Marion Lowe McLean's Educational Odyssey: From Jamaican Roots to Quebec's Community Vanguard and International Reform

[00:00:00] Elton Brown: Welcome to SpeakUP! International with Rita Burke and Elton Brown! 

[00:00:15] Rita Burke: Today, we will be speaking with, uh, Marion Lowe McLean, who was born in Jamaica, but now resides in Quebec. And she's lived there for over 50 years. Her bio tells us that her parents were compassionate leaders and community builders in her community. Marion is known as a mentor, a woman of distinction for community service.

And the founding member of the Quebec Board of Black Educators. She has also been involved as a leader for foster parents. In addition, in 2020, Marion founded and incorporated an organization in Ghana. There's so much more that I could pack into her story, but I promise it will all come out as we chat with our guest today, who is none other than Marion Lowe McLean! 

[00:01:17] Elton Brown: Hello, Marion! How are you? 

[00:01:20] Marion Lowe McLean: I'm truly happy to be here today, having a new experience! Thank you for having me! 

[00:01:27] Elton Brown: You are more than welcome! Can you tell us the primary objective of Les Passerelles Globale Bridge? 

[00:01:36] Marion Lowe McLean: I'll try to do that. You're talking about the Quebec Board of Black Educators? Or are you talking about Les Passerelles Globale Bridges?

[00:01:46] Elton Brown: The second. 

[00:01:48] Marion Lowe McLean: Les Passerelles Globale Bridges, our primary objective is to is inclusiveness, educational support as a non profit to the grassroots. And the educational supports that we're doing is language development. And our language that we're focusing on are the two commercial languages, English and French, in order to help immigrants, help native speakers to develop mastery.

And more acquisition of the language, just so that they are able to become more employed and more self actualized. That is a summary of our mission. Our vision is based on the belief that education is Is the root R O O T and the R O U T E the root to liberty or freedom. Therefore, we move forward with that objective, freeing by using and learning other languages.

[00:02:56] Rita Burke: There's no question, Marion. That education is the R O O T and the R O U T E to liberation. Thanks for sharing that with us. I want to go back to something that I found in your bio. You describe your parents as community builders. Elaborate on that statement for us please. 

[00:03:17] Marion Lowe McLean: I will do my best. It is such a big picture to paint that I will try to take the most important aspects of why so.

My parents, as long as I can remember them, maybe from four years old, were always busy in community. My mother was always the vice president of Or the secretary of different organizations in the community. And my father, he was a board member of the Farmers Association because he was a farmer. And in those days, they would call him a gentleman farmer because he employed many, many people to work on the farm.

But that is not a significant point. There is a hall called the Roach Hall Community Center. I remember fondly in Gale. That was the hub changes and development in the community, and my parents at least once a week would always be there, making sure that the needs of the community were met, and that they were, if changes had to be made, they were always spearheading changes.

That I remember clear, clearly. I also remember my father, they called him Daddy Mac. Daddy Mac, I need a pencil. Daddy Mac, I don't have any shoes to go to school. Daddy Mac, I need books. And my father would say, Come child, come and, or go to the store, tell Mr. So and so to give you these items, and when I go up to Gale, I will pay.

My mother on the other side, while she did not give money, she was a counselor and a mentor. I remember when I went to her funeral, the church was twice time full of people and everyone I met as a younger person said, It's because of your mother that I am this. It's because of your mother. I am that. Your mother made my, my, my wedding cake.

My mother saw to it that we got married. When we were in difficulties, your mother came and you, she mediated and ensured that we stayed together as a family. She not only do, did, did do that. She opened a school. She was a fashion designer and she opened a little school in our community for the girls who had nowhere to go after elementary school.

And she started a sewing class for them. She not only taught them how to sew, but she taught them many other social skills. and being important as a person and an individual. My mother was a warrior for women and I remember her telling me, if you educate one girl, you're educating a village. Always remember to do that.

But while she, they were out there in the public helping others, they practiced the same thing at home. We had to be in every activity. For example, my mother was my first piano teacher. My brother and I used to play concerts. We had to do plays. Whatever was in the community as a social development skill, we had to participate.

So she, whatever she practiced, they both practiced on the outside, they practice at home. And this is in a nutshell, to say, this is where we as a family of children. Received our values, giving back in community because we are all children doing that right now in our own ways. 

[00:06:45] Elton Brown: So it sounds like your mom and dad were definitely contributors to education and community development.

Can you tell us the significance and contributions that you made to education and community development. 

[00:07:04] Marion Lowe McLean: Well, if I start with my childhood, I will say not with boast becoming from a family of privilege. We became role models to the other children in the community. And their parents would always say, look at Miss Joy, look at Ma Stim, look at these children, look at what they are doing to improve the quality of their life.

