Raised in the Ottawa River valley, Sharron Proulx-Turner was an Indigenous writer and poet, who sadly passed away in November 2016. Sharon came from Mohawk, Wyandat, Algonquin, Ojibwe, Mi’kmaw, French and Irish ancestry, and was a member of the Métis Nation of Alberta. Proulx-Turner was a talented writer, a Nokomis (storyteller), a community worker, and a beloved mother and aunt.
Her memoir Where the Rivers Join (1995) was a finalist for the Edna Staebler Award, and her collec- tion of poetry what the auntys say (2002) was a finalist for the Gerald Lampert Prize.
Proulx-Turner was published in several anthologies and literary journals throughout her career, and also had two other books published in 2008: a mixed genre historical fiction called she walks for days/ inside a thousand eyes/ a two-spirit story and a collection of poetry titled she is reading her blanket with her hands.
Her final publication creole métisse of french canada, me was released in December 2017 by Kege- donce Press, in honour of Proulx-Turner. This collection of poetry combines the mediums of prose poetry and memoir, and reflects on Proulx-Turner’s life experiences as a two-spirited Métis woman and the role of writing in her life.
We would like to share some excerpts from creole métisse of french canada, me with you.