Running toward Reconciliation

Tréchelle Bunn [BA(Hons)/23], proud member of Birdtail Sioux Dakota Nation, started her university career at the University of Calgary, but she had always dreamt of coming back to UM for law school. When COVID happened, she made the decision to transfer to the University of Manitoba and play her last two years of university hockey back home in front of her family and in her community. 

“My experience as a student-athlete with UM has been amazing,” said Bunn. “I’ve been involved in a lot of different initiatives, and I feel as an athlete I was able to use that platform with the Bisons to speak to important issues like how I believe Bison Sport, and other university sports organizations, can use sport as a tool for Reconciliation for athletes and their teams.”

She graduated from the University of Manitoba in the spring of 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminology and a minor in Indigenous studies. She is currently in her second year of law school at Robson Hall. She credits UM with being incredibly supportive, encouraging her to uplift her voice to marry together her two passions of sport and academics to create a space for advocacy. 

“I think being a student-athlete and using my advocacy efforts of speaking to important issues really played a role in my dream of going to law school,” she said. “I’m so proud to have been a bison and and to be an alum of the women’s hockey team.” 

Bunn is also the founder and race director for the Reconciliation Run, which she created as a form of legacy for her grandparents both of whom attended the Birtle Indian Residential School. The Run starts close to the site of the former Residential School, as her grandfather used to tell her all he wanted was to run away from there. This year, the Run has even more meaning for Bunn, as she’s planning to use the funds raised from the race to create The Reconciliation Run Scholarship for Indigenous Student-Athletes. 

“I started talking with the Faculty of Kinesiology and Recreation Management, as I eventually want to expand the race so that UM students and faculty can have their own Reconciliation Run,” she said. “As we kept talking, I became aware that there’s always so much need for scholarships, especially for Indigenous students. As an Indigenous student-athlete, I was never aware of any scholarships specifically for Bisons athletes, so we identified that as a gap area.” 

Bunn said her vision for the scholarship is to be able to support and uplift Indigenous student athletes in Bison Sport and to serve as a recruitment tool for Indigenous student athletes to come to UM. She was also inspired by a quote by former TRC Commissioner Chief Willie Littlechild who said, ‘sport has the power to bring people together and to get people working together, and that’s what Reconciliation is all about’. The first scholarship will be given out this fall. 

“My hope is that it really inspires other Indigenous student-athletes to use their platform as a Bisons athlete to advocate for change within their community or to be involved on campus and to really harness the opportunities and resources that we have as athletes to be positive role models for the next generation.”  

She said her experience as a student-athlete is taking the lead as she starts shaping her career path, and she is grateful for the opportunities she was given. Now, she wants to do her part to help ensure the next generation of Indigenous student-athletes have that same positive experience and feel supported on their journey. For those thinking about how they can give back, Bunn offers some advice. 

“When I started the Reconciliation Run, I had no idea how big it could become and how many different ways it could have a positive impact on others,” she said. “I think sometimes we’re often our own worst critics and our biggest challenges can come from our own mind. But I say be fearless in pursuit of your dreams and passions and goals because if you can dream it, you can do it.” 

For more information about supporting the Reconciliation Run Scholarship for Indigenous Student-Athletes, please call Jennifer Triggs, Leadership Giving Officer, at 204-299-6641 or email at Jennifer.triggs@umanitoba.ca.

Emily Janssens