You've got to become like them. So in a very general way, we were always looked on as role models and how can others improve and better their own lives. My mother, for example, started the first kindergarten ever in our district. If you know my age now that happened when I was 4 years old and she wanted to have a school for her children to attend and she decided she will see to it that we have a school.

So the school that started then speech or kindergarten became the model for all the kindergartens that have started in our district and surrounding neighbors. Miss Beatrice school. So we became role models for others, but we were made to do everything that others had to do. And at the level of excellence all the time.

[00:08:23] Rita Burke: Your parents sound like people. That we need to celebrate consistently because very often we talk on standing on other shoulders and there's no question it sounds to me as if there are several people that are standing on their shoulders today or walking in their footprints. 

[00:08:42] Marion Lowe McLean: Right now, we have two foundations in Jamaica. One, given the name on my mother's side of family, which is Hopkins. It's a foundation that provides the needs of children in the elementary school at Mount Angus School. We have another foundation in Gale where it is open to people doing trades. So if you finish school and you cannot go on to grammar school or any other level and you want to do a trade, we provide the means for you to go and learn a trade, whether the tools or to help to pay the school fee or whatever other type of support may be needed.

So my parents live on through what we have continued to do. 

[00:09:27] Rita Burke: Thank you, Marion. Now, there's something from your bio that really jumped out at me and piqued my interest. It says. My life has been many creative firsts. My life has been many creative firsts. Talk to us about this statement, please. 

[00:09:48] Marion Lowe McLean: I never set out to be the first at anything. I'll tell you, my parents thought I had no ambition because I was always searching and wanting to know. I was, I never finished anything I started. It was important for me to know. And that quality has allowed me to be first in many, many things. For example, when I graduated from high school. No one thought, because I didn't appear to be one of the smartest students, but when I got my senior Cambridge certificate, I was the highest, um, I passed at the highest level of my class of that year.

So that was a first for me, coming from not great expectations. Second to that, when I went to teachers college. I went to charter teachers college. And again, I am a dabbler and I wanted to do be different and I did physical education was one of my forte, one of the subjects that I had to specialize in.

And at the end of my. student career, we had to do a presentation showing that we've mastered whatever area of physical education. I did also Spanish, I did sciences, but I chose to do the others were exam related, but this exam was practical. And for the first time I choreographed, I made, found a theme, choreographed a dance, got the students of my physical education class, some of them to perform.

And that had never happened before at Chartered Teachers College. I was the first to show that there were extensions to physical education, that dance was also physical education, and therefore it can be incorporated, whether you were professionally trained or you were just doing the folk dances, how to perform, how to create and add newness to the area of dance.

That was a first. Just the year I was also graduating, one of our professors, she had just studied in Canada or England, and she came to our class and asked which students would want to do an extra study to go to teach in a school for the deaf. Now, it's a special education system. Most people wanted to go to high school to teach, and they really fought for that.

Myself and another young lady, it was a teacher of female college, decided to say yes. So we became outsiders right away. Why do you want to do that? But we chose to, and we went to Brownstown once we graduated. And the agreement was that we would do an internship to learn how to do audiology, how to teach sign language, how to also do deep reading, and how to teach regular subjects.

Using the methods then available for helping these children and we we did that. So I say myself and one other young lady chose to be different and to be outstanding. When I arrived at Saint Christopher school for the deaf again, what can I add to that? In richness to the school. I get because I had a major in physical education.

I took that on because there was no physical education classes for the children. So I incorporated that into the curriculum and we started learning different games, ball games that would be easy for them to be able to follow because once you're running and moving, you do not those who have lower hearing are not hearing.

So they had to use their visual. So. Cues to move around. But they did that very well and enjoy themselves. Not only that, we understood that every year in Jamaica, there was a arts festival and I decided we were going to go to this arts festival. So I discussed it with the principal and he said, yes, we will support you.

Go ahead. And we created again, created dance. Using mostly sound vibrations so that they would pick up the rhythms and of course, the cues of movements and using their body as an instrument. And that year was our first year, but we went to the contest. We got recognition. We did not win a place, but every year after that, the children who entered the dance contest won!

And now St. Christopher's school is still known for that very special skill. They can dance despite of a handicap, just find the right technique and teach them well, and it happens because the body is an instrument. And not only did do that across from where we were in Brownstown, there was a private girls school called St. Hilda's Girls School. So I come, I did a collaboration with the physical education teacher there, and I said, we want to do some peering of our teachers. Children who are impaired with the normal hearing children to create inclusiveness and recognition and bring them out from that in that in in little environment, just being themselves.

