"Some people were very critical of the idea especially representatives from Indian Affairs. They wanted to know if any of 'those people who sign their names with an X at the hospital' really wanted to learn to read."

"Rachel Clark and The Voice of Native Women group went out and did a survey. I wasn't part of that. They came back with lists and lists of names of largely Native people who said, 'I would give my right arm for a chance to go to school and learn to read.' There was one elderly gentleman down at Tall Cree who told them, 'You know, if you teach me how to sign my name then I'll be able to throwaway my X!' That became our motto. All the first posters that went up inviting people to get involved said, 'Help your friends and neighbours throwaway their X.' There was a tremendous community response, both from La Crete and Ft. Vermilion."

"I did some ground work for John Waters, who was the Director of the Adult Education Centres in the North, to find out about the availability of literacy resources. I eventually got a hold of Laubach in Syracruse. They introduced me to Thelma Blinn who was pioneering the Each One Teach One Programs in the eastern United States. She was so excited about getting a phone call from Northern Canada she said if we could pay her way out, there would be no fee for her services."

"So we flew her up here and billeted her in our homes and she held a workshop for us all on the Laubach approach to teaching reading and writing. For the first time someone talked to us about an equal sharing between students and tutors. She left a huge imprint on everyone who was there."

"Thelma had been working in jails and told us that the best people to tutor students in jail were people in jail who were literate. Right off the top we got this picture of the value of peer tutoring which really enforced our faith in the idea of community tutors."

"That was in 1977. By 1980 there were line-ups of people to be tutored, so the Further Education Council applied to the Department of Advanced Education for special project funding. Because I had been involved I was asked if I would be interested in coordinating the program. So I wasn't the initiator; I was just the extremely lucky person who got the job."

"We turned off the highway into the community of Ft. Vermilion and in just a few minutes were parked in front of Lorna's log house. It was late, so Lorna took me upstairs to get settled in for the night. Barbara, Lorna's 10-year-old granddaughter, had pulled out and made up the bed in the sitting room for me complete with a teddy bear by my pillow."

The warmth of the bed and the quiet of the night contributed to the best sleep I had had in ages. Lorna told me in the morning that she actually has friends who come to visit her overnight just to get a good night's sleep. My own experience told me that they also came to spend time with Lorna herself, to benefit from her wise and gentle approach to life.

Drinking tea and eating bannock we sat all morning in our flannelette nightgowns and wooly socks and talked about Lorna's literacy experiences.

Loma has worked with many students over the years and is currently working with a 37-year-old Native man who has cerebral palsy. Thomas is in a wheelchair and has limited ability in his speech but Loma works with him each morning and is excited about the progress they are making together.

"In the darkest, deepest most awful circumstances, the human spirit longs to heal itself," Loma said. "Nobody can give that to a person from outside of themselves. But the one thing you can do to make a difference is to provide that person with what I call a storm haven - a secure, safe, comfortable place where they feel OK enough to work at their self-healing."