LIVIN Gwi thDementia
Marjorie Many Wounds-Many Guns and her husband, John Megahy.
Marjorie’s STORY BY Stephanie Joe PHOTOGRAPHY BY Jared Sych
Marjorie Many Wounds-Many Guns was born in 1928 to parents Sara Many Wounds and Tom Many Guns on the Tsuut’ina Nation (even though she is a member of the Siksika Nation). She spends her days doing puzzles with her husband, John, and taking daily walks. PUZZLES LINE THE WALLS of the Siksika Elders’ Lodge on the Siksika Nation where Marjorie Many Wounds-Many Guns and her husband, John Megahy, have been living since 2015. Together, the couple completed each puzzle, and even more puzzles wait to be glued and displayed. Puzzles and crosswords are a part of Marjorie’s daily routine. Her husband believes they help her memory. She began showing signs of dementia in 2014 at the age of 86.
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D E M E N T I A Connections WINTER 2020
The couple share a suite at the lodge, which is filled with pictures of loved ones and a younger Marjorie and John. They met 50 years ago as nurses at the Glenmore Auxiliary Hospital in Calgary. She had been married before when they met and had five children from her first marriage, and John had three of his own. Together, they would parent two more children, all while working full-time as nurses. They also raised a grandson who became a police officer and is now a safety inspector.
Marjorie was one of the first Indigenous nurses in Alberta, and she went on to train in psychiatric nursing at the Goderich Psychiatric Hospital in Ontario. She was very active in the community and loved to be outside. “I went swimming, horseback riding, skating and skiing,” Marjorie says. “I was active the whole way through [my youth]. “Today, I still like to walk — I’m active.” Marjorie takes daily walks within the lodge and, if it’s nice enough outside, she’ll take a walk around the grounds with the help of a nurse. She still has an appreciation for nature and believes in being active on a daily basis. “Look at that beautiful tree,” Marjorie says as she looks outside during a particularly windy day. “If it was in front of my window, I would be looking at it all day. That’s all I’d do for entertainment.” [ ] Share your story with us at feedback@dementiaconnections.ca