Indigenous Cross-Cultural Consultant
Fern Chapman is a unique non-status Metis woman with over 30 years of Indigenous experience in professional and family life. She has been sought for her ability to build bridges between Indigenous and non-indigenous parties in every facet of society such as consulting for Aboriginal non-profits, a Native Child Welfare organization, Boreal Music Society, a Town Corporation, and various religious organizations touching Indigenous People, a First Nations Health Authority as Woman & Child Community Nutrition Program Manager, Indigenous Communities leadership educator etc. She is a professional author, musician, and speaker. Her second publication will facilitate better understanding between the two worlds and will be ready sometime next year.
Fern Chapman
Endorsements:
Fern has lived most of her life working and living among us First Nations people. She moves freely between our world and the non-native world. She is Metis and we know her well and honor her for her constructive social and professional impact upon us the past 30 years.
Angus Chapman
Religious Leader, Oji-Cree Pioneer
I marvel at how Fern understands challenging and special needs of Native youth of today as well as their families. She can bridge Native organizations with the puzzled mainstream organizations and create a successful environment for growth. I am an educator for special needs children from Aboriginal communities. And I have witnessed Fern advocating for better services and support for special needs youth. She is talented and respected in the circles she travels in. Fern’s work and expertise are much needed for further education and growth in the Aboriginal communities.
Trudy Wiebe OCT BA BED
(Active 1998 – 2022)
We hired Fern to write a cross-cultural guide for non-native professionals to better service our native people coming down from the northern communities. Her published 1999 First Edition of “Self-Advocation -A Guide for Professional Caregivers” was used by The Corporation of The Town of Sioux Lookout to brief non-native southern Ontario consultants coming up here. I also learned later that her Guide was used in the Ontario Hospital Association Infrastructure planning. We also hired Fern as a consultant to make the smooth transition of a culturally sensitive special needs program from our indigenous organization over to a non-native-staffed organization to be managed by The Corporation of the Town o Sioux Lookout. She will always be our friend.
Barbara Peetwayway
Acting Director, Native Woman & Child One Step Shelter, Sioux Lookout
Indigenous Patient Navigator, Child Victims & Single Mothers Support Group, NAAN
Native Woman & Child Issue Advocate, Winnipeg Addictions Shelter for Women & Children
We retain Fern as a socio-economic Subcontractor for us as we work with remote native community leaderships on construction infrastructure projects and the like. She successfully co-piloted a brand-new project as a construction trades apprenticeship coach/mentor for Sioux Lookout Area Aboriginal Management Board that needed to bridge college and Ontario trades licensing parties for NAAN communities to upgrade and obtain certification of qualification for their own members. We’ve known her many decades bridging natives and outsiders in difficult places.
Stan Nissley, Nissley Construction
Actual Sensitive Scenarios
WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF ...
It Took Too Long To Win Your Indigenous Colleague’s Trust Or Cooperation?
The Non-Native Visitor Who Came To Your Community To Give A Workshop To Your Leadership ‘Triggered’ You?
The Indigenous Adult Or Youth Are Helping Says, “You Wouldn’t Understand?
Your Non-Native Instructor Or Counselor’s Room Didn’t Feel Welcoming To You?
You are an indigenous or non-native attendee. the non-native or indigenous person sitting behind you in the audience constantly interrupts the speaker or a sensitive event.
You are not sure what nomenclature to use when introducing or addressing an indigenous person (or yourself) or a mixed group of Indigenous/non-native persons?
your invitation to an Indigenous person and their confirmation resulted in absence?
Your question put to an Indigenous person is met with silence?
Your response to a remote Indigenous family brought into your city as they are experiencing a confusing medical crisis?
What does a remote indigenous person mean when they say, ‘I’m good’?