FOR ONE OF THE FIRST TŁĮCHǪ WOMEN TO BECOME CHIEF, THERE’S NO TIME FOR BOREDOM.
(Source: UpHere Magazine)
When Doreen Arrowmaker’s father Alphonse Apples, the chief of Gamètì, would go away for meetings he would normally bring back “little goodies” for Doreen and her siblings. One time though, when she was five or six years old, he brought back toys for everyone except Doreen. Instead, her father gave her a typewriter and a backpack stuffed with school supplies.
“I went and cried because I wanted fun things to play with, not a typewriter.” But she remembers her father telling her she didn’t have time to play; Doreen would be too busy doing more important things in her life. He was right. Today, she’s the one who’s off to chiefs’ meetings.
In addition to her role as Gamètì’s chief, Arrowmaker is also completing a second master’s degree in business administration (to go along with a handful of other certificates and diplomas) and she’s busy looking after a six-year-old daughter with her husband. They adopted her as a baby, despite Arrowmaker already having raised three adult children on her own. Her youngest daughter has been by her side ever since, now calling herself “little chief.” When asked why she chose to adopt, Arrowmaker takes a second to respond: “I guess I’d say I was bored with life,” she says, with a laugh. Avoid- ing boredom, “that’s how I function.”
Growing up, her father kept her busy. He would ask her to do language interpretation and she’d write notes for him on various subjects to take to meetings. This work also gave her a glimpse into political leadership.
In 2017, she ran for chief... and lost. She talks of the experience now as a “nasty” and “ugly” campaign. When the opportunity came up again four years later, she wasn’t sure about putting herself through the ordeal. A loved one pushed her to run, and ultimately Arrowmaker felt like she had more to offer.
In June 2021, Arrowmaker and Adeline Football became the first Tłıc̨hǫ women to be elected as chiefs in their communities of Gamètì and Wekweètì. Arrowmaker says now she would not have run if she knew she was not going to deliver. “Integrity is one of the most important values that I hold to.”
But it hasn’t been an easy road.
“Being a woman coming into this traditional role, I was worried about how aggressive I should be or how relaxed I could be,” she says. In the 18 months she’s been chief, Arrowmaker says she’s received comments from community members minimizing her leadership and experience.
“I don’t let it get to me because they’ve never walked in my shoes,” she says. More important to her are the values she brings to the table with her fellow chiefs.
She admits she can be “very blunt,” but that doesn’t mean she isn’t open to legitimate criticism. If she’s upset someone, “I own up to that.”
With a little over two and a half years left in her term, her focus is on bringing more value to her community. Embracing change is a core part of her leadership. Part of that includes building a multi-use facility that would act as a cultural and recreation center.
“I want people to say, ‘Oh, I’ve been to Gamètì. The people are really nice and they really got their crap together.’”
After she’s done with her masters, Arrowmaker says she’s going to take a couple of well-deserved months off to rest. Well, “maybe just a month.” Then she’s considering applying to a doctoral program. “I’m looking at governance, in- novation, Indigenous economic development. Oh my gosh, so many things.”
Whatever choice she makes, it won’t be boring. – Francis Tessier-Burns
