ”

Voices from the Land is an Indigenous Languages Revitalization Project funded by Canadian Heritage. Over the course of the winter months of 2022, host Gordon Spence spoke with Indigenous language teachers, adult learners and parents and caretakers of children learning their Indigenous language. From Anishinaabemowin (Ojibwe); to Nehiyaw (Cree); the Michif language; Kanien’kéha (Mohawk); Onʌyoteˀa·ká (Oneida); and Dȁn k’e (Southern Tutchone), language learners, teachers and parents across Turtle Island share their insights and experiences. The goal of these 21 interviews was to gain a sense of the barriers and successes to learning one’s own language. We invite you to hear their voices and learn from their truth, as the languages have taught them so much and they want to share.

The LHF is a national, Indigenous-led, charitable organization that has been working to promote healing and Reconciliation in Canada for over 22 years. LHF’s goal is to educate and raise awareness about the history and impacts on 7 generations of Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) children, their families and communities from attending Residential and Day Schools and subsequent Sixties Scoop. By fostering empathy and understanding, LHF encourages people to address discrimination and injustice and contributes to the equity, dignity, and respectful treatment of Indigenous Peoples.

The LHF has more than 25 educational exhibitions that promote awareness of Indigenous history that are free to borrow and is working on making exhibitions available online. LHF also has curricula for K-12 and for adults, along with Activity Guides, Workshops and Training, and Podcasts all aimed at educating Canadians about Indigenous history and the shared history of Residential and Day Schools, the Sixties Scoop, etc. in order to offer solutions on how to be an ally. The LHF works to develop empathy and understanding so as to eliminate racism against Indigenous Peoples.