Joe Desjarlais is from a large Métis family in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. He is proud of his mixed Ukrainian and Métis ancestry, with kinship in the Red River of Manitoba and across Western Canada. He currently lives in North Vancouver with his wife Danielle and family.

He graduated from Trinity Western University with a B.Ed degree and is currently completing an M.A. in Interdisciplinary Humanities with a history focus.

Joe’s journey of his own recovery of identity would not exist in its current form without the opportunities the BC Métis Federation have provided to ground his ideas and experiences in community life and relationship building with people and communities across the province, creating life-long friendships in the process.

He was project lead and co-author of the BC Metis Federation Terrestrial Study Final Report and is the coordinator for the current BC Métis Federation Terrestrial Cumulative Effects Initiative. These research projects are at the cutting edge of repatriation efforts in Canada.

Chris was born to Mennonite parents in St. Catherines, Ontario and was raised on a farm in Abbotsford, British Columbia. From a young age Chris was inspired by his family and cultural history of principles, persecution, and migration; and the traits of hard work and perseverance that developed from their lived experience.

Chris graduated from Wilfrid Laurier University (Waterloo, Ontario) with a B.A. in History with Honours in 2010; and was President of the WLU History Students’ Association between 2007 and 2009. He focused his studies on early-modern (pre-industrial) European society. Specifically, how people actively challenged (or responded to challenges against) prevailing expressions of spirituality, the fragmentation and reconstruction of identity that ensued, and the social, institutional, and geo-political upheaval that resulted from these evolving reconceptualizations.

Chris returned to British Columbia in 2011 to pursue an M.A. in History at Simon Fraser University but became disillusioned with academia mid-program. He then began a small tour company with a close friend and professor from Wilfrid Laurier. The company ran for two summers and delivered early-modern historical content to English-speaking tourists in Paris, France.

In 2013 Chris relocated to Melbourne, Australia and was given a six-month contract at Maurice Blackburn Lawyers who were representing the victims of 2009’s ‘Black Saturday’ bushfires. There he assisted with document discovery and was charged to produce Google Earth maps that plotted (and proved) plaintiffs’ visual accounts of wildfire movement on Black Saturday. This was an extremely rewarding opportunity for Chris as it leveraged his historical training and taught him technical skills (ie. Excel) that would be foundational for his subsequent work.

Chris was hired by Mediacom, a large advertising firm, to do digital advertising in 2014. While working at Mediacom has been described as a ‘white collar sweat-shop due to tight deadlines and excessive amounts of unpaid overtime, the experience was invaluable. He worked there for exactly one-year before being hired by his favourite client: IG, a large London-based retail financial markets trading firm.

Chris progressed at IG for five years, became heavily involved in regional strategy and analytics, and was in charge of display advertising across Asia-Pacific before leaving in 2020 to start his own business, learn web development, and begin the process of relocating his young family to British Columbia.

Chris now splits his time between his two children, the BC Métis Federation and his consulting company Yellowhead Digital, which specializes in marketing, advertising, and web development.

As a research assistant with the BC Métis Federation, Chris is transposing their collection of archival and oral knowledge into an interactive geographic information system (GIS). With a personal love for maps, history and learning, the work tasked by the BC Métis Federation brings these passions together. Producing work to be referenced for years to come provides a sense of purpose and pride.

Click here for video of Karen sharing why community research is meaningful to her.

My name is Karen Prouse (nee Duchesne). I was born in Fort Nelson, BC, to a French, Cree, Dene, Scottish Mother and a French-Canadian Father. 

I worked as an Administrative Assistant for 31+ years upon my early retirement in September of 2020. Some of my professional roles included: Camp Cook, Baker, Receptionist, Executive Assistant, School Administrative Assistant, Corporate Secretary for Legislative Services, Cemetery Administrative Assistant and Recreation and Leisure Administrative Assistant. My positions have given me a wide variety of experience in technology and dealing with people. 

I have been involved in Metis organizations for most of my life in a variety of roles. To name a few: Secretary, Treasurer, Director at Large and membership coordinator. I was also a Board member for the Fort Nelson Aboriginal Friendship Centre for a term. 

My grandparents lived a traditional lifestyle for most of their lives. Hunting, trapping and providing for their large family. My grandfather was a well-known and respected ‘bush man’, who could build a camp in the bush with little to no supplies. My grandmother was knowledgeable in traditional medicine and was always willing to share her knowledge. Some of my fondest memories with my grandmother included time spent picking berries and gathering plants and herbs for medicinal purposes. My grandparents always set up a hunting camp in the fall, and everyone was always welcome.  

Core Values and Philosophy

I believe that every job is important no matter how small. I believe we all have something important to contribute. Without the mundane and hard work we cannot get to where we want to be. 

I am excited to be a part of the BCMF Research Community and feel that my background and experience will be an asset to the team. I am excited to continue my research training and to be able to get started in my home community interviewing and archiving of history. The technology we will be using will be valuable in documenting our Metis history. This technology will ensure that these stories will be told for generations and that future generations will be able to access and add their own stories.

I look forward to working with the research team and in my home community! All my relations.

Karen Prouse

Click here for video of Rosanne sharing why community research is meaningful to her.

Rosanne has lived in Terrace, B.C. for most of her life where she has been a dedicated community member with a passion for Advocacy. Actively engaged in social issues such as immigration, employment insurance, income taxes, social assistance, Canada pension disability, and more. In addition to her advocacy work, Rosanne is the Women’s Representative, and a Director, for the Skeena River Métis Community Association, where she has served on the board since the Association was founded. Rosanne is a proud grandmother of 12 and is excited to join the Board of Directors at BCMF.

Cindy has been an active member of the BCMF board for 5 years now and is the Indigenous Early Years Service Provider for the North Thompson Valley. Passionate about community and caring for our children, Cindy volunteers for many different organizations, & non-profit groups throughout the N.T. Valley. As a leader in her community, Cindy is always organizing community cultural events including  National Indigenous Peoples Day, Louis Riel Day, National Truth and Reconciliation Day, Orange Shirt day, Moose Hide Campaign, Red Dress Project, MMIW, just to name a few. We are so grateful for Cindy’s leadership on our Board and in community.