WINNIPEG, MB –Dr. Mary Young and Sister Geraldine MacNamara have a permanent place of honour on The University of Winnipeg campus, a tribute to their lasting legacy and dedication to inner city and Indigenous youth. On Monday, October 5, the Board of Regents approved naming the Dr. Mary Young Student Lounge within the Aboriginal Student Services Centre (2nd floor, Lockhart Hall); and adding MacNamara Hall to the University of Winnipeg Students’ Association Daycare Centre building (548 Furby Place).
Dr. Mary Young established the Aboriginal Student Services Centre in 2004 and was a respected scholar, author, friend and role model on campus, serving UWinnipeg with dedication for 29 years.
“With commitment, determination, and perseverance, Mary Young lobbied the Aboriginal Student Services Centre into existence. It stands today as a haven for up-and-coming Aboriginal students and is a testament to her unwavering vision,” said Andrea McCluskey, Aboriginal Academic Advisor and Coordinator, Aboriginal Student Services Centre.
MacNamara Hall was a fixture on UWinnipeg’s campus on Spence Street from 1986 to 2009, housing the UWSA Daycare, until it was dismantled to make way for the Health and RecPlex. Sister Geraldine MacNamara, founder of Rossbrook House, was a tireless and effective advocate on behalf of inner city children and youth.
“Sister MacNamara was a champion for inner city youth and embodied the essence of responsible citizenship,” said Peyton Veitch, UWSA President. “We are proud to acknowledge her enduring legacy by naming the building that houses the UWSA Daycare in her honour.”
BACKGROUND:
Dr. Mary Young was proud of her heritage as an Anishinaabekwe from Bloodvein First Nation. She was a survivor of Pine Creek and Assiniboia Residential Schools before eventually graduating from Kelvin High School. Dr. Young received a BA from the University of Winnipeg, a Post-Baccalaureate and Masters in Education from the University of Manitoba and a PhD in Education from the University of Alberta.
Dr. Young was the driving force behind the Aboriginal Student Services Centre in 2004. Her vision was “to provide a safe and comfortable place not only for Indigenous Students to study, read, and write their papers, but also to form new friendships, support each other, and develop lasting relationships.”
Dr. Young joined UWinnipeg in 1984 as a Native Student Advisor/Counsellor. From 2003 to 2008, she served as the Director of Aboriginal Student Services and in 2007 she also joined the Faculty of Education as a tenured professor where she was an active researcher and teacher.
Dr. Young’s first book, Pimatisiwin: Walking in a Good Way, was published by Pemmican Publications in 2005. Her subsequent presentations on it offered important insight to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous audiences about central cultural and language concerns. Her second book, Warrior Women: Remaking Postsecondary Places Through Relational Narrative Inquiry, was published in 2012 by Emerald Group Publishing in the UK.
She received several awards including the Clarence Atchison Award for Excellence in Community Service (1992) and the Marsha Hanen Award for Excellence in Creating Community Awareness (2007). Dr. Mary Young passed away in July 2015.
“No child who does not want to be alone, should ever have to be”….Sister Geraldine MacNamara
Sister Geraldine MacNamara was a member of the Roman Catholic Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary and founder of Winnipeg’s Rossbrook House, a safe haven for inner city children and teenagers.
Sister MacNamara attended the University of Manitoba and earned a BA in 1959, a Certificate of Education in 1960, and a Bachelor of Education in 1965. She resumed her studies in the Faculty of Law at U of M in 1971, articling at Legal Aid. While living and working in the inner city, Sister MacNamara became intimately acquainted with the youth of the area. With indomitable energy and wit she set out to find an empty building and in January 1976 Rossbrook House officially opened its doors.
Sister MacNamara’s influence reached far into the community. She served on numerous boards, including Anti-Sniff Coalition, Neighbourhood Service Centre, Ministrial Advisory Board on Canada Work Projects, Chamber of Commerce Core Area Labor Training Board, Urban Futures Steering Committee Conferences, Law Reform Commission, Nor’West Health Clinic and Logan Industrial Park.
In 1983, she received the Order of Canada. Sister MacNamara died at the age of 45 in 1984.
MEDIA CONTACT
Diane Poulin, Senior Communications Specialist, The University of Winnipeg
P: 204.988.7135, E: d.poulin@uwinnipeg.ca
