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INUVIK
Born in Inuvik, Lillian Elias began her life surrounded by Inuvialuktun language, and Inuvialuit traditions.

Robert O'Rourke, who served as Kam Lake MLA for the Elder's Parliament, left, looks on as Lillian Elias, who represented Inuvik at the mock legislative assembly session, recognizes loved ones and supporters at the 2012 Elder's Parliament in Yellowknife. - Lyndsay Herman/NNSL photo

A residential school survivor, Elias is now determined as an adult to help the next generations stay connected with their ancestry and have the sense of identity that was instilled in her as a little girl.

Elias spent her young adult years raising her four children. Once they were grown, she saw an opportunity to share her knowledge with Inuvialuit students in teaching courses offered by the Committee for the Original People's Entitlement (COPE).

The studies were difficult for Elias, who had only attended school until Grade 7 and struggled with reading and writing. Regardless, she had a strong motivation to finish.

"I wanted to be a teacher," Elias said. "So that's what I did. I finished my school and I graduated and that's when it opened doors for me; as an interpreter, translator, a teacher, a cultural knowledge and tradition (advocate). I'm really proud of where I am today."

Elias was 50 years old when she graduated and would teach some of the first Inuvialuktun classes at Samuel Hearne Secondary School.

"The enjoyment is when the students get excited about who they are," said Elias. "I like them to know who they are because I think that's where a lot of students get their, you know, when they feel good about themselves. When a person knows who they are, that is when they feel good about themselves."

She taught for 10 years and, though she retired around nine years ago, she hasn't slowed down. Elias continues to translate and serve on organizations such as the Inuvialuit Community Corporation and the Inuit Circumpolar Conference.

Elias has been translating since she was 15 years old and gradually moved from translating for family members to translating in formal settings such as session of the legislative assembly.

Last week at the Elder's Parliament, Elias had the unique experience of being a speaker, and not the translator. She said the experience was very different from what she was used to and had to structure her thoughts quite differently than she was used to.

"It was hard for me to try and put words into it, that's why I was talking about how different we are," she said. "So different. When you say something sometimes we get different understanding, you get different understanding. That's why there's always a gap between you and me."

A gap, she said, that can be bridged with some hard work.

Elias's goal at the Elder's Parliament and the focus of her current work, is to raise awareness of elder abuse and preserve elders' irreplaceable knowledge.

"When they pass on and we bury them, never again am I going to say ... in my language, 'Auntie could you show me how you do this? How do you cut this out?'" said Elias. "That's why we need everything we can get out of them. The way I learned how to do sewing and everything was watching my aunties out on the land."

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