Mildred Michell, an elder whose picture was featured on the front page of October’s Anglican Journal, died on October 2 after suffering a stroke. She was 86.
A member of the Thompson First Nations band, she served as pastoral elder in the parishes of Lytton and Scw’exmx, B.C.
“Millie meant a great deal to our community. She was certainly a valued spiritual leader in our parish,” wrote Archdeacon Michael Watkins, rector of the Scw’exmx parish, in an e-mail to the Journal.
Her native name was NwhalEEnak, or Rising Star. She leaves seven children, 30 grandchildren, 56 great-grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren, according to a pamphlet prepared by friends and family for her funeral.
The former residential school at Lytton has been the focus of several lawsuits and Mrs. Michell participated in last summer’s Sacred Circle gathering of Native Anglicans, which addressed healing for those damaged in residential schools.