Meet Jo
June 24, 2025
Meet Rossana
November 19, 2025
Kara’s Canvas: Finding Healing and Connection Through Art
“Here, I feel safe. I feel like I can finally breathe.”
– Kara, Cornerstone resident.
I am an Indigenous woman, a proud member of the LGBTQ2S+ community, and a survivor of both the Sixties Scoop and the residential school system — two systems that deeply disrupted my early life and sense of belonging.
I was removed from my family at a young age, and spent much of my childhood in foster care before being placed in a residential school. These early experiences left lasting marks on my spirit and identity. My journey since then has been shaped by trauma, displacement, and an ongoing search for safety, selfhood, and connection.
But at Cornerstone, I have found something I hadn’t known in a very long time — stability.
It’s the first place I’ve been able just to be myself; here, I feel safe.
With that safety came healing, and with healing came art.
Over the past few months, I reconnected with a creative part of myself that had long been buried. I recently completed two symbolic paintings — works that feature polar bears, the northern lights, and deep, spiritual themes of belonging and survival.
The polar bears are about survival. They’re strong, and they look after each other. The northern lights are hope.
And the connection… that’s everything. To the land, to each other, to who I am.
Painting isn’t just a pastime; it’s a lifeline. My art gives me a voice, a way to process what I’ve lived through, and a powerful tool to reclaim my identity and honour my culture.
Each brushstroke is both a memory and a prayer; a tribute to the children who were taken, the communities that were fractured, and the generations still healing. I dedicate my paintings to all the families impacted by the Sixties Scoop and residential schools and to the little ones who never came home.
This is for them. And for all of us who are still here.
This month is Indigenous History and Pride, and I'm honoured to share my story with you all. My art reflects not only where I’ve been but where I'm going.
