Page 22

In her younger years, Violet Sampere's life was filled with tragedy, hardship, and despair. In her later years, she is experiencing a sense of peace and fulfillment in her role as an Elder.

Violet was born in 1925 in the remote village of Kitseukla in northern British Columbia. Raised by a blind mother, Violet had to work hard in her early life. She did not attend school and taught herself to read when she was an adult.

Page 21

It might sound like a rather lofty dream. But Kevin Sandy is hoping his wish becomes reality, maybe within the next four or five years.

Sandy, the owner of All Nations Lacrosse, a sportswear retail company in Six Nations, is hoping to one day see a squad comprised entirely of Native players competing in the National Lacrosse League. This pro circuit, formerly dubbed the Major Indoor Lacrosse League, has seven franchises this season.

Page 21

In a move designed to provide young Aboriginal athletes with an alternative to the on-again, off-again North American Indigenous Games, the Indigenous Sport Council of Alberta is planning to host a Western Canadian Indigenous Games this summer.

Page 20

Ada Bird Petyarre

Ada Bird, who is in her late sixties, is a prominent Aboriginal artist and an Anmatyerre speaker. She is one of the artists who established the Utopia Women's Batik Group in 1978. The first of the major women's co-operatives, Utopia - still Ada Bird's home - remains an influential centre for female Aboriginal artists.

Ada Bird's dreamings include Awelye or women's Ddesigns, Angertla or mountain devil lizard (a strong and protective being), Bean, Emu (a flightless bird), Pencil Yam, Grass Seeds and Small Brown Grass.

Page 20

In the struggles of Indigenous people all over the world, we perceive one startling similarity, the sacredness of the earth. In the creation of ritual art for public viewing, the Australian Aborigines continually reaffirm this connection. They declare their unity with the Dreamtime ancestors who created the land and who now dwell within it.

Page 19

The application has been heard for the creation of the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network in what was reported to be a festive atmosphere with intervenors coming from an ample number of supporters.

Page 17

Tina Keeper may appear to be keeping a low profile ever since North of 60 was cancelled last year, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Page 17

Some of the faces that helped to establish North of 60 as one of Canada's most widely watched television series over its six year run, reunite on the screen in the upcoming In the Blue Ground: A North of 60 Movie, slated to air March 28 on CBC.

Page 16

Where there's rock 'n' roll, there's drugs 'n' alcohol - a stereotype that the group Eagle Feather is trying to change.

"We are telling our youth that it's OK to enjoy rock music without getting drunk or even being in a bar," said J. Hubert Francis, lead singer of the band.

With the release of their third album a few months ago, Eagle Feather has been showing audiences that rock 'n' roll and drugs 'n' alcohol do not have to mix.

Page 15

The sight of an eagle soaring high above the earth, flying with the cloud people, is a powerful experience. In Aboriginal tradition, the eagle represents the strongest of spiritual powers, and when the bird dies, these powers remain in the feathers, claws and body parts.

Eagle feathers are in great demand for the traditional spiritual ceremonies of the Cree, Dene, Saulteaux, Dakota, Nakota and Lakota cultures in Saskatchewan, and in even greater demand for the competitive powwow circuit in North America.