THUNDER BAY – The Thunder Bay Public Library’s Stories of Anishinaabe Resilience (SOAR) project concluded on Thursday with the unveiling of a new mural that will be installed on the exterior of the Thunder Bay Public Library’s Brodie Street Community Hub.
The goal of the multi-faceted SOAR project, which was funded by Canada Heritage, is to increase awareness and commemorate the history and legacy of St. Joseph’s Residential School while also honouring residential school survivors, their families, and communities.
“I hope people are learning. I think it’s important that people hear from Indigenous people who attended Saint Joseph’s Residential School,” said Robyn Medicine, community hub librarian Indigenous relationships supervisor.
“Because, although it was known as an orphanage and boarding school, the experiences of Indigenous people that attended was that it was a residential school.”
The SOAR project, which took two years to complete, consists of four separate parts: a research paper by Sarah McPherson, HBa, a secondary level education curriculum developed by Johanna Mousseau-Krahn, BEd, several painted art pieces by Indigenous artists, and, the most important piece, the podcast which features the stories of survivors of Saint Joseph’s Residential School.
“They share their very real stories. They attended when they were young but they seemed to remember very small details right down to what the dorm rooms looked like, the foods they ate, the name of some of the nuns and priests,” said Medicine.
“And just feelings, thoughts, and feelings that they had when they were there. I would encourage everybody to check out the podcast.”
The episodes of the podcast are going to be aired every month for the next four months on many streaming services.
For more information about the SOAR project, visit the Thunder Bay Public Library’s website.
