Jingle Dress Journey with Abby Carpenter

Join us at Toronto Metropolitan University for Mzawe Kiing Anishinaabek Giizis (National Indigenous Peoples Month) TMU alum Abby Carpenter shares her Jingle Dress journey and demonstration. 

We are pleased to announce, she will be one of the head dancers at this year’s Pow Wow on Friday, September 11, 2026. 

Abby is a proud member of the Mohawk Nation, Bear Clan, from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, where she was raised and continues to reside. Born into a family of hereditary chiefs of the Lower Cayuga Longhouse, she learned ceremony and teachings grounded in a Good Mind, Thankfulness, and Respect.

From her earliest years, Abby was also brought into Powwow life, guided by her grandparents, Kenneth and Helen Jacobs. Accompanying them to support her great-uncle, Oliver Jacobs—who was one of the original families who turned the Six Nations Rodeo into the Grand River Champion of Champions Powwow—Abby grew up surrounded by the songs, dances, and the powerful sense of community that Powwow creates.

For over four decades, Abby has learned and danced all women’s styles — Women’s Traditional, Jingle Dress, Fancy Shawl, and Smoke Dance — and has carried forward the teachings associated with each. Today, she shares her jingle dress dancing as a healing dance, approaching it with humility, gratitude, and a deep commitment to uplifting others through movement, song, and presence.

Beyond the Powwow circle, Abby is committed to supporting the First Nations community. She holds a Juris Doctor from the Lincoln Alexander School of Law at Toronto Metropolitan University and is currently pursuing her licensing with the Law Society of Ontario.

Abby has contributed to community-driven initiatives, including developing policies to support the Survivors and the families of Survivors connected to the Mohawk Institute Residential School, strengthening First Nations support within academic institutions, and improving access to justice for First Nations clients. In her current role as a Policy Development Officer with the City of Toronto, she leads the co-development of the First Nations, Inuit and Métis Procurement Policy.

Whether in government, community spaces, or the powwow arena, Abby is guided by honouring our ways of being, and upholding our responsibilities to one another, to the community, and to the land—creating pathways for future generations.

About the organizers/team

This event is part of Mzawe Kiing Anishinaabek Giizis (National Indigenous Peoples Month)

This event is organized by a collective of Indigenous and non-Indigenous colleagues, led by Crystal Osawamick, manager of Indigenous events and special projects and others from the National Indigenous Peoples Month Planning Circle.

Accessibility

The university is committed to accessibility for persons with disabilities. If you have any accommodation requirements, please let us know in the registration form. You can also email Crystal Osawamick, Manager of Indigenous Events and Special Projects at crystal.osawamick@torontomu.ca.

Questions?

If you have any questions, please email indigevents@torontomu.ca