Mary John, Sr
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Mary John Sr. CM (June 15, 1913 – September 30, 2004) was a leader of the Carrier people of the central interior of
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in
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. She was known as "Mary John Sr." to distinguish her from her daughter-in-law, also named Mary John. She became well known both for her political and social activism and as a role model, a person of enormous integrity, strength, and gentleness.


History

John was born at Lheidli (near
Prince George, British Columbia Prince George is a city in British Columbia, Canada, situated at the confluence of the Fraser River, Fraser and Nechako River, Nechako rivers. The city itself has a population of 76,708; the metro census agglomeration has a population of 89,490 ...
) to Anzel Quaw. She grew up in Saik'uz (Stoney Creek) village, raised by her mother and her stepfather Johnny Paul. She was a member of the Tachek clan, whose crests are
cariboo The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia, Canada, centered on a plateau stretching from Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the Caribou (North America), caribou that were once abundant in the reg ...
and
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. She survived the flu epidemic of 1918, during which, only five years old, she had to care for her sick mother. At the age of eight she was sent to the residential school in Fort St James where she learned English. The next year she moved to the newly established
Lejac Residential School Lejac Residential School was a Canadian residential school system, Canadian residential school in British Columbia that operated from 1922 to 1976 by the Roman Catholic Church under contract with the Government of Canada. Construction of the schoo ...
, which she attended until she was fourteen years old. At the age of sixteen she married Lazare John, with whom she had twelve children. In 1942, she helped to found the local chapter of the British Columbia Homemakers' Association, of which she was the first President. She later served as district president. Although the Homemakers' Association was intended by the
Department of Indian Affairs Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military * Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
to teach homemaking skills to native women, she and other women turned it into a vehicle for political action. In the 1950s, with the help of her friend
Bridget Moran Bridget Moran (September 1, 1923 – August 21, 1999), née Drugan, was a Canadian social activist and author in British Columbia. Born in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, shortly after her birth her family emigrated to Success, ...
, she founded the Welfare Committee, which worked to place aboriginal children in aboriginal foster homes in or near their own community. In 1980, along with her daughter Helen, and elders Celina John and Veronica George, she established the Stoney Creek Elders' Society. The Elders' Society built the Potlatch House and the associated campground as economic development initiatives. Still more important, the Elders' Society provided the impetus for social change and political action. In the 1980s, she began her liaison work with the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...
. She invited the staff to her fishing camp for a barbecue every summer. She eventually served on the Aboriginal Advisory Committee to the Commanding Officer of
RCMP "E" Division "E" Division is the division of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in the province of British Columbia, Canada's westernmost province. It is the largest police force in the province, providing federal and provincial services throughout the area a ...
, a province-wide body, of which she was a founding member. Mary John was greatly concerned with the preservation of her culture and language, of which she was a fluent speaker. In the 1970s she taught the
Carrier language The Dakelh () or Carrier language is a Northern Athabaskan language. It is named after the Dakelh people, a First Nations people of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada, for whom Carrier has been a common English name derived from F ...
and culture at St. Joseph's School, the Catholic school in
Vanderhoof, British Columbia Vanderhoof is a district municipality near the geographical centre of British Columbia, Canada. Covering 2.92 square kilometers, it has a population of about 4,500 within town limits, and offers services to nearly 10,000 people in nearby rural c ...
, as well as several conversational Carrier courses for adults. She was one of the founders of the
Yinka Dene Language Institute The Yinka Dene Language Institute (YDLI) is an organization based in Stoney Creek, British Columbia, whose purpose is the study and maintenance of the language and culture of Dakelh and other First Nations people in northern British Columbia. H ...
of which she became the Permanent Honorary Chair. She was one of the principal contributors to the ''Saik'uz Children's Dictionary'' and other teaching materials. From 1992 until her death, she worked tirelessly with linguist Bill Poser to document her dying language.


Honors

In her later years, Mary John received many honors. In 1978, she was honored as Vanderhoof Citizen of the Year, the first time that a native person had received this award. In 1995 she received an honorary degree from the
University of Northern British Columbia The University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) is a university serving the northern region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The main campus is located in Prince George, with additional campuses located in Prince Rupert, Terrace, ...
. In 1997 she was made a Member of the
Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...
with the following citation:
A well-loved and respected elder of the Carrier Nation of the Stoney Creek Reserve in British Columbia, she has dedicated her life to helping others. She is the strong force and influence behind the success of many positive initiatives and was one of the originators of the Friendship House, a community centre for Native and non-Native people. She survived many hardships to emerge as a respected elder, counsellor, midwife, educator and conciliator between the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal communities. Now in her eighties, she is still promoting the Carrier culture to the younger generation.
In 2002, she received the Queen's Jubilee Medal. In January 2008, the Vanderhoof Public Library opened the ''Mary John Collection'', a collection of 800 books on First Nations topics created in her honor.


See also

* Notable Aboriginal people of Canada


Notes


Bibliography


Eulogy delivered by Colleen Erickson
* Moran, Bridget and Mary John (1989) Stoney Creek Woman: The Story of Mary John.
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. .
Order of Canada record
{{DEFAULTSORT:John, Mary Sr. 1913 births 2004 deaths 20th-century First Nations people 21st-century First Nations people Dakelh people Indigenous leaders in British Columbia Members of the Order of Canada People from the Regional District of Fraser–Fort George Women in British Columbia politics 20th-century Canadian women politicians Women Indigenous leaders in Canada