In nursing school, Deanna Garand learned to monitor a patient’s vital signs and provide compassionate care.
She also learned how to sew a ribbon skirt and connect with her roots.
After countless hours spent in libraries and clinical rotations across Winnipeg, the 32-year-old graduated on Thursday wearing her skirt, sash and Red River Métis pride.
But university wasn’t always in the cards.
For nearly 15 years, Garand led a successful career as a freelance makeup artist and manager.
“I really wasn’t ever expecting to go to university,” Garand said. “I kind of was against it, to be honest, and I didn’t think it was going to be something for me.”
Then, the COVID-19 pandemic happened.
“I lost my job, I didn’t think that it was going to be something I could do anymore, doing makeup and working where I was working,” she said. “I thought, well, if ever I was going to go to school, this would be the time.
“I called the university to ask what it would take to enroll.”
That day, which turned out to be the fall registration deadline, Garand took a leap of faith. She quickly assembled her paperwork and submitted her application.
Not long after, the university connected her to the Mahkwa omushki kiim: Pathway to Indigenous Nursing Education (PINE) unit.
Nurturing Indigenous nurses
Every year, the PINE unit supports hundreds of Indigenous students on their journey from pre-nursing to graduation.
Director Rhonda Campbell said it provides academic assistance through small classes and tutoring, while also offering cultural and spiritual care.
“PINE also helps with personal supports, connecting students to other resources at the university, and also cultural supports is a big area,” Campbell said over Zoom. “Students are able to access our knowledge keeper for connecting with ceremonies, if they want any teachings.”
For Garand, who grew up disconnected from her Métis roots, the program helped her grow academically and culturally.
“It was just great to have all-around support and have access to Elders. They really helped me reconnect, because that was something that was important to me when I started my university journey,” she said. “It was really, really helpful, and gave me a place to feel like I belonged here.”
An unbreakable bond
Through PINE, Garand met Olivia Molyneaux, who is Anishinaabe from Henvey Inlet in Ontario.
“On my day one of nursing here, I met my closest friend that I have now, Olivia, and she waited with me for a veggie burger while on our day one lunch because they didn’t have enough cooked,” Garand said. “From that point forward, she’s just really helped support me.”
A mother of two, Molyneaux also entered the program as a mature student.
“From the second we met, we just have not stopped hanging out since,” Molyneaux said on their graduation day. “We kind of got each other through the program, we were with each other all the way through PINE.”
From the cafeteria line to the grad cap queue, the duo have been inseparable from the beginning. Soon, they’ll kickstart their nursing careers together at an Indigenous-led community health centre.
“We need more Indigenous people in those places that are making decisions and more Indigenous people that are working directly frontline,” Garand said. “There is a community of Indigenous people here at the university that are so unbelievably supportive and they really want to see that you make it through to the end.”
Campbell said those interested in PINE can visit umanitoba.ca or email PINE@umanitoba.ca to learn more.
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