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For immediate release
February 1, 2022

Grand Chief Settee holds a copy of “Run as One: My Story,” a memoir published in 2021 by his friend, musician Errol Ranville. Grand Chief Settee also wrote a foreward for his friend’s book.

 

Treaty Five Territory, Thompson, MB – Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO) Inc. is issuing a statement today encouraging MKO citizens to take part in “I Love to Read” month, which takes place for the entire month of February.

“Knowledge is power. Books are a great way to expand our knowledge. I love to read, and I want to encourage everyone to read a book in February,” shared Grand Chief Garrison Settee. “Reading can do so much for us. A good book can be a friend to us, it can allow us to travel to different places we have never been before, it can teach us new things, it can make us laugh and lift our spirits… these are just some of the things a good book can do.”

Now more than ever, there are a wide variety of publications to choose from to suit a reader’s personal preferences. There are novels, graphic novels, comic books, mystery books, cookbooks, picture books, and so forth.

“My favourite kind of book to read are true stories. I enjoy reading biographies and memoirs,” said Grand Chief Settee. “I’m happy to know more Indigenous people are writing books and having them published. We even see Indigenous authors making it onto the bestsellers lists across the country. This is so good to see; it’s nice to read books by people from our communities.”

Grand Chief Settee with “Muskogee – Carol’s Traditional Medicines” by Caroline Sanoffsky and illustrated by Nicole Marie Burton. The book was published by the Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre.

Adults may wish to encourage children and young people in their lives to do some reading this month. One of the best ways to encourage the children and youth in our lives is to role model and to host a regular family story time. You can pick books to read together at bedtime as a nice activity to wind down for the day—this is a time that children can come to enjoy and look forward to throughout their day.

Libraries are an excellent place to find free books. If you have a library in your area or your school, take a visit and look at the different kinds of books they have to offer.

The Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre also publishes a range of books suitable for various ages, including books in Cree and Dene languages. You can visit the Centre’s online shop here: https://mfnerc.org/the-shop/

MKO will share some book recommendations throughout the month on our social media accounts. We would like to hear about what kind of books people are reading. Please feel free to send us a message with your book recommendation(s), along with information on why you recommend the book, to: [email protected]

Grand Chief Settee holds a book by Mary Ellen Turpel and former National Chief Ovide Mercredi called “In the Rapids: Navigating the Future of First Nations.” The book was published in 1993.

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For more information:
Melanie Ferris, MKO Communications
Phone: 204-612-1284
Email: [email protected]