Stephen is a member of the Nicomen Indian Band within the Nlaka’pamux First Nation. He lives with a disability (cerebral palsy), and is a survivor of St. George’s Indian Residential School.
An accomplished actor, writer and presenter, Stephen has presented in western and eastern Canada to groups regarding his personal experiences in residential school as an Aboriginal person living with a disability.
He has lived in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside since 1992. He loves the character, the heart, and the courage of this community where he’s learned about the human spirit and its will to survive in spite of all the challenges it encounters. He enjoys people he meets, poetry, creative writing, acting (The Downtown Eastside Community Play, Crime and Punishment, The Idiot, Storyweaving).
He serves as President of BC Aboriginal Network on Disability Society (BCANDS). Stephen is the recipient of the 2016 Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award in recognition of his significant, sustained, unpaid contribution to his community. He believes that the arts are one of many ways to build bridges culturally and socially.
Stephen was a principal actor in the project, Weaving Reconciliation: Our Way. According to Renae Morriseau, Director/Lead Writer of the project, “Weaving Reconciliation: Our Way is about our hopes for a good future, guided by principles of our cultural past.”
Stephen is shown here with other principals. 