Theresa "Corky" Larsen-Jonasson

Theresa “Corky” Larsen Jonasson (she/her) is a somewhat flawed lifelong resident of Red Deer (she needs to work on eating more vegetables and getting enough sleep). A proud Cree/Métis Women who is connected to Samson Band, Maskwacîs through her Kokom (grandmother) Christine Fraser Joseph and Chapan (great grandmother) Mary Susan Potts. She is identified as an Elder in her community by her community. As an elder, she tries not to be crabby but succeeds only part of the time. She works alongside her husband of 43 years, Lynn Jonasson who she still loves to hug and smooch. Corky is passionate about encouraging our youth because she loves kids, passionate about social justice because she demands justice, passionate about encouraging strength in our women because the women are the backbone of the community, and passionate about diversity because people are interesting. She is a writer and loves telling bad jokes, just to hear people laugh because laughter and humour are beautiful.

Corky is a member of the National Collective of the Walking With Our Sisters missing and murdered indigenous women awareness movement and a founding member of Red Deer’s Red Feather Women, a social action/social justice group that focuses locally on the same issue. She is a member of the Red Deer Urban Aboriginal Voices Elders circle, the Women’s circle and Alberta Justice Provincial Elders Advisory Circle. She is most of all, a traditional indigenous ceremony woman and her life and community work reflects that and is because of that.

Corky is accountable to her traditional teachers and her elders who thankfully give her heck when she’s being too bossy or laughing when it is not appropriate to do so.

Corky received the Alberta ESQUAO (esquao is the cree word for woman) award in 2016 for Community Development, The Red Deer Native Friendship Centre Turtle Award for community Kokom.

Corky has also received the Red Deer Women of Excellence award for Lifetime Achievement.

She is a published author and her books “The Sharing Circle “ and “The Circle of Caring and Sharing” which was written as a reconciliation tool for young people to realize and honour their voice based on the protocols of the talking and sharing circle which then becomes the healing circle.