Medicine wheel garden brings culture to traditional lands

After three years of planning and stops and starts, a medicine wheel garden on the edge of the coulees in Lethbridge has reached the stage its creator is proud of.

 “I can’t believe the response and excitement from everybody in promoting, advertising and providing awareness about the garden. Especially the volunteers and donors have really assisted in the maintenance of the medicine wheel garden,” said Doreen Williams Freeman.

Williams Freeman stumbled across a book on medicine wheel gardening a number of years ago and with her passion for horticulture, she felt such a garden was perfect for Lethbridge.

Williams Freeman submitted a proposal to the city explaining her vision for a medicine wheel garden on traditional Blackfoot land. After a number of meetings and successfully answering to concerns raised by city residents, Williams Freeman was granted a piece of land west of the Galt Museum to construct the garden.

Williams Freeman worked with her sister Dorothy Medicine Crane to construct the medicine wheel garden, gathering supplies from generous donors.  However, after the garden was built, there was a struggle to promote awareness about it and the project stalled.

This past spring, Williams Freeman approached the Aboriginal Council of Lethbridge for support. The garden received a new lease with volunteer help and a kick off as part of the National Aboriginal Day celebrations.
This medicine wheel garden is significant to the Aboriginal population of Lethbridge, said Coby Eagle Bear, Aboriginal Community Liaison with ACL.

“My role at ACL is to make Aboriginal people feel included in the community of Lethbridge. The medicine wheel garden does just that. It provides Blackfoot people and other Aboriginal people with a sense of pride about their culture and traditions. As well, it promotes First Nations culture to the diverse population of Lethbridge and can be used as a teaching tool to bridge the gap that often exists between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people,” said Eagle Bear.

Williams Freeman hopes the community continues to take pride in the garden and assists in its upkeep, planting flowers and making offerings at the garden.
As well, the Galt Museum is considering posting a plaque that describes the medicine wheel. The plaque would serve as a learning tool for the community and visitors to the site.

“The medicine wheel garden is a spiritual monument for the people of Lethbridge. It is about a sense of pride in our culture and traditions. It is a place to go for prayer and spiritual guidance. It must be understood that this medicine wheel garden is for the community to pay their respects in any way they know how,” said Williams Freeman.