That also worked very well. I didn't follow to see if that continued, but for the time that I was there. And for the time after I left, I know it continued for a while, changes happen and I'm not sure what happened in today's world. 

[00:15:20] Elton Brown: You know, individuals that are hard of hearing or can't hear, they're kind of like in their own bubble.

That can be very difficult. So by you taking these people who can't hear and putting them with individuals that don't have a problem, what was the significant benefit that you saw by creating such joining? 

[00:15:46] Marion Lowe McLean: It, it created a sense of, I am a person just as you are, and I can learn from you, your way of communicating, and your way of doing things, and, and vice versa.

So it became an awareness, being an individual, and socially, for me. I am entitled to friendships and relationship and how, but how do we develop these friendships and relationship and what else can we do? How else can we extend that relationship into other areas of interest? So it's not any longer I can hear and you can hear, it's about communication.

We have different styles of communicating, but we can communicate and understand one another and enjoy one another's company and activities. So it's bringing inclusiveness, it's bringing compassion, and it's opening up everyone to a bigger world. 

[00:16:39] Rita Burke: That's exactly what I was going to say, Marion, that, um, it speaks to me of inclusiveness.

So thanks for sharing that information. Now, we are on SpeakUP! International, of course. And we're speaking with Marion Lowe McLean, and as you know, on SpeakUP! International, we speak, we seek to inform, to educate, and to inspire. And so, Marion, you were one of the founding members of the Quebec Board of Black Educators.

[00:17:15] Marion Lowe McLean: Yes. 

[00:17:17] Rita Burke: Please share the original mandate of that organization for our listeners. 

[00:17:21] Marion Lowe McLean: As much as I can remember the it was meant to protect the academic and intellectual rights of black children, youth and young adults by negotiating with school boards, Ministry of Education and other academic stakeholders to create and establish a binding agreements that would enable QBBE, Quebec Board of Black Educators and its associates to to mediate, to structure, to manage, and to organize the academic prowess of its target group, meaning Black people.

This included also Black resources, human resources, like teachers, Principles, guidance, counselors, janitors, and every other black human resource that could become a convincing role model to and to inspire and motivate those who were discouraged and to tell them, yes, you can! 

[00:18:28] Elton Brown: You talked earlier about collaboration, our audience would like to know, how did you come up with Les Passerelles Globale Bridge engage and other NGOs. 

[00:18:43] Marion Lowe McLean: Now, one of the things in Ghana, for example, we reach out to other NGOs because that's a strategy that all nonprofits do other NGOs that have similar values that we can align with. For example, most recently, I went to a conference online, of course, with a West African civil society group. And I met a woman from one of the African West African countries who is working on empowerment of women. And She reached out to me and said, I'm interested in working with you in aligning with you.

And I said, yes, education covers every aspect of human endeavor. You have isolated one area, but I am familiar and we are familiar because the same problems you're addressing in your country. We are having in Ghana also, not only in Ghana, but also in Canada, in Quebec. Therefore, we will find a way. To work with you and we will work with you on two fronts.

One. We want to take English to the French speaking countries and you are from a French speaking country. So you will help us to open the door there and you will teach us how to work with empowering and helping young women to liberate themselves. For example, one of the liberation, most girls, especially in rural communities and farming communities, they have to go to the farm and do the work at the farm.

They have to come home and maybe prepare some food to go to sell at some stall. And then, Only then can that girl go to school. So many, many girls, especially from rural communities are suffering from a lack of at home. They have to do all the housework before they can go to school. By the time they get to school, they are discouraged.

They're tired. And they have lost most of the day already and many of these children are young women drop out. So from that point of view, we collaborated and we're planning to continue working to see how we, La Passerelle, can use their methodology and strategies to help our girls to come to our after school and weekend programs in more numbers and not just to come but to stay.

And how can we help her to And their group in their, and I'm trying to remember the name of the, the West African country. I know the old name Dahomey, I can't remember the modern name, Benin. She's in Benin. And so how can we have Benin? To acquire more French English. So that is one example here in Canada in you ask for Ghana, but whatever we do in Canada, we do in Ghana, but it's adjusted according to the culture.

So, one of the first things we do here is meet all the different nonprofits and see which ones have an alignment and we're now working on how we can support one another. That's what we're doing. 

[00:21:51] Elton Brown: There was, or is a volunteer program that was offered by Les Passerelles Globale Bridge so what qualities were you guys looking for in the volunteers?

[00:22:04] Marion Lowe McLean: The first aspect of looking for a volunteer is do you believe and in our mission and our vision and are you willing to participate to help that mission and vision move forward.

That is the first requirement. The next thing we have to do, which is required by government is that you have a criminal check. Are you safe to work since we're working with children, a vulnerable population? Are you safe to work with children? The next thing we do is a training session. We also interview, find out what their interests are.

