Songs of the Between
Mackenzie Griffin
Storyteller | Facilitator | Speaker | Community Networker
Land Acknowledgement
I am grateful to live, write, and facilitate from the unceded, traditional, and ancestral lands of the Syilx/Okanagan Nation. I honour the deep and ongoing relationship of the Syilx Nation with these lands and waters, and I acknowledge my responsibility to listen, learn & engage with the lands I live, work & play upon.
My work is also shaped by the Elders, Knowledge Keepers, communities, and wisdom traditions that have guided my learning. I give thanks for Syilx teachings shared with me in community, for NAIITS: An Indigenous Learning Community, my undergraduate professors at the University of British Columbia Okanagan, Cree and Saulteaux/Anishinaabe traditions, and the urban Indigenous wisdom carried through spaces such as Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society, Métis Community Services BC, and my Women of Turtle Island Drumming Sisters.
About Me:
I have always been drawn to stories: the ones we inherit, the ones we carry quietly, the ones that shape our communities, and help us imagine a different future.
My name is Mackenzie Griffin. I am Nehiyaw (Cree) and Nahkawininiwak (Saulteaux) on my mother’s side, from Sunchild First Nation, with Scottish and English ancestry on my father’s side. I grew up off-reserve in Treaty 6 territory in the small town of Barrhead, Alberta. I now live on the unceded, ancestral and traditional lands of the Syilx Okanagan peoples in Kelowna, BC, where I work as a storyteller, facilitator, community networker, and emerging Indigenous reconciliation practitioner.
I completed my Bachelor of Arts Degree at the University of British Columbia in 2022 with a Combined Major in Creative Writing and Cultural Studies. And I completed my Masters of Theology with NAIITS - An Indigenous Learning Community in 2025.
Much of my life and work has been shaped by the experience of walking with one foot in two worlds. I sit at the intersection of Indigenous and settler communities, Christian faith and Indigenous storywork. I am especially interested in how stories help us understand who we are, where we come from, and what responsibilities we carry.
At the heart of my work is the question: How do we become better relatives — to one another, to the land, to our stories, and to the generations still to come? This is the journey I am committed to walking, and the invitation I offer: to explore what becoming better relatives can look like in your community, organization, or context.
My Vision
To cultivate right-relatedness between people, place, and story by guiding communities, organizations, and faith networks to practice reconciliation as an embodied way of being.
Core Belief
My work begins with a simple conviction: reconciliation is not a project to complete but a relationship to live. Reconciliation is the work of repair — not only of systems, but of the relationships that hold us. It is a land-based, relational practice that invites every person, community, and institution to examine how we live, benefit, and belong. Right-relatedness grows through humility, trust, respect, and reciprocity — practices rooted in compassion and care that remind us reconciliation is not simply what we do, but how we live together.
I work with Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities, individuals, faith communities, organizations, and non-profits seeking to deepen their understanding of truth and reconciliation, strengthen relationships, and practice kinship in tangible ways.
My work is collaborative, relational, and responsive to context. I begin by listening to the stories, strengths, needs, and relationships already present, then work with communities and organizations to discern meaningful next steps toward learning, repair, and sustainable change.
I offer workshops, facilitated conversations, story circles, and speaking engagements around faith and Indigenous identity, truth and reconciliation, and land-based reconnection. I also support organizations and communities through Indigenous Appreciative Inquiry, partnership development, resource creation, and reconciliation-focused planning.
Through this work, I create spaces where people can listen deeply, reflect honestly, build meaningful relationships, and explore what becoming better relatives can look like in their own context.
Who I Work Alongside
My Writing
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Relatives in Reconciliation
This blog traces the journey of the developing Relatives in Reconciliation Network in Kelowna, BC. Follow it as I post stories from my interviews with community leaders, organizations and everyday reconcilers as we learn what it means to be better relatives.
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Walking the Good Road Blog
A space for personal reflections on identity, belonging, and liminality. Rooted in an Indigenous way of knowing, being, and doing, this blog honours my relationships to Creator, the land, and all my relations — human and more-than-human. Here I write about what it means to live justly, to seek balance, and to walk in a Good Way.
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Unite With Me (Songs and Poetry)
A collection of poetry, songs, prayers, and meditations yet to be published. These pieces are my creative heart, they are deeply personal, reflective and authentic. These pieces flow from the in-between spaces of faith and culture, sorrow and joy, land and spirit. May you find something here that speaks to your own journey and let it spur you into something new.
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Published Works
A collection of all my published works and where to purchase a copy.