Garry Gottfriedson is a Secwépemc knowledge holder receiving an honourary degree by the University of Northern BC.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ University of Northern BC
April 12, 2023 - 7:00 PM
A prominent leader from the Secwépemc First Nation is receiving an honorary degree next month after four decades working at the forefront of Indigenous self-determination and reclamation.
Garry Gottfriedson is a Secwépemc knowledge holder fluent in Secwepemctsin and Cree. He's a cultural educator, published creative writer and the Secwepemc Cultural Advisor for Thompson Rivers University. He's made several important educational achievements in land-based teaching and creative writing, according to a release by the University of Northern BC.
Born near Kamloops, Gottfriedson went to school at the Kamloops Indian Residential School for his first five years of education before his parents put him into the public school system.
“It is because of my ancestors and parents that I am secure with my Secwépemc identity,” Gottfriedson said in the release. “They instilled the importance and significance of our way of being so that I would undoubtedly know my language, land and culture, despite the fight that lay before me.”
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Now living in Prince George, Gottfriedson worked with UNBC Professor and Canada Research Chair in Humanities and Health Inequities Dr. Sarah de Leeuw to fight against anti-Indigenous racism, and foster cultural humility skills in physicians across north and central BC.
He has also connected with the university through the ‘Ut’loo Noye Khunni-Weaving Words Celebration, mentoring students in their creative pursuits, said the university.
“It is our collective creative voices that work together to smash down the barriers that block progress,” said Gottfriedson. “This is what our young Indigenous voices do."
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Gottfriedson has published 11 books of poetry, been inducted into the International Library of Poetry Hall of Fame and had his work featured in international venues.
He holds a Bachelor of Education from the University of Calgary, a Master of Education from Simon Fraser University, and three other Instructors Diplomas. He studied creative writing at Naropa University in Colorado.
He is receiving an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Northern British Columbia during the 2023 Convocation ceremony at the Prince George campus on May 26.
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