And from that, we try to fit them in to the particular group as per what we do. Since we're in the field of education, we also not just look at learning facts. Each individual sometimes comes with challenges, traumas, mental or socio economic difficulties. So we need people with many different skills, not just academic skills, but skills Of psychosocial and sociocultural needs that we can help them to integrate.

Within their own community, the black community, and in the long run into the greater community. So these are some of the things we look for and and help with in working. We also let them know that don't be discouraged in volunteering, because some people come because they cannot find jobs, but many people do find jobs.

And so we also have that in our discussion that jobs become possible because you have honed your skills with us. And people like to know that you give back a service. So it benefits working too, or finding a different job, or finding a job. 

[00:23:56] Rita Burke: So it's a reciprocal situation. 

[00:23:59] Marion Lowe McLean: Absolutely. 

[00:24:00] Rita Burke: The volunteers benefit and the organization will benefit as well.

[00:24:05] Marion Lowe McLean: Yes. 

[00:24:06] Rita Burke: Marion, tell us about the term, the missing pages, what do you mean by the missing pages? 

[00:24:14] Marion Lowe McLean: I will say first, I find that term unfortunate because with, along with the missing pages, which I will talk about is also the fact that we're seen as visible minorities and there is a conundrum there. And I leave it to think it through as I go, however, Quebec and Canada and North America is well served by people of African descent.

 In Quebec, as we develop Quebec Word of Black Educators, and we look at the history texts that we are learning the history from, the children are, we find that we are missing. And that was the first prompt, we are missing. And I would say very significantly missing, because when Jacques Cartier came to Quebec, he did not come alone.

He came with Africans, he came with Africans. Who knew the Mi'kmaq language is in the archives of Quebec. He knew the Mi'kmaq language and therefore made it easy for Jacques Cartier to assimilate or to communicate with the natives of that region, because through the sailors who came, they interpreted for Jacques Cartier.

And I think that had a great potential in why Montreal became Montreal and other parts of Quebec. So that is a big significance, but when you read the history of Quebec and the introduction of the founding of Quebec, there is not a single word or sentence that says this is the greatest and most significant role played to make French people coming into Quebec and Canada easy.

We are left out. And as you examine, yes, The history of the people of African descent coming into North America as we know it, it was through slavery. But there are some who came as free persons too. That's not talked about in the history book anywhere. And as we came, The type of slavery was different from the type of slavery in the rest of Canada because it's a cold north.

So they were mostly house servants and butlers. They worked in the mines. And when they had skills, they worked with their owners as skilled laborers. That made the type of slavery a bit different, although it was still slavery. Because, for example, Maria Angelique. She ran away from her slave master, and the story goes that she was in love with a white slave, not white, I call him a white slave because the poor whites who came were pretty much treated the same way.

And they ran away to just be with together, they were caught. She was not only tried by the Catholic Church. She was hung, and not just hung. She was burned. In one of the squares of Montreal, and we could go on beyond the hardness is of our life. We had a hockey team. We had so many other things that blacks have given just to Quebec alone, that's not mentioned at all in the history books.

So what we did was we under, um, I think her name is. I'm trying to remember her name, Thornhill, Mrs. Thornhill, Esmeralda Thornhill, who was a lawyer, but also a staunch community worker. She spearheaded, along with Shirley Small, the first few pages and research, and then others joined them. Now, when the body of research was put together.

We went to the minister of education. I was a part of that group, how to formalize it and put it into the curriculum. So I spent many months at the minister of education, helping to see that it was properly put together in curriculum format. We wrote not only a textbook, we did workbooks to complement both for high school and elementary school, and we also provided many workshops.

Other material that would support and encourage non whites to want to really learn our history. We got the Minister of Education to agree that these missing pages would become a part of the regular history curriculum, elementary to high school. And there was also an agreement that three questions of all the questions set on the grade 10 history exam would be included in the as a part of their contribution of showing the significance of African or black contribution to the life of Quebec.

Everything was set up, and I want to say the spin off of that was that now CGEPS, because we now started to have colleges and universities, caught on. And they were now teaching Black history to non white, to non Black and Blacks in the other higher institutions. The unfortunate part for us, there are gatekeepers, and I will call his name because it makes me so sad.

Mr. Bazlick. Who was then the consultant for social studies at the English Montreal School Board, which was then the Protestant School Board of Montreal. I remember sitting in an audience of teachers were looking at the curriculum, and he says this, we do not have to do the only children in elementary or high school.

Who got exposed to the missing pages were those classrooms where teachers were black origin or African black is not a race, not a culture. I don't like to use it. We're not of African origin. Those were of African origin, and maybe a very few. Who were compassionate to our cause, but in general, we were the ones so we had as a part of the correct word of black educators.

