FromWildStrawberriestoanUrbanClearing

A St. Clair W. streetcorner is not where one expects to find burgeoning wild strawberries, but in Noojimo’iwewin Gitigaan, National Healing Forest project, the first among berries is just starting to bloom. The Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Group’s Elder-in-Residence, Catherine Brooks, will walk with us from this first, pocket-sized project along Rushton Rd., past the Indigenous community garden that brings Na-Me-Res men back in contact with “Medicine Earth,” to a second National Healing Forest project in Tollkeeper’s Park (corner of Bathurst and Davenport Rd).

A passionate advocate for the coast-to-coast-to-coast Healing Forest movement, begun in 2015 in response to the Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to redress the legacy of residential schools, Elder Catherine will speak of her experience as an intergenerational survivor of this legacy and of her hopes for us all to heal into Right Relation. As we walk through Hillcrest Village backstreets to the “ancient trail,” Gete-Onigaming (now called Davenport Road), we will talk about the landscape and waterways on which this part of Tkaronto was built. Opportunities to learn about Indigenous Medicine and native pollinator plants will be offered, as well as Anishinaabe Water Teachings.