Susie Ballot and Lera Hephner’s Work to Preserve Culture Across Generations

Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine

Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine – Weekly Radio Show
Native Lights is a weekly, half-hour radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce -- a.k.a. Minnesota -- to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community.

Susie Ballot and Lera Hephner’s Work to Preserve Culture Across Generations

Today Leah shares her conversations with Susie Ballot and Lera Hephner from White Earth Nation’s cohort of Indigenous Parent Leadership Initiative (IPLI). As graduates of the initiative, they’ve begun projects to deepen connections between their communities and culture. Susie’s project, “Connecting with Your Spirit” works specifically to connect culture bearers and pipe carriers together with young community members with the goal of receiving their Ojibwe name. Lera’s project “Healthy Language, Health Community” focuses on data collection and creating successful Ojibwemowin programs in the White Earth community.

Chi-Miigwech to Susie and Lera for sharing with us today!

The Indigenous Parent Leadership Initiative is a 21-week course for parents that integrates Ojibwe culture, child development and leadership. To find out more about the next cohort at IPLI, visit https://www.indigenousvisioning.com/ or on their Facebook page: https://m.facebook.com/Indigenous-Parent-Leadership-Initiative-104913428664845

Native Lights: Where Indigenous Voices Shine is produced by Minnesota Native News and Ampers, Diverse Radio for Minnesota’s Communities with support from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage fund. Online at https://minnesotanativenews.org/