We also had after school because that's the negotiations we made with the university at that time. There was no college right after grade 11, you went straight to university. And, or you went to a trade. We got, we, we said we would set up an after school program, a weekend program, and a summer program. But every child who came to the summer program, one of the areas that then was a compulsory was they had to do black history.

So in, we had two programs for the summer. The Banner Program was elementary school, and then we had the DaCosta Hall Program that was high school, but everyone had to do not only the history, but also the cultural activities, dance, music, storytelling, and everything related. And at the end of the summer, we would do a big show, a big festival, the children now reproducing to the public, to their parents and others.

All, they're just learned. Not just that. A very significant part of the summer school program, especially for the high school, was that we arranged with the Minister of Education, because up until that time, there was never a summer school. That anyone who had between 40, because 50 percent was the pass mark then, anyone who had from 40 to 49, Would be allowed to have a remediation program and rewrite one of the exams.

One of the older or a new exam set up by the ministry, and if they pass, they would be free to go on to whether nursing to university or any other field of endeavor, because they would now have a full certificate. The spinoff of that is all of Canada now has summer schools, because of Quebec word of black educators.

[00:32:19] Elton Brown: That's wonderful!

[00:32:21] Marion Lowe McLean: Yes, 

[00:32:21] Elton Brown: You guys had so many programs going on you had programs for after school. You had summer. There was a trade school where kids can actually go. And then there was also a scholarship program. Yes. Tell us a little bit about that scholarship program. 

[00:32:40] Marion Lowe McLean: But that scholarship program, as we became better at what we did do.

You had the Charles S. scholarship program, for example, that was always there at when Charles S. was the, the And I'm trying to remember what was he? He was the priest, and I'll use the term priest, at the Union United Church, which was the only Black church that everyone could go to and feel free. And he set that scholarship up.

There were other scholarships that came later, that were set up by the Quebec Board of Black Educators, that would give scholarships to mostly people wanting to go on to university. There were very few that were at the level of, um, trades. The Charles X scholarship was the most, um, um, benevolent one that didn't exclude anyone from any level, but the other scholarships were looking at excellences.

I don't remember any of their names right now, but there were quite a few, and there were big galas. That would be presented when these young people were getting their honor and the means to go on to help them to study and do well. So from Quebec Board of Black Educators, I want to also tell you another area that came was what we have now in the, um, The Canadian Black Chamber of Commerce and other groups like that, we started our own bank called the Matthew DaCosta Bank to ensure because we could not get any money to help us to go into business.

And I remember buying a share for five dollars in those days. That's all I could afford. But from that. We were able to move on to, um, to collaborate with government and negotiate with government to give us a grant that that bank failed. It just wasn't making it because unfortunately, we do not support. In a big way, with our little means, such efforts like that bank, but because of our effort, we were now able to get the attention of the government, federal government, and they gave us 25, 000 now and a new system was set up where people want, you could write your business plan or learn how to write your business plan and come and get some money.

And some, some mentoring to help you to grow your business. Well, that failed, unfortunately. And, uh, I won't say, I will say, but not say this story. My sister was a part of that because she had her own business at the time. And it failed because many of the people were taking the business plans and going to do their own business and kept you on a treadmill.

Come back, come back, come back. Actually, she exposed it. And it was like on the front page for about three or four days, and then the government shut that down. So, in Canada, in Montreal, and now in Quebec, we have a group called trente-sept, trente-sept 3737. It's moved on to them, and this young Haitian group, they are now doing a better job with a lot more experience and mentoring, just as the Black Chamber is doing.

So, I want to let you know, also, that the Quebec Board of Black Educators did not sit on its laurels. It came to Toronto, I remember coming here and we did conferences, more than one, um, getting the teachers together and other parents and and well wishers to come and join us and to develop a system. So, I would say that the Quebec Board of Black Educators helped Toronto to get off the ground and it seems as though Toronto has really moved forward and is doing extremely well, but we were a part of it.

Of that movement, and we did that across Canada because we also start a research group called NCBEC, and I don't ask me what it means, but what it did was people who were academics were writing papers and publishing in a magazine, and we touch every level of excellence, we brought, for example, we had one group who she this was she was a nurse.

And she went to Sickle Cell because Sickle Cell was an anomaly in, in medicine and what she spearheaded Sickle Cell joined with doctors from the African continent. And she, she still stayed beside Quebec Board of Black Educators because we helped her and others like her to get through her nursing program.

