Mary Moose is an unique Anishinaabe Elder, born in the remote regions of northern Ontario, Canada. Mary's Spirit Name is Gaa-giizhiikwajiwed Bwaananaabekwe, The Mermaid Who Swims Fast, or just Bwaananaabekwe, and belongs to the Mermaid clan. She has current and ancestral ties to Ghost River, Fort Albany & Pagwa First Nations.
Raised by her grandparents, she lived in the deep bush of northern Canada. Her early life was similar to that of our ancestors who lived before contact with Europeans.  Mary heard many stories as a child, bundled in bed in the family wigwam. She listened to her relatives fill the long winter nights with these ancestral teachings that connect every living thing. She learned how these stories are written in the stars. At a very young age, she used her star knowledge to navigate cross-country back to her home, after escaping horrific abuse in a government boarding school.
Mary holds a wealth of knowledge, skills and abilities. She devotes her life to helping Anishinaabeg in Canada and the United States revitalize our language, and pass on knowledge that has been suppressed over hundreds of years (and counting) of forced assimilation.