The Shannen Koostachin Monument

After two years, we are in the final stages of the monument project!

Descriptor:  The piece will be a figurative depiction of Shannen Koostachin in her traditional regalia, incorporating impressionistic touches. The iconic figure will blend through drapery into a granite base. The sculpture will be finished in a traditional bronze patina, with highlights and color gradations on points of interest.

Here's a CBC story on the inspiration for the monument

WHAT YOUR DONATION WILL GO TOWARDS:

• The bronze sculpture of Shannen 
• Design, transportation and installation of the base
• If we surpass the financial goal, the funds raised will be donated to SHANNEN'S DREAM charity
• COMMUNITY MEMBERS who donate will carry the advocacy work of Shannen Koostachin in their hearts

Shannen Koostachin Profile

Shannen Koostachin Cree from  Attawapiskat First Nation lead a movement for “safe and comfy” schools and quality culturally based education for First Nations children called the Attawapiskat School Campaign. She knew how hard it was to learn in an on reserve school that was under funded. The only elementary school for the 400 children in Attawapiskat was closed as thousands of gallons of diesel fuel contaminated the ground under the school. The federal government put portable trailers on the play ground of the contaminated school as a “temporary school” until a new one could be built.

Shannen never went to class in a proper school and the portables became more unbarable over time. The heat would often go off, the children would have to walk outside in the cold to go from one portable to another and the doors were warped. Therefore the children of Attawapiskat launched the Attawapiskat School Campaign to reach out to non-Aboriginal children all across Canada to write to the federal government and demand a new school for Attwapiskat. Thousands of children answered the call and three Ministers of Indian Affairs promised a new school and then broke their promise. The children kept writing. When the Minister of Indian Affairs, Chuck Strahl, wrote in 2008 to say the federal government could not fund a new school, the grade 8 class cancelled their graduation trip to Niagara Falls and used the money to send three youth, including Shannen, down to meet with Minister Strahl to demand a new school.

Minister Strahl said the government could not afford a new school. Shannen did not believe him and that she told the Minister she would never give up because the younger children in her community deserve a proper school. She kept her promise. Shannen spoke to thousands of people asking for their help to ensure every child got a good education and a “comfy” school. She was an inspiring speaker because she talked from the heart. She made a compelling speech at an education rights conference hosted by the children of Attawapiskat and attended by 500 other children at the University of Toronto in 2009.  Shannen’s incredible leadership was remarkable and she was nominated, as an ambassador for all the children of Attawapiskat, for the International Children’s Peace Prize given out by the Nobel Laureates. In 2009, Minister Strahl promised the children of Attawapiskat a new school.

In May of 2010, Shannnen Koostachin passed away in an automobile accident. With the support of her loving family, friends and community, Shannen’s Dream is a campaign named in her memory to make sure all First Nations children across Canada have “safe and comfy schools” and receive a good quality education that makes them proud of who they are.

Quoting Jenny Nakogee (the late Shannen's mother): "My message is to never give up. You get up, pick up your books and keep walking in your moccasins."

Mee'Kwetch for the donations thus far, the funds raised will help make this MONUMENT happen

***We know sending/filling out online forms to donate can be a bit unsettling.  If this is the case please feel free to mail checks/money orders to:

VisJuelles Productions Inc.
152 Edmund Street
Sudbury, ON P3E 1L7

Receipt of donation will be mailed promptly for your records and ours

Summary

Whatchia!   My name is Jules Koostachin, I'm Cree from Attawapiskat First Nation and currently living in Sudbury with my family.  I currently work at Laurentian University as the Equity and Diversity Advisor in the Human Rights Office,  Northern Recruitment for the Indigenous Visual Culture Program at OCADU in Toronto, and as an educator at the University of Sudbury, Indigenous Studies program.  I am also a multimedia artist, and an activist for Indigenous rights and equal access to education. I will be heading out west this coming fall to start my PhD at UBC in the Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Social Justice Program where I will be focusing on Indigenous women and digital narratives.

In 2011, I had the opportunity to visit the sacred site where Shannen Koostachin passed away, just south of Temagami in northern Ontario. To my surprise I found it extremely difficult to locate because the shrine was up on a small hill on the side of highway 11.   To this day, the image of the community shrine for Shannen lives in the back of my mind and has for many many years.

In the summer of 2013,  I was sitting at my desk in Toronto, and suddenly I was gifted with a  powerful vision; I quickly ran outside and called my cousin Andrew Koostachin, the late Shannen’s father.  I asked for the family's permission to take the lead in the creation of a monument/public installation for Shannen, and he agreed, giving me his full blessing.  I assured him that he and his family would be consulted throughout the development and installation process.

For the last few years, my friend Rick Miller (fellow documentary filmmaker) and I have been trying to find ways to fund raise and gather community support in hopes that  Shannen's life's work is honoured and remembered. 

To date I have been able to locate funding through the Ontario Arts Council, but I am still IN NEED of your community spirit and support to raise the remainder of the funds to go towards the balance owing for the completion of the bronze monument and lastly the installation of the monument.

So I am asking all of you for your support to raise the last $25,000 which will go towards the monument base (granite, installation of the solar lights and transportation to site from Sudbury) and the remainder of the sculptor fees.   

NOTE:   I have been successful in securing a site for the monument/public installation; it will be installed this coming fall in New Liskeard, Ontario. 

I feel that it is necessary to ensure that we have the Shannen Monument in northern Ontario, as this is where Shannen's roots are and it will be a sacred place where northern community members will be able to access and pay their respects.

