Mongrain completed her Bachelor of Education through the Indigenous Teacher Education Program (ITEP) at Queen’s this summer and is now pursuing a Master of Science in Biology. Her detailed drawings reflect her love of reading, scene-setting, and storytelling. She often gathers ideas while spending time outside, capturing them in photographs or holding them in her memory until they find their way into her work.
Her father, who is also an artist, has often given her some helpful guidance about that process.
“He says you have to be patient sometimes. The idea is: marinate,” Mongrain says. “Then you go back, and then it’s another burst of, ‘Oh, I got it. I get what I’m trying to capture.’”
This year’s National Day for Truth and Reconciliation observances at Queen’s focus on community and relationship building. Established by the federal government in 2021, the day recognizes the history and ongoing effects of the residential school system. It builds on Orange Shirt Day, a grassroots movement that began in British Columbia in 2013.
Orange T-shirt sales and events
T-shirts featuring Mongrain’s Rooted Remembrance design will be sold on a sliding scale of $10 to $20 in the Queen’s Centre Atrium from noon to 3 pm on Sept. 22, 23, 24, and 29. A pay-it-forward option will allow buyers to purchase a shirt for someone else.
On Sept. 30, the T-shirts will be sold at Agnes Benidickson Field from 11 am to 12:30 pm, before the Sacred Fire begins at 1 p.m. A portion of T-shirt sales will support the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society. Community members may also donate personal hygiene products, socks, slippers, and related items for Tipi Moza.
Remarks from Principal Patrick Deane, AMS President Dreyden George, Vice-Provost (Student Affairs) Corinna Fitzgerald, and Associate Vice-Principal (Indigenous Initiatives) Lisa Maracle will begin at 1:15 pm.
Other activities honouring the day are taking place throughout the month, including the Fifth Annual Indigenous Art Exhibition. Community members can find the full schedule through the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation section of the Office of Indigenous Initiatives website.