For Niagara Health Board Member Lora Tisi, a personal journey of reconnection is helping shape her commitment to Reconciliation.
For much of her life, Lora Tisi knew there was a part of her family history she didn't fully understand.
She grew up close to her grandmother, Matilda, an Indigenous woman who had a quiet but lasting influence on her life. But when it came to her own history, Matilda rarely spoke about it.
Out of respect, Tisi didn't ask.
Years later, after retiring from a 35-year career in retail leadership, Tisi began researching her family history. What she uncovered helped explain stories, memories and connections that had never quite made sense.
"It was like a piece of the puzzle suddenly went together," she says. "Something was missing and then it all clicked."
Tisi, who serves as Board Chair of the Indigenous Advanced Education and Skills Council and past chair of Niagara College’s Board, joined Niagara Health's Board of Directors in June. Along with decades of leadership experience, she brings a personal understanding of why Reconciliation matters and why it requires long-term commitment.
Research into her family history revealed that Tisi is a descendant of White Peter, also known as Good Peter, a respected Indigenous leader and her four-times great-grandfather. The discovery led her to connect with relatives she had never met, despite living only minutes away. Together, they visited Delaware Nation, where finding her grandmother's name in the band membership records became a powerful and defining moment for her family.
"I understood my grandmother at a much deeper level," she says.
That understanding expanded into a desire to learn about the experiences that shaped generations of Indigenous families and continue to influence lives today. Tisi immersed herself in books, courses and conversations. She visited the former Mohawk Residential School, now the Woodland Cultural Centre, and spent time listening to Indigenous voices and histories that she admits she had not fully understood earlier in her life.
“I’ve come to see Reconciliation as a responsibility rather than a concept,” says Tisi.
That perspective is one reason she was drawn to Niagara Health, where the Indigenous Health Services and Reconciliation team is working to create more culturally safe and welcoming experiences for Indigenous patients and families.
Tisi believes Reconciliation is as much about listening as it is about policy. It begins with understanding the realities Indigenous communities continue to face and recognizing that historical harms still have impacts today.
Part of that understanding came through discoveries within her own family.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, while helping move a family member into long-term care, Tisi found a Purple Heart medal belonging to her relative, Earl Tobias. As she researched his story, she learned he had twice been refused enlistment by the Canadian military before ultimately serving in the American Army during the Second World War, where he was wounded and awarded the Purple Heart.
The Purple Heart awarded to Earl Tobias, whose story became an important part of Lora Tisi's journey to reconnect with her Indigenous roots.
For Tisi, stories like his transformed history from something she was learning about into something her family had lived.
“Reconciliation is not a destination,” says Tisi, “It took generations to get us here and it will take generations to move forward. That work requires learning, listening and action, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action provide a roadmap for that journey.”
Nearly five years after beginning her search into her family's history, Tisi still describes it as a journey.
There are more stories to uncover and more lessons to learn. But reconnecting with her Indigenous roots has already changed how she understands herself, her family and the role she hopes to play in advancing Reconciliation.
While the puzzle pieces are still coming together, Tisi now has a clearer view of the bigger picture and how she can help shape it.