So we were a great, we didn't just help her, I go, I could go on. We got into the school board. We got principals. But when we got into the school boards, we told the director of the school board that we needed a liaison officer in the school board that when teachers complained or parents and children complain, this person would go and be the ombudsman for that black child to ensure that the barrier was removed.

That worked very well. We started having many black principals, guidance counselors, social workers, psychologists, janitors, and people from all, so we influence every level of society over the years that we remain dominant. 

[00:38:06] Elton Brown: How does that make you feel educating a lot of people, from what I gather. 

[00:38:12] Marion Lowe McLean: We did! 

[00:38:13] Elton Brown: English speaking countries, West Africa, for that matter. So tell us a little bit about the educational program in West Africa. 

[00:38:23] Marion Lowe McLean: Very good. You know, sometimes life seems like, seems like a coincidence.

Because when. Quebec changed its system from a dominant English system to a French dominant system because that was the majority. They passed two laws, Bill 22 and Bill 101. And those laws have to change from religious education to linguistic education. So right now in Quebec, it's not Roman Catholic and Protestant anymore.

It's English and French, with French being very dominant. As time went by Let's say five years ago or less, less than five years ago, Ghana ran into the same problem, not for the same reason, but they are a part of what is called ECOWAS. ECOWAS is the Economic Development of Western Africa. Countries and I'm not saying it directly.

Exactly. Correct. And 14 of those 15 members of West Africa are French speaking. Now, Ghana is always at the forefront of change in West Africa, but Ghana found itself outstripped in that less than 5 percent of Ghanaians are fluent in the language. And they are representing they're going to negotiate with 14 French speaking countries.

They are surrounded by three. Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, and Togo. Yet, they have very limited communication. Ghana, wanting to stay on top of the francophonie, as they're called now, is that they realized that they had to have another commercial language. I call them commercial languages because Ghana is a multi linguistic society with 54 of their own languages.

Not Dialects, as people would want to say, they are proven linguistically correct. As far as academia says what a language is, there are 54 and more, but these 54 are recognized. English being a colonial society, English is the language of communication and work. Now, they need to add French if they are to survive in this West Africa forum.

They made a law almost five years ago making French. The legal and a must language in their schools from elementary to high school. I discovered that by through the embassy, and I won't go into the whole story of, um, in Ottawa, that this was now a need, and it's now a law. I lived through Quebec's quiet revolution, civil war, and changes, so I learned everything about how to switch from one way of doing to another.

And I knew that I could take that method to Ghana, and make it work, because I understood it well, and that's exactly what we did. I went to Ghana in 2020, and To meet with the Minister of Education because I wanted to see how best we could serve. Having met them in February, March 7th, 2020, they were impressed and asked that I write a proposal of how to develop a French program in Ghana.

And I did. Unfortunately, one week later, I presented it. COVID came and everything fell apart. That went nowhere. I spent eight months in Ghana. I did not give up because I know why I was there. Intention drives one when you're committed to intention. I decided to study on my own and research on my own, the education system in Ghana.

While I was doing that. I saw a lot of children on the street doing nothing, running around. I decided to start a street school. So for three months, while I was busy learning about the different levels of education and how they function and dovetail into one another, I would meet the children, groups of children, under a mango tree, under whatever shade we could find, every day.

And we would do French. We would sing, we would dance, we would talk. When I was, just before I left that, we did that for about three or four months. And then I started movies on YouTube and other, from other places, little simple movies and stories in French. I saw those children's eyes pop because they were hearing things that they understood, and they were so proud of themselves, and that just motivated them to continue.

And when I would meet them on the street, we were speaking the French they knew, and it was spreading. During that time, I met someone, and again, help people. I helped this young lady who was from the Cameroons. No, no, no, the Congo. And she was homeless. A friend, someone else told me about her and could I help her?

The house I was living at the time was owned by a family member who lived in London. I phoned him and I said, uh, This young lady, she used to teach French. Now she has no job. She's about to become on the street. She can pay you X amount of dollars. Can she stay in your house? And he said, yes, because if you, she will stay.

And she came and while she was there, I told her what I was planning to do. She said, listen, I met a Ghanaian man. I never believed that I could meet a Ghanaian who speaks, spoke such fluent French. I went to a workshop that he did. I'm going to find him. I'm going to introduce you to him. And we will develop, and we will set up the incorporation that you want.

And so she did, I said, we'd write a letter, you go to his gate, present it to the servant at the gate, and um, it was a big wig in this, in the community. He's, he lives, grew up in France, so he's educated in French, hence his French. She did it, he took it. He invited us over for an interview. We told him what we want.

He says, I'm going to help you. And I said, are you going to be a part of our board? He said, no, I'm going to call my wife. She will do it. And she did actually, her wife is now the vice president of our organization. His wife. So he helped us to get to short circuit route and get incorporated. So we were incorporated by June of 2020.

