A group of parishioners from St. John the Evangelist in Ottawa made a trip to Mādahòkì Farm on a chilly, grey day at the end of April. It is a working farm on land leased from the National Capital Commission on Hunt Club Road in Ottawa, and it has a mission to bring Indigenous community, artists and knowledge keepers together with the broader community to help educate and share knowledge of Indigenous cultures.
Kimberly Breen-Johnson, St. John’s Indigenous engagement co-ordinator, said the group started their visit sitting inside a tipi with a fire, listening to a knowledge keeper’s teachings about Indigeneity, particularly focused on Ojibwe or Anishnaabe culture. “He drummed us in, in ceremony, and then he taught us. It was very interactive because of our group were asking him questions and he was very open to our questions.”
Using paintings from an Indigenous artist, the knowledge keeper taught the group about Spirit horses, which are a now rare breed of horse. He told them that this the only breed that is indigenous to Canada, and they are sacred to the Indigenous peoples, but they were hunted almost to extinction during European colonization. The population was down to only four registered horses, but efforts to protect and breed them have brought that back to about 150 horses. The St. John’s group enjoyed seeing some of these beautiful animals as a part of their trip to the farm and learning more about Indigenous cultures. — LA Williams
Church of the Ascension, Ottawa — Deanery of Central Ottawa