Honourable senators, Sage Morin is a Cree woman from Saddle Lake Cree Nation whose parents are residential school survivors. On May 19, 2013, Sage, her then partner and her two sons were on an Edmonton patio on a beautiful spring evening. They were celebrating her 2-year-old son Geo’s first day using the potty. Their lives were forever changed when an impaired driver in the parking lot hit the gas instead of the brakes and crashed into the patio, crushing little Geo’s body against the wall.

I’ve known Sage since she was a very little girl, so when I heard about Geo’s tragic death, I did the only thing I could do: I made a moose stew, and I brought it over to the grieving family’s house.

Colleagues, it was like walking into a solid wall of pain. Sage was so brave during those dark years after Geo’s death. She began the Justice for Geo organization, holding rallies and telling her side of the story even as the driver took no responsibility for the death of her son.

Sage was in court every day, determined to find justice. She started the Geo Mounsef Foundation, which works to brighten the lives of children victimized by impaired driving. She travelled to 15 cities in Canada and met with the Minister of Justice to change the impaired driving laws, still determined to find justice for Geo.

To be honest, colleagues, the whole time I wondered if Sage could actually survive that overwhelming grief. Many of us wondered, because we doubted — if the tables were turned — that we would have the strength to survive.

I still don’t know.

One of the first organizations to support Justice for Geo was Monster Pro Wrestling in Edmonton. These amazing men held a wrestling match in Geo’s honour and made him an honorary belt. Then one day, they invited Sage to step into the ring and practise with them. As with every good origin story, our hero Sage took the crushing trauma she experienced and moulded it into a strong, powerful, triumphant alter ego. She found healing in that wrestling ring, and the superhero “The Matriarch” was born.

Senators, in her first year, The Matriarch won a women’s championship belt. She went on to wrestle and survive the famous Death Tour in Manitoba. She has wrestled in dozens of Indigenous communities throughout the Prairie provinces, bringing the message of hope and resilience to youth.

I sincerely hope you get the chance to see her in the ring in her red face paint with the kids all around the ring yelling, “Matriarch! Matriarch!”

Sage Morin is a true warrior in every sense of the word.

Thank you for your attention, and long live The Matriarch!