Right away we also, now with that you needed a website and other, you know, means of communication to show that you're serious about what we're doing. We paid to have a website developed. If you, the website you're seeing now, that's the website. The logo that we have, you're looking at right now, was developed in Ghana.

So I went ahead, because I tried to incorporate in Ghana. In Canada at the time, and because, I don't know if because we're black, but when I read it, I was told we could read up the information that you could, um, do an electronic signature. They wouldn't take it when I tried to incorporate in Quebec, so we couldn't incorporate until I got home the October of that year, and we quickly incorporated, did it the wrong way, because we wanted an incorporation across Canada, but we couldn't, we incorporated in Quebec.

Then we had to change. The system in operating across Canada and then come back to Quebec. Now, I don't know if I'm answering your question. I'm telling you a story, the way the story went. Now, we went through a lot of pain in developing in Ghana. To start off, we were grabbing anyone who showed interest, who had some ideas and wanted to work with us.

I knew a few people and someone introduced me to someone called Silas. Silas was just retiring from teaching and he was a principal teacher, meaning at the highest level, in a private high school, international school, teaching French. When I showed him, I had my, listen, I, I don't do things in a funny way.

I did my, we had my business plan by then. We had our bylaws by then we had a plan of action, all set up and ready. So when I showed it to Silas, he says, I'm coming with you. Because he too had his own business, taking children to France to improve their French. And so he came on board, and he was our first vice president in Ghana.

It worked for a while, and then things fell apart. And not just with him, but with, with volunteers. So he, we had to, we had many changes. We lost volunteers. We gained volunteers. One of the things we did for our volunteers in Ghana, we gave them 50 cities per hour to encourage them because the ones who we had who taught French were from other countries.

They were outsiders and many of them didn't have jobs or the job they were poorly paid. So we wanted them to stay with us and we pay them. So 50 cities is the equivalent of about five, less than 10 dollars per hour, but they were happy with that because it fits in with their economy and just making extra money and they were giving us our service.

So we have been up and down. Now, in Ghana, we have 3 projects. We have an office 3 years now, we've paid rent for an office. So we have an established office. We have also a paid managing director who came from the volunteers. He worked for two years as a volunteer. Then he was recommended to work for us.

When we couldn't find who we thought was the right person to take the position, he took the position. And since he's taken the position, we've jumped leaps and bounds in Ghana. He's really built our volunteer system. He's continued to build. What we had already as after school program in one area called Darwinia.

We have, we move from a smaller setting where we're working with over 75, sometime over 100 children per week as they come and go. The reason why it is not constant is there's always a competition between exams and teachers. Make extra money by doing extra lessons with the children, and sometimes there's a little bit of subtype sabotage or competition as to who goes to which class when, however, 

[00:48:56] Rita Burke: I need to interrupt you a little bit Marion.

[00:48:58] Marion Lowe McLean: Yes, 

[00:48:59] Rita Burke: I am. Thinking to myself that when we interview people, when we chat with people and SpeakUP! International, we say that they are community builders. 

[00:49:11] Marion Lowe McLean: Yes. 

[00:49:12] Rita Burke: When you introduced your parents, you talked about them as community builders. 

[00:49:16] Marion Lowe McLean: Yes. 

[00:49:17] Rita Burke: And there's no doubt. Question, absolutely no question that you too are a community but a cross cultural and a global community builder.

I really, really appreciate that. But someone who does the quality of work and the volume of work as you do, certainly would have to pay attention to their well being. How do you take care of your well being? How do you address that? 

[00:49:39] Marion Lowe McLean: A very good question. I will, I'll say I, I depend on calibrating. My willpower.

I live from a state of contentment from within out. I maintain a center, a sense of self because my mind is free. I pay attention to trends while balancing the creative forces of experience, love, wisdom, socializations. And whatever it takes to stay Billy in my belief. I strongly believe what I believe.

And I'll tell you why, in a very simple way. When I was in high school in secondary one, a group of girls said to me, Marion, you're crazy. And I was offended, but I'm a very reflective person. I think things through to be balanced because I like to be contented and at calm within. And when I thought about it, I said, you'll agree with them.

They're right. That's what they believe. And so just agree with them and it sets you free. And in spite of all the words I just said, I want to go back to that simple story because that simple story set me free to be me. Whatever I chose to be, I am not interested in others opinion unless it's to lift me up.

I believe in me absolutely. But I'm always willing to listen to someone else's point of view and to learn from others. The other thing I learned when I was about nine years old was that your mind is your powerhouse. No one can go there unless you let them. Your liberty and freedom exists only in your mind.

So in spite of what I've said to you before, those are the two tenets on which I live my life. 

[00:51:41] Elton Brown: This has been one roller coaster ride listening to you relay your thoughts and what's happened in order to build a dynamic structure for these students , whether they actually attending school or supporting it.

So here we have two pillars, one where the students are going to school, the other kids are the ones supporting it. Was there ever a time when these two fractions, merge? So instead of having two different sets of young adults, they were considered as one?

[00:52:20] Marion Lowe McLean: We merge, and that's a very good question. You have to look at the structure set up. And I'm not sure what merge you're talking about, but the merging we do, for example, in Ghana, is parents, Of the children who come to the La Pasarela program support the program. Another merging we do, which is called intercultural or intergenerational development is, for example, drumming.

Someone who is an older person comes into the group. to teach or to do drumming with the children, to do rhythms and so on. So that is a form of merging. We have much growth to do yet on the different methods of merging, because we're still at the foundational level where we're looking, exploring the performing arts, the visual arts, and as a means and as strategies or tools for learning and mastering a language and integrating into the language.

So that right now is still our capital or main focus, but we are very aware of the different types of mergings that need to happen on our business plan. For example, we do have stages where we're looking at how do we prepare career wise as we are teaching French, showing them the relevance that through If you're learning to play the drums, how can that become a career or how that can become an interest?

How can you live that? How can you use this for personal growth and for a career development if you wanted to extend yourself later on. So as we are growing, a part of our work is looking at all the things we do at the basic level. What are their applications as you grow, as you become a young adult? How do we help you to make choices and self actualize and your life become more realistic as you go along?

This is a very deep question, but it is structured in our business plan. For example, also, we're looking at bringing all of what we do into other areas. Medicine. We, I know, for example, in Ghana, that I've talked to many people who come from the African countries who will go miles to find a doctor or a nurse who speaks some French because the regular hospitals do not respond to their language needs, cannot communicate.

Okay, we have started developing a project, but that also takes a lot of research of how to not do what we think. Hospitals needs of communication, but in their line of work, how do we provide a vocabulary that that meshes with an alliance with how they talk to patients and so that they can have a communication.

So, so we're looking at. Career planning for the children as they get older. We have not touched the older children yet because we are not there yet, but it's in our plan, but we're actually working from the base up. How do we take the French into learning institutions, like teachers colleges that don't have them yet or have it, but it's not running well, how do we take them into the medical department and engineering and all the other fields that. Equus can be fulfilled itself. 

[00:55:57] Rita Burke: This has been inspiring, very inspiring. You are doing so much work and again, I admire the quality and your passion. My question then is, what is one thing you would like listeners to take away from this chat today. 

[00:56:15] Marion Lowe McLean: It's not going to be anything about what we just talked about. It's about the self. And I'll say you are truly a child of the universe and a point of light within a greater light. Own who you are truly and respect who you are.

Be light, wisdom, and compassionate love in your attitude to life and the compassionate service that you give to others. 

[00:56:43] Elton Brown: Well, thank you so much for spending time with us this afternoon and giving us your story, which I find to be inspiring. We talked about a whole lot of things and various pillars that are used from the, as you put it, from the bottom up to get this thing going, and it sounds like, you know, you're, you're taking, you know, each piece as it comes.

So as the kids are growing up, you're adding more to it so that you're able to direct them. Or at least point them in the direction so that they can continue their educational journey. Grade school, trade school, after school, summer school, where you have functional French competencies that was also talked about, and then daycare providers for older individuals that need somewhere to safely deposit their kids while they are being educated.

There were so many different facets. in this educational system, I find it difficult for anyone not to be able to find a path within it as it stands now that would help them move forward, where they could work to, educationally to have a better life. So I want to thank you so much for This afternoon, and you have so much to offer and I would be more than happy to listen to part two of your story. I hope that you enjoyed it as much as we! 

[00:58:38] Marion Lowe McLean: I certainly did. Thank you very much. And part two will come because we're now working on a project for Quebec, similar to Canada to Ghana, different in this cultural presentation, but more or less the same model. So I went as soon as we have that up and running. We will be very happy to come back and do a part two! 

[00:59:01] Elton Brown: Sounds good to me. I have no, no objection. 

[00:59:06] Rita Burke: I would be delighted. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. You've really augmented my knowledge and inspired me with your passion for your projects. Thank you so very much, Marion! 

[00:59:23] Marion Lowe McLean: Thank you. You're welcome. Enjoy your day!

[00:59:26] Elton Brown: Thank you for listening to SpeakUP! International. If you wish to contact Ms. Marian Lowe McLean, please be prepared to submit your name, email address, and the reason why you wish to contact Ms. Lowe McLean to info@speeduppodcast.ca. 

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