Read Maliasha’s interview below.
Can you tell us a bit about who you are and where you’re from?
‘Uy’ skweyul ‘een’thu HWOPEY. Maliasha Thorne-Seward tthu s-hwunitum’a’lh sne. Ni’ tsun Kwan ni’ utl’ SNUNEYMUXW ‘i’ QUW’UTSUN
Good day. I am Maliasha Thorne-Seward, my traditional name is HWOPEY. I am from the Snuneymuxw and Quw’utsun territories. I have lived in W̱JOȽEȽP community for 10 years now in the summer. I have two beautiful daughters who are a part of the W̱JOȽEȽP nation. It is our home.
Could you tell me about the background and experience you bring to this position at Tsartlip?
I bring both professional and personal experience that aligns well with this role. Professionally, I worked as the high school receptionist at LAUWELNEW for a year before going on maternity leave. This gave me experience in organization, communication, and working with families in the surrounding communities. More recently, I have been involved in the Children’s Oral Health Initiative program ran through FNHA (First Nations Health Authority), where I worked with children in Tsartlip and Tsawout community from newborn to age 8 for about a year and a bit now. This role allowed me to support families in caring for children’s teeth which directly relates to maternal and child well-being. On a personal level, I am a mother to two beautiful daughter ages 6 and 2.5. This parenting journey has given me firsthand knowledge of the joys and challenges families face in raising young children. I understand the importance of community support.
What kind of work will you be doing with Tsartlip?
Tsartlip already has a great Maternal Health Coordinator Liz. Getting started I’ll be learning the ropes and assisting her any way that I can but to elaborate what that may look like: As a Maternal Child Health Worker at Tsartlip, my work will focus on supporting families with young children by providing health education, resources, and guidance if needed. This includes promoting maternal and child well-being, connecting parents with services, and offering culturally relevant support that aligns with my community’s needs. I expect to work closely with families at baby groups coming up, providing information on topics like prenatal and postnatal care, early childhood development, and overall family wellness. Building relationships will be an important part of the job as well, as I want parents and the children to feel comfortable reaching out to us.
I’ll also be looking to collaborate with other health professionals and community programs to ensure families have access to the best care and resources available. My goal is to help strengthen the support system that is already strongly embedded at Tsartlip for parents, children and caregivers.
What kind of impact do you hope to have during your time at Tsartlip?
My goal is to have a positive and lasting impact on families by providing support, resources and guidance. I hope to help parents feel empowered and confident in caring for their little ones, whether that’s through health education, connecting them with resources or simply being a supportive and understanding presence at groups. Like I was saying, I know first-hand what it is like after having a baby. I would love to use my experiences as lessons.
I also would like to add that this generation of babies across First Nation community Head Start programs are only the 3rd generation to not attend residential school. I think it is very important that we acknowledge and rebuild on what was once lost and taken away from us. Our babies have the right to learn our language and culture. It is our job as leaders to help bring that back into communities and offer culturally targeted programs. I think our babies are the place to start. Our babies are our future, and to me, culture and language are the fundamental part of a child’s development and reflect the uniqueness of our First Nations communities, as we should consider and build around the emotional, social, spiritual, and physical needs of our children in community. That is what I hope to learn more of and help build in to more at Tsartlip Head Start programs.
What do you like to do when you’re not at work?
When I am not at work, I am busy with my family and our everyday routines, we enjoy visiting our grandparents and cousins. But lately my daughters and I have been doing a lot of baking. If I’m not with them, then I am at the soccer. I am just finishing up my first year of playing Div. one, which was super exciting for me. And if I’m not at soccer, then I am attending a cultural event. I grew up with a family that is always involved in cultural events, even to this day. I want my daughters to experience the same if not better.
