Cathy Wheaton danced at the recent fundraiser in La Ronge. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

Determination

Wheaton sharing newfound passion for powwows with tri-community residents

Aug 6, 2019 | 5:13 PM

It’s been a little over a year since Lac La Ronge Indian Band member Cathy Wheaton began her journey to learn powwow dancing.

“It’s kind of consumed my life now,” she said. “I think I have been to four or five powwows already this summer and I have four more coming up. It’s almost every weekend now. It’s so much fun.”

Wheaton began learning to dance in July 2018 with the assistance of her friend Louise Ratt, who took her under her wing and invited Wheaton to attend powwows with her. At first, about half the regalia Wheaton wore was loaned to her by Ratt, but since then she’s also started to sew and she’s been able to create many of her own items. The first powwow Wheaton danced at was last year at Beardy’s and Okemasis Cree Nation.

With such a strong desire to learn more about powwows, Wheaton invited special guests for a two-day workshop at Senator Myles Venne School. The first session occurred this afternoon with Barb Standingready Garvin, who explained many of the fundamentals like the type of dancers and the regalia worn by them. On Thursday, two champion powwow dancers will be in attendance to answer any other questions people might have.

“They are actually a powwow family,” Wheaton said. “Barb has raised her children, as well as her grandchildren in the powwow tradition. She was also raised in powwow since she was a young girl. It’s a strong tradition in her family and she has a lot of teachings.”

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While powwows in the tri-communities are quite rare, Wheaton noted there are a lot of local people who are interested. She added by inviting guests such as Garvin and her family who are knowledgeable about powwows, that could change.

The powwow session led by Barb Standingready Garvin. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

“Anyone who has ever said ‘I wish I could dance’, please contact me because if you want to dance, I will help you,” Wheaton said. “There are people who I talked to in the last year who told me they wanted to dance for a long time. Just give me a call and we’ll talk about how to get you started.”

The powwow session Aug. 8 is at SMVS from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Anyone is welcome to attend.

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derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno