Shirley Cheechoo

Shirley Cheechoo
Born	1952 (age 64–65) Eastmain, Quebec
Occupation	Actress, writer, producer, director & visual artist, chancellor
Spouse(s)	Blake Debassige

Shirley Cheechoo (Cree: ᔒᓕᒋᒍ born in Eastmain, Quebec, in 1952) is a Cree actress, writer, producer, director, and visual artist, best known for her solo-voice or monodrama play Path With No Moccasins, as well as her work with De-Ba-Jeh-Mu-Jig theatre group. Her first break came in 1985 when she was cast on the CBC's first nations TV series Spirit Bay, and later, in 1997, she found a role on the CBC's TV series The Rez.

She was named chancellor of Brock University in July 2015, the institution's first female and first aboriginal chancellor.

Shirley Cheechoo was born in 1952 in Eastmain, Quebec, and grew up in Moose Factory and Hearst, Ontario. Shirley spent her early life on traplines with her parents and brothers, but at the age of nine was sent to a residential school, Shingwauk Residential School, now known as Algoma University College. At this school Cheechoo, like many other residential school survivors, experienced violence and abuse and was told that "her parents would die if she ran away." After leaving school at fifteen, Cheechoo experienced problems with substance abuse, but eventually, she turned her life around and began to work in film and theatre to explore themes of healing and survivance post-trauma. Her experiences at a residential school and her road to healing are documented in her stage play 1991 Path with No Moccasins.

Shirley attended art classes at the Manitou Arts Foundation during the summer of 1966.

Shirley founded De-ba-jeh-mu-jig theatre, which developed out of the children's theatre. After starting the theatre company, partner Blake Debassige, a visual artist, served on the board of directors and as president of the board during the early years of De-Ba-Jeh-Mu-Jig theatre group.

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