JULES' BIO:  Born in Moose Factory, Ontario, Jules Arita Koostachin was raised by her Cree speaking grandparents in Moosonee, and her mother in Ottawa. She is from Attawapiskat First Nation, and currently resides in Sudbury. While living in Toronto, she completed graduate school at Ryerson University where she was awarded the Award of Distinction for her thesis work, as well as the Masters level Ryerson Gold Medal for academic achievement. While pursuing her Masters, Jules finished her first feature length documentary Remembering Inninimowin, about her journey of remembering the Cree language, now distributed by V Tape. After graduation, Jules was one of six women selected across Canada for the Women in the Directors Chair program at the Banff Centre, where she directed a scene from her script Broken Angel. She just finished production of her television youth series AskiBOYZ for APTN, about two urban Cree youth going back to the basics. Jules’ company VisJuelles Productions Inc. has a number of television and film projects in development, her most recent development is Red Barz about the incarceration of Indigenous women in Canada with Shaw Media. She has been working in the Indigenous community for many years servicing Indigenous women and children who are facing barriers. She hopes to continue creating pieces of work in theatre, literary arts, television, and film that will bring to light social issues that urban and rural Indigenous peoples face.

http://www.visjuellesproductions.ca/

Impact

• The impact of this monument will be TREMENDOUS because it will be one of remembrance and honour
• The Shannen Monument will be a reminder to all of Shannen's Dream and the importance of fighting for equitable access to education in Canada
  

Dedication and Commitment:

Shannen's advocacy has lead to change in legislation, and to a NEW SCHOOL in Attawapiskat First Nation.  I believe a monument honoring her young life is an important tribute to Canadian and Indigenous herstory.

THE MONUMENT:

The proposed bronze life-like monument of Shannen Koostachin will stand approximately 48 inches in height and it will rest upon a granite base approximately 1-2 feet in height.

We are also looking to have two butterfly benches made for Shannen Koostachin's and Rose Thornton's families, they will be placed beside the monument. 

Sadly, there were two lives taken on June 1, 2010, therefore, we will also be paying our respects to Rose Thornton by providing a plaque at the base of the monument with a quote from Rose.

The ARTISTS Involved in the CREATION of the Shannen Monument:

• Design/Cultural Consultant Kenneth (Jake) Chakasim (Funded by the Ontario Arts Council)
  
• Sculptor Tyler Fauvelle (Funded by this campaign)
  
• As the project lead, please be assured that I will continue with this campaign until the monument is installed
• My overall goal is to have this monument/public installation erected in New Liskeard by late SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2015!
  

Introducing Design/Cultural Consultant Kenneth (Jake) Chakasim:  Jake is a lecturer with Laurentian University’s School of Architecture where he teaches design studio. His interdisciplinary and collaborative approach to the creation of indigenous art + architecture addresses the need to re-contextualize Aboriginal traditions through refined typologies.

Quoting Jake:  "When I hear the name Shannen Koostachin I instantaneously think of dire ‘living-learning’ conditions of Attawapiskat’s First Nation children and youth.  More extensively, I’m also aware of the fact there are many more communities across Northern Ontario that are challenged with similar or worse off socio-economic conditions.  So, it’s fair to say, this project is just as much the plight of all First Nation children today as it was yesterday.  As with all monument projects, this one serves many purposes.  For some, it's a placeholder away from home, for others, a beacon of light indicating a way forward and that, to me, is the message I bring as a collaborative designer to this project.  The need to sustain Shannen’s transformational message of hope!"   

Introducing Sculptor Tyler Fauvelle:  Tyler is a professional sculptor, based in Northern Ontario, Canada.  Inspired by Canada’s natural and cultural heritage, he works in a figurative style, sculpting in clay and casting his work in classic bronze.   He will be unveiling several public art sculptures this summer, including a life-sized bronze commemorating Canadian music icon Stompin’ Tom Connors.  Tyler will have the honour of creating a life-sized monument commemorating Francis Pegahmagabow, one of Canada’s greatest First Nation war heroes. (June 2016)

Quoting Tyler: “My hope for this sculpture is that it will help aboriginal youth see their own reflection in Shannen’s heroic face, and realize that they can, and that they must, carry on with her vision.”

To see more of Tyler's work, please see link below:

http://tylerfauvelle.ca/

Short Documentary Film: "The Butterfly Monument"

Both myself and filmmaker Rick Miller will be filming the process of installing the monument/public installation, which will, after a year of festival submissions be accessible and free to watch online. 

We both feel that it is extremely important to document this endeavour and create an Indigenous archive.

***Note: The short documentary film was fully funded by the Ontario Arts Council

Introducing Documentary Filmmaker Rick Miller:

RICK'S BIO:  Rick has been in the documentary industry since graduating from York University’s film school. He has edited in excess of 100 television programs, spending over 20,000 hours in Toronto’s edit suites. His credits include productions for TVO, Discovery, History, CTV, and CBC.  After earning a Master of Fine Arts in Documentary Media Rick has been awarded two artist residencies and has been working as a photographer and videographer on a wide variety of projects.  Rick is currently developing Labyrinth, an interactive documentary on his own search for a cure for mental illness.

To see more of Rick's work:

Quoting Rick:  "I first heard about Shannen when Jules shared the news of her death with me. I was saddened by the loss of such a young life, of course, but as Jules told me more about Shannen's extraordinary efforts to help the children of
Attawapiskat First Nation I came to realize that the world had lost a leader and a teacher. Meeting Shannen's family has convinced me that her spirit lives on. Working on this project has been a humbling and enriching experience for me." 

Other Ways You Can Help

Anything you can do to get the word out there is appreciated:

• Please help us get the word out there by sharing the link
  
• Please help us make some noise about this important campaign
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