'For the greater good': Indigenous financial advisor works to empower others
It's often said that every name tells a story.
For Theodora Warrior, that couldn't be more true.
“My name doesn't lie,” says Warrior, a Blackfoot member of the Piikani Nation in southern Alberta. “The purpose of a warrior is not meant for battle. They are meant for protection and sacrifice for all for the greater good.”
Warrior is the first Indigenous financial facilitator for Momentum, a Calgary charity dedicated to community economic development.
Jeff Loomis, executive director of Momentum, says it's committed to having a role in reconciliation with Indigenous communities and bringing Warrior onboard ensures a culturally relevant and supportive environment to aid in financial reconciliation.
Warrior views her job as one that empowers others, particularly Indigenous families such her own who experienced poverty as a result of the residential school system.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission report says the schools amounted to cultural genocide, stripping Indigenous people of their language and customs, and has led to chronic unemployment, poverty, poor housing, substance abuse, family violence and ill health.
About two years ago, Warrior attended a money management workshop hosted by Momentum, similar to one she now teaches, and was asked to write down a vision for her future.
She had lost everything - her house, job and belongings. She says it was a cycle she had repeated for years, from housed to homeless, employed to jobless, hopeful to disheartened.
Her vision on a piece of paper, now tucked away in a safe spot, listed 17 goals, including having a two-bedroom apartment, a healthier mental state, being debt-free with savings and having a steady job.
Most of those dreams came true.
Warrior is now bringing the program that helped change her life to other Indigenous people in Alberta communities. She calls the workshop series Money Moccasins.
“Financial wellness is a lifelong journey,” says Warrior. “Walking barefoot can make the trip more difficult. Moccasins are very sturdy and strong.”
Thinking about the workshop she attended, Warrior says the information was helpful but the facilitator, who was white, lacked an understanding of unique barriers faced by Indigenous people.
The facilitator talked about spending $200 on plants, almost the same amount Warrior had received monthly on welfare.
“It had nothing to do with where we come from, what we really encounter, what we have to work with,” says Warrior.
Warrior's mother and grandmother attended residential schools.
As a child, she remembers living in apartments with cockroaches, using food banks and moving frequently, both on and off reserve. Her mother, who has three university degrees, often worked multiple jobs.
Warrior says she believes the repercussions of the residential school system left her mom struggling to find financial stability.
As Warrior became an adult, she also had trouble staying afloat.
There were months when she had money from working in the trucking or hydrovac industries. At one point, she had a five-bedroom house and was financing a new vehicle.
But, she says, everything fell apart in about nine months when a friend moved out without paying their share of the bills and work opportunities disappeared.
When looking for a place to live, she says she faced encounters with landlords who hurled racist and prejudicial comments. Sometimes she left showings in tears.
Warrior says she stayed in women's shelters and slept in empty apartments.
“I've been through it all,” she says. “Homeless. Hitchhiking. Food banks. Relying on the kindness of strangers ... the depression that comes with it, domestic violence, alcoholism, addiction.”
She says she openly shares her experiences now with those in Money Moccasins. She remembers one participant who laughed when Warrior told the class she was in bankruptcy.
“'Who better to learn from than somebody who's been there?' Warrior recalls telling the woman. ”Being open and vulnerable with them like that drops their guard.“
Warrior keeps a constant reminder of how far she's come at her desk. Her computer screensaver shows Warrior looking into the distance with her sprawling First Nation behind her.
The photo was taken the day before she lost her driver's licence for drinking. Shortly after that, in 2019, she attended her first class at Momentum and got a job with the charity.
She describes her Money Moccasins program, which started this year and explores assets, budgeting, banking, credit and consumerism, as generation changing.
“In this Western world, money is life. In our world, water is life,” says Warrior.
“This course, these classes, they give you something to hold that water. They show you that you can save your water, that your water is meant to be saved for the next generation.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 28, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Breast cancer screening should start at age 40, Canadian Cancer Society says
The Canadian Cancer Society says all provinces and territories should lower the starting age for breast cancer screening to 40.
DEVELOPING Live updates as Stormy Daniels testifies at Trump hush money trial
Adult film star Stormy Daniels is on the stand a second time Thursday as former U.S. president Donald Trump’s hush money case continues in Manhattan. Follow live updates here.
Ontario family receives massive hospital bill as part of LTC law, refuses to pay
A southwestern Ontario woman has received an $8,400 bill from a hospital in Windsor, Ont., after she refused to put her mother in a nursing home she hated -- and she says she has no intention of paying it.
Canadian-Israeli man shot dead in Egypt; claim links killing to Gaza
A Canadian man 'of Jewish Israeli descent' has been shot dead in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in a suspected criminal case, a security source said, while a previously unknown militant group said it carried out the attack in reaction to the war in Gaza.
Here are the ultraprocessed foods you most need to avoid, according to a 30-year study
Studies have shown that ultraprocessed foods can have a detrimental impact on health. But 30 years of research show they don’t all have the same impact.
Ontario man frustrated after $3,500 paving job leaves driveway in shambles
An Ontario man considering having his driveway paved received a quote from a company for $7,000, but then, another paver in the neighbourhood knocked on his door and offered half that rate.
Why these immigrants to Canada say they're thinking about leaving, or have already moved on
For some immigrants, their dreams of permanently settling in Canada have taken an unexpected twist.
Bank of Canada says financial system is stable, but risks remain
The Bank of Canada says the Canadian financial system is stable, but risks remain due to debt servicing costs among households and businesses and stretched valuations of financial assets.
BREAKING Sheldon Keefe out as head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have fired head coach Sheldon Keefe. The team made the announcement Thursday after the Original Six franchise lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.