Shebahonaning means “canoe passage” in Anishinaabemowin, and refers to the sheltered channel created by George Island at the town of Killarney. (The name Shebahonaning was arbitrarily changed to “Killarney” by the Canadian postal service in the 1850s.)
Many Indigenous peoples in this region descend from Anishinaabe ancestors who have been residents and caretakers of the land for thousands of years. These ancestors include people from the Ojibwe (Chippewa), the Odawa (Ottawa), the Algonquin, and the Potawatomi. Many Métis families have also called Killarney home since the early 1800’s.
I would like to acknowledge that our retreats take place on the traditional and ancestral lands of these peoples, currently including the Wikwemikong Anishinabek, the Anishinabek of Whitefish River, the Atikameksheng Anishnawbek, the Sagamok Anishnawbek, and the Mississauga First Nations of Blind River.
The land is affected by the Robinson-Huron treaty of 1850, and Killarney Provincial Park was formed with help of the Ontario Society of Artists in 1964.
While I don’t want this to be a guilt-trip, I do ask everyone to consider the Indigenous peoples who were forcefully removed from these lands and prevented from practicing traditional ways of connection, healing, and self-sustenance.
During these retreats we are indulging in the privileges provided to us by colonial rule in Canada, and I hope you will choose to take up the responsibility of reconciliation with me.
