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One beat at a time
The Pow Wow drum ‘drew me in like a magnet’
BY WILL SLOAN
FOR STEVE TEEKENS, Public Administration and Governance ’17, traditional drumming was his first love.
“Ever since I was a young person hearing that big Pow Wow drum for the first time, it drew me in like a magnet,” says Teekens, an Ojibwe and member of Nipissing First Nation. “I wanted to be around it, and I wanted to learn.
“Once I learned the drumming myself and the teachings that go with it, it helped me to live a better life—live a straight path and not get in trouble. I thought this might be a good intervention for some of the youth we work with.” As a music teacher, Teekens saw how the tradition and culture of drumming could be a tool for spiritual guidance. In addition to teaching music, he served for many years in various youth services, and since 2008 has been executive director of Na-Me-Res (Native Men’s Residence) in Toronto.
An emergency shelter for Indigenous men, Na-Me-Res also provides spiritual, emotional and practical services to its residents. The shelter offers life-skills workshops, addiction and mental health support, creative workshops, and ceremonies rooted in Indigenous culture.
“I think it’s extremely important that there’s some sort of cultural intervention to make the men proud of where they come from,” says Teekens. “We incorporate cultural programs, services, and interventions: there’s a circle every Friday, drumming classes every Tuesday, classes for Cree and Ojibwe languages—no other shelters do that.”
Teekens came to Ryerson in 2011 through the First Nations Technical Institute, and found that the career/part-time school balance had unexpected benefits. “The courses were relevant to the things that were going on at work. For instance, the human resources classes were totally applicable when we were reviewing our HR policies.”
Teekens is now pursuing a master’s of public administration at Queen’s University, while Na-Me-Res continues to grow.
“We’re fixing up two houses—that will be 16 units of affordable housing for our men. In this city, it’s becoming more challenging to find affordable units, but I figured instead of trying to find them, create them.” 
Winter 2019 / Ryerson University Magazine 37
