One of our esteemed members, Brenda Mercer — Good Sweetgrass Woman, Many Blessings Woman — is Dakota Sioux from Standing Buffalo Nation. Brenda, together with her friend Davie James, joined us to share an inspiring update on a heartfelt cultural initiative she is leading: the Whitehorse Rider Teepee Project.
This project, rooted in love, resilience, and community, reflects Brenda’s vision to construct seven teepees that will serve as living spaces for sharing Indigenous culture, teachings, and stories. Her goal reaches beyond awareness; it is about fostering true reconciliation — or as Brenda beautifully reframes it, “reconciliaction.”
The Story Behind the Tepees: A Community Journey of Culture, Healing, and Connection
Last year marked a milestone for Brenda and the community: the creation of her very first tepee. What began as a single project quickly grew into something much deeper—a journey of reconnection, cultural pride, and shared purpose.
The process itself became a story worth telling. Brenda’s husband dedicated 11 hours to sewing the canvas, while the City generously offered the Hockey Hounds Social Room as a workspace and storage area. Harvesting the poles turned into its own adventure—one that came with a memorable lesson: always fall the trees close to the road. Peeling the poles took three full days, each one filled with determination and laughter.
When the tepee was finally raised beside the Saamis tepee, it marked a moment 30 years in the making. Elder Charlie Fox stood alongside Brenda, offering guidance and grounding the experience in tradition and respect.
The artwork on the tepee carries personal meaning. The horses and buffalo reflect Brenda’s own connections—threads of identity and memory that she continues to explore and honor. Immigrant newcomers were invited to join the process as a way of sharing land, history, and the spirit of community.
“Go backwards to find out who you are to move forward.”
Sitting inside the finished tepee for the first time, Brenda described the feeling as surreal—a space built with good intentions, many hands, and a shared desire to learn from one another.
A video about the Brenda's journey creating her teepee can be viewed on YouTube - Medicine Hat - White Horse Rider Tepee Project | Rogers tv
Why Seven Tepees?
That first tepee sparked a bigger vision. Brenda decided to build seven more, inspired by the Seven Sacred Teachings. Little Brenda once dreamed of building twelve, but even seven is a significant undertaking—one filled with cultural meaning and personal purpose.
The tepees are dedicated to her mother, grandmother, and great‑grandmother. They are a way for Brenda to acknowledge her adoptive parents, reflect on the challenges of being taken from her family at a young age, and create something that supports her own healing while promoting reconciliation.
A Shared Path Forward
Jamie, who has known Brenda for six years, has been on his own journey of rediscovering his roots. Funding for the project came through youth‑focused grants, aligning perfectly with the goal of helping young people reconnect with culture, identity, and community.
The aim is to have all tepees ready for Canada Day, where they will be set up for workshops and cultural sharing. Teepees are not viewed as just physical shelters in Indigenous culture, but are considered living, breathing entities with a spirit. They cannot be "left alone" because they symbolize the family unit, community connection, and respect for the land, and therefore will be in the care of the Medicine Hat Skateboard Association for the duration of the Canada Day celebrations.
“There are teachings in every functional part of the tepee, as well as in the process of raising and lowering it. Community engagement is a goal.”
Looking Ahead
Merchandise will soon be available, with proceeds supporting future tepee‑related initiatives and cultural programming. Each step forward continues to build on the spirit of community, learning, and healing that began with one tepee—and has now grown into a movement.