From Mat to Mentorship: Taylor McPherson Empowers Indigenous Women and Girls through Sport

Article by Brian Swane, special to CW

Every time she wrestled wearing the evergreen and gold of the University of Alberta, Taylor McPherson did her school proud.

This Saturday, on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, the U SPORTS champion can herself feel a sense of pride when Alberta student-athletes take part in warm-ups wearing a special orange shirt designed by McPherson.

"It's an honour to be asked to do something like this and to be acknowledged," says McPherson, a proud member of the Miawpukek First Nation.

"It's showing we're here, we're being recognized and appreciated, and we're able to tell our stories and talk about where we come from."

After concluding her decorated student-athlete career last winter by winning individual gold in the women's 50 kg class and helping the Pandas capture team gold at the 2023 U SPORTS wrestling championship, McPherson continues to make an impact, on campus and in the community.

In her role as Reconciliation and Strength for Indigenous Women and Girls and Special Programs Coordinator with the Indigenous Sport Council of Alberta, McPherson oversees programs that create safe spaces for Indigenous women and girls and Two-Spirit people to engage in forms of physical activity and health and wellness opportunities. Particularly close to her heart is the Spiritual Holistic Exercise Den (SHED), which involves University of Alberta students running after-school activities for Indigenous communities.

Meanwhile, as she studies towards a Master of Science in Kinesiology at the University of Alberta, McPherson is currently serving as a graduate assistant coach for the Pandas wrestling team.

"I really just like the impact personally that I can have on the athletes," she says. "I've been at the university for a very long time, and I've been in the sport of wrestling for about 13 years, going on 14, so I have the knowledge and experience of what a lot of these girls are going through … so I'm really trying to be a mentor and help these girls understand that they can come talk to a prominent female leader in their room if that's what they need."

McPherson steadily progressed over her student-athlete career, from being part of a Canada West team championship in her first year to winning her first Canada West individual championship in 2022 to becoming the best in the nation earlier this year. At the same time, she was exploring her Indigenous roots.

"Over my last six, seven years here at the University of Alberta, I've grown so much as a person," says McPherson. "I have learned so much more about my culture and just my people and especially the communities here in Alberta."

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation honours the children who never returned home and Survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities. The orange shirt is a symbol of the stripping away of culture, freedom and self-esteem experienced by Indigenous children over generations.

"It's really exciting for me that they're willing to take more steps in the right direction to recognize and to honour Truth and Reconciliation Day, but it doesn't just stop on Truth and Reconciliation Day," McPherson says. "Reconciliation is a constant means of working on relationships and building those relationships and finding other ways that we can educate people and make them more aware. It's an ongoing thing."