It’s been a whirlwind year for the Chief of Lac La Ronge Indian Band, as the summer’s wildfires forced Chief Tammy Cook-Searson to step up in a big way.
She made headlines across the world, and it’s no surprise that she’s been named the Newsmaker of the Year for 2015 by Eagle Feather News.
Its editors and readers chose Cook-Searson for the title in 2015, based on her “unbelievable leadership and presence” in a time of crisis. She said she was lost for words when she found out Eagle Feather chose her.
Cook-Searson’s Facebook page was a source of accurate and up-to-date information during evacuations, at a time when misinformation was everywhere.
“Social media played such a big role in us getting our message out there during the fires,” she said, “especially when you’re in a state of emergency and you don’t know what’s happening with your home and how long you’re going to be evacuated.”
Cook-Searson and her team liaised between government agencies, Red Cross, ‘Rez Cross,’ and other groups to help those who were displaced by the fires.
But she said even in the months since, she hasn’t looked back at the news from this summer.
“I remember sometimes when I’d be right in the middle of it and just think ‘well, we just gotta do what we have to do’ and same with everybody that was in it. A lot of times, within our band, we weren’t able to switch off with people so we stayed from June 6 to July 22 until the people were all home in our communities. So we made sure that everybody came home,” she said.
Cook-Searson continues to extend her thanks to everyone who helped out during the wildfires.