Sign up for the paNOW newsletter

PA Council of Women adds education devotee to Hall of Fame

Mar 1, 2014 | 2:58 PM

Prince Albert is recognizing the legacy of Carole Sanderson’s national contribution to the education field and First Nations people.

She is being inducted into the Prince Albert Council of Women’s Hall of Fame.

While Sanderson passed away last August, her dedication to education made her a prime candidate for the honour.

“In 1960 she was one of the first First Nations graduates with a post secondary education, and she was the first female in Saskatchewan,” said Chrissy Halliday, vice president of the local Council of Women.

She spent her life helping First Nations women and all people feel that similar education was within reach, “believing that it would help them escape violence, poverty, homelessness,” Halliday said.

Her daughter, Dawn Robins, found out about her mother receiving the honour earlier in the week. Robins was involved in nominating her mother for the honour, She said of all her mother shared in her career, there’s one message Robins wants to last.

“We need to get our youth and our young people educated so that they can be the driving force of tomorrow,” she said.

Through her career, Sanderson helped establish the Saskatchewan Indian Cultural Centre, the First Nations University of Canada and the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies.

She also was one of the original drafters of the policy on Indian Control of Indian Education, contributed to the development of the Canadian Constitution, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, and the establishment of the Office of Treaty Commissioner of Saskatchewan. 

Sanderson’s work earned her the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 1994 and made her a member of the Order of Canada in 1998.

Both Robins and Halliday noted that while Sanderson received provincial and national recognition, that was not reflected locally.

Despite the long list of accolades Sanderson received in her life, the strongest lesson she taught Robins was personal rather than professional.

“Possibly the best role she’s done is show me how to be a parent and a grandmother. So she’s made those roles very easy for me,” Robins said.

Sanderson’s induction follows the 2014 Saskatchewan theme, “Communities in Action: Ending Violence Against Women and Girls.”

Halliday considers the March 16 event at the Golf and Curling Club as important to recognize successful women who are often quite modest.

“So often us, as women don’t like to acknowledge our own accomplishments. We kind of brush them off as ‘oh, this is just something we do everyday,’” she said. “I think it also helps young women like myself to see somebody who has worked very hard their whole life and acknowledge what they’ve done because I know I want to change somebody’s life the way Carole has.”

Past inductees include Dr. Lalita Malhotra, who has worked locally and internationally on women’s health care.

with files from paNOW’s Sarah Stone

claskowski@panow.com

On Twitter: @chelsealaskowsk