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= IBOPINION - LEARNING, COOKING AND FUNDRAISING AT INDIGENOUS FOOD EVENT 5 CAITLIN NOEL-DREWS HOPES T0 © OFFER INDIGENOUS DINNER = EVENTS IN WATERLOO REGION IN ~ THE NEAR FUTURE, WRITES ANDREW COPPOLINO Waterloo Chi ANDREW COPPOLINO Column When I begin our interview, chef and food activist Caitlin Noel-Drews asks to share her Dakota name. "I am Taté Topa," says Noel-Drews. “That means 'The Four Winds' in my tradi- tional language.” It'sa way for her to have her heritage ac- knowledged, and it's what motivates her work in building recognition for Indige- ous ingredients, culinary traditions and food philosophy. ‘Great deals to STUFF their stocking!’ ts durii Caitlin Noel. to stud Terry Manzo photo Noel-Drews returned to Stratford from the Ottawa area recently to leada Gass of Stratford District Secondary Scl stu- dent-chefs in preparing a fouret course fundraising dinner at the school's student- run Screaming Avocado kitchen and res- taurant. The Screaming Avocado was founded by Paul Finkelstein in 2004; chef and culi- nary arts teacher Andrew Mavor now su- LA@BoyY aunty 744 Leather | Rocker Recliner in Grey Regular $1999 Liquidation Price $1199 LA@BoY ae lp Orage 512 Rocker Recliner in Burgundy Regular $1699 Liquidation Price This colour only, whil $500 off Stearns & Foster "175 Anniversary’ QUEEN Mattress. Regular $2499 Now $1999 Including HST & Delivery! We even take your old bed away for free. & FURNITURE waterloochronicle.ca Always HST and Delivery included in pricing. Highway 86, East of Listowel 519-291-3820 www.conwayfurniture.com pervises the facility and stv students. eeds ent to the Noh wanonengone cht Care and Family Centre in London, Born in southwestern Manitoba's Bird- tail Sioux First Nation, Noel-Drews calls Stratford a great place to grow up. "It helped shape me in the culinary in- dustry, but at the time there wasn't any cel. ebration or discussion of Indigenous food.” The dinner — "Keepers of the Fire: A Celebration of Indigenous and Local In- gredients" — was a way to help fill the sap, “There is now some movement recognizing Indigenous thought a4 knowledge, especially when it comes to food We ai stewards of the land. That's a big deal for For much of her youth, until her 20s, Noel-Drews says she was learning about herself and her heritage and culture. After taking a program at Six Nations, she started doing addictions work on well- ness that was land-based and food-focused; she says she learned that preparing tradi- tional foods, being on the land and doing what her ancestors did can change people. “IT saw how it can heal in ways I never thought possible. That was a turning point for me, being connected to the food system. and environment,’ ‘Noel Drews says. The name r derives from a proverb in hoe fraditional language, she iS. othe proverb says that with every ac- tion you take, you must consider the next seven generations. This generation of kids is considered the seventh fire, the ones See - page 15