Sixties Scoop adoptee finds himself after facing death

This is part 2 of a 3-part series looking at stories of Indigenous resilience. Click here to read part 1.

Having grown up as a SixtiesScoop adoptee, Gord Petruic has struggled with finding his identity. Years ago, he almost died after contracting the H1N1 virus. The virus left him in a coma and set him on a spiritual path that eventually allowed him to reconnect with who he is as an Indigenous person.

Gord Petruic was raised by a non-Indigenous family on a farm near Moose Jaw, Sask.

Like many other Indigenous people, he was taken away from his family during the Sixties Scoop. He didn't know who his family was or where they were from, but his adopted family were certain about one thing: "We knew right from the start that I was First Nations," said Petruic.

After graduating from high school, Petruic left his small Saskatchewan town to attend Minot State University in North Dakota.

"Once I got away from that small town, where my family was loved and respected, I got out into the real world and realized that they treated us differently," he said.

He dropped out of university during his first year, and started drinking heavily.

"I don't think I knew who I was. I didn't 'get' university. You go there to grow as a person and that's when I first realized that 'I am living a life, that has nothing to do with who I am,'" recalls Petruic.

After the failed university attempt, 18-year-old Petruic moved to Cochin, Sask.and started working the front desk at a local tourist lodge. One day while on the job, he was shocked to finally meet one of his biological family members.

"This guy came up to me and said 'I know who you are. I know your grandma, your family. I'm your uncle.'"

The chance encounter was completely unexpected. "I got caught off-guard. I couldn't handle it. I started crying. I went into the back room and made the other staff check him in," remembers Petruic.

"That was a moment of my life that I'll never forget. I'll never forget what he looks like but I wasn't ready."

It was the first and last time that he was able to meet his biological uncle, Dr. Oliver Brass.

Brass passed away before Petruic was able to see him again.

Medically induced coma

On Christmas Day in 2013, Petruic went toa friend's house for dinner and had to leave early because he wasn't feeling well.

On Dec.28, he checked himself into the hospital.

"My friend looked up to me and said 'dude, your lips are blue,'" said Petruic.

By Dec.30, he was put into a medically induced coma, and remembers having little warning before being intubated.

"I didn't even get a chance to talk to anyone. I called Sherry [his wife] and called my sister, I got answering machines from both of them and left them 'I love you' messages."

Some 38days later, Petruic remembers waking up from the coma to find his mother staring at him. He was unable to speak or move, and hadn't yet been told he had H1N1.

"The only thing that I could move was my left arm, everything else was useless. It was crazy waking up like that."

He admits that he always been skeptical of people that talk about "healers," but a visit in the hospital changed his perspective.

"I had this healer come to the hospital, I couldn't move my legs. I was worried that I was never gonna be able to use my legs again. This healer came to do a ceremony on me and the next day I was able to move my legs again."

"I'm one of those guys that has to see it to believe it," said Petruic.

'Your path is in both worlds'

There were a couple of close calls with death during his time in hospital. "They pulled my daughter out of school because they were giving me my last rites. They didn't think I was going to make it through the afternoon."

In total, Petruic spent 265 days in the hospital but when he came out, he had anew outlook on life and spirituality.

"Before I went into that sickness, I was not at peace with the Creator," said Petruic. "Coming out of that, I've got so much clarity on spirituality."

While in a coma, friends and family had been stopping by to visit and had gifted him sacred items and tools.

"I have a bundle now that I didn't have before, of gifts that were brought to me while I was in the hospital," said Petruic.

When he got out of the hospital, he reached out to elders and began feasting his newly acquired bundle.

He recalls the advice he got from an elder after receiving one such gift,the stem of a ceremonial pipe given to him while in Pennsylvaniaby anon-Indigenous man. The pipe is a very significant spiritual item for Indigenous people. Petruic had questioned "why did I get this pipe from a white guy? Am I even supposed to have this pipe? Is this pipe tainted?"

He went to see an elder to see what it meant. The elder toldPetruic, "there's a reason that pipe head came from a white guy. There's a reason there's no shaft. The shaft is going to come from the native side. You have to realize that your path is in both worlds."

These days, the now 41-year-old is enjoying his new lease on life and is working as a wellness advisorin Manitoba's northern First Nations.

"I love what I do," he said."I've picked up my bundle and I'm walking that walk. I love what I'm doing. I love the people up there. I can't describe it any other way."

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