Welcome Reconciliation Ambearrister program!

The Reconciliation Ambearrister program is an initiative and resource created by First Nations Child and Family Caring Society to address inequalities of Indigenous children, youth and families. Today, this program extends itself to uplift reconciliation efforts from all peoples. Reconciliation must reside within each and every one.

Reconciliation cannot happen in isolated events, as such, Spirit Bears from across Turtle Island (Entiohahathe’te included!) will be a gentle reminder. Please visit First Nations Child and Family Caring Society’s website for further information and greater resources.

Accepting Entiohahathe’te into the Brock community means we commit to actively engage and continue to take steps in creating a bright road for the betterment of all peoples.

Press the symbol/audio file for the pronunciation of Entiohahathe’te.

How the the regalia for Entiohahathe’te (Brock’s Spirit Bear) was created
Cheyanne Doxtador, B.A. Hons

About Cheyanne

Cheyanne has a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honours from McMaster University in Anthropology with a Minor in Indigenous Studies. A Certificate in Leadership and Management in the Not-For-Profit Sector from McMaster/Mohawk College. She has partial credits for her Native Teachers Certificate from Brock University. She started with the Language Commission at the end of April, 2022 as the Planning and Development Officer for Language.

She has previous expertise in language resource development and language curriculum development as the previous manager of the Kawenni:io/Gaweni:yo Language Preservation Project. She has experience as a researcher for the Ronathahonni Cultural Centre. She has served on the board of the Akwesasne Museum as the Cultural Advisor. She is the proprietor of Yo Yo Weh Babies for over 15 years, a traditional Haudenosaunee hand-made doll that sings in the language. She is also one of a handful of female soapstone artists.

She has an educational background in the language as one of the second graduating class of the Cayuga Immersion Program (originally known as First Language Academy) at Six Nations. She has taken Cayuga, Mohawk, Onondaga and Oneida language programs. She has a lifelong dedication to learning and preserving the languages.

She is a member of the Oneida Nation, Bear clan, and has 5 children (3 girls and 2 boys) with her husband of over 20 years. Her oldest daughter is attending Syracuse University for linguistics and her son has just graduated high school.

Brock University Spirit Bear

The colours orange and red were chosen to represent the spirit bear by representatives of Brock University. The fabric material “woodlands theme” was chosen to represent the Anishinaabe people and the style of dress “Haudenoaunee” was chosen to represent the Haudenosaunee people. Although we have similar style of clothing and beadwork it is very distinctly different from one another and it is not my intention to merge the two, but to acknowledge them both within this one bear’s clothing as Brock University has a diverse student body and these two Nations of people are historically located closest to modern day St. Catharines. It was only fitting to acknowledge them within the creation of the bears regalia.

From there, I chose to use the traditional raised beadwork of the Haudenosaunee, as that is where I am from and can only represent my people when creating art in any form. The flowers are raised and the rope stitches and vines are linking together the past and the present, telling a story of where we have come from and where we are going. The flat style beadwork is to represent the Anishinaabe style of beadwork.

The clothing matches for the male and female version of the bear to represent both energies and no one is left unacknowledged. The different styles of clothing and beaded regalia pieces are typical of what a male and female would wear for their traditional clothing today. Wearing traditional clothing is a personal connection to your culture, an embracement that I hope can be achieved from this bears presence in traditional clothing at Brock University.

Spirit Bear little libraries coming soon to Brock campus!