REGINA — Vonda Knipfel originally from the White Bear First Nations has been the suppertime cook at the Salvation Army Waterston Centre in Regina for the past 20 years. A single mom of four kids her path to success was not easy.
At one year old Knipfel was taken from her family during what is now known as the 60’s scoop. She along with a younger brother were adopted by a non-indigenous couple. “I grew up all over Saskatchewan. I’ve been as far north as Missinipe, north of La Ronge to Rockglen in the southern part of the province.”
Knipfel says, “My education was a bit here and there as we moved around a lot.” Knipfel spent kindergarten to grade five in Shell Lake west of Prince Albert then completed grade five in Moose Jaw. She attended grades six and seven in Rockglen and started grade eight in Prince Albert. “I earned my grade nine through correspondence in Missinipe. And landed back in in La Ronge for grade 10”, adds Knipfel. “Fortunately, I never struggled or fell behind. I was very quick to pick up on stuff.” Knipfel was not able to make a lot of friends due to the constant moving.
To make matters worse while in Prince Albert the adoption began to break down. Knipfel says, “I was placed into foster care where I bounced everywhere. Grade 10 was never completed because I was placed at the YWCA in Prince Albert a month before my 17th birthday by my social worker. Six months later I was brought to Regina and I've been here ever since.” Knipfel became a mom four months before she turned 18. She says, “I had become a young mom with small children so I pushed school aside. It wasn’t until I turned 21 that I decided to make a better life for myself and my kids and go back to school. A friend of mine was exploring the option of getting her GED. So I inquired about the Adult Basic Education programming through SIAST, as the school was known at the time.”
Knipfel took the placer testing and made it into the ABE 11/12 course. With four kids aged from one to six years old she enrolled.
“I was looking at potentially going into post-secondary so I knew I needed all of the classes.” Some of the classes Knipfel took included algebra, chemistry and biology. Knipfel says, “I think I overdid it, some were hard. I had been out of school for four-to-five years. I had great instructors and a lot of one-to-one support.” Knipfel also found time for extracurricular sports. “I played volleyball. Some of us put together a team and we played in the school league. It was a lot of fun.”
Being a full-time student and mom Knipfel took her classes and worked part-time through work preparation centres in Regina. “I couldn’t keep the jobs very well. I had trouble getting daycare.”
Graduating in 1993 with her diploma Knipfel found it hard to find full-time work at the time. She says, “I worked at the SAAN department store. I was also a field helper at a local garden centre.” It wasn’t until her kids hit high school that things began to ease. “They were able to look after themselves allowing me to work full-time.”
It was at the Salvation Army that a job landed in Knipfel’s lap.
“I had sent my kids to the centre to volunteer to keep them out of trouble after school. I also went to volunteer a couple times. On one of the visits a manager asked me point blank if I knew how to cook. I said yes.”
Knipfel, now 34 was hired the next day. She works in the institutional kitchen. The centre looks after displaced people needing to get back on their feet. At any given time, there are 137 residents living in the centre and apartment complex. Knipfel says, “We prepare breakfast, lunch, and suppertime meals for 50-60 people every day. There is one other cook who does breakfast and lunch along with one kitchen helper.” She also prepares sandwiches for nighttime, so residents have something to eat to tide them over until breakfast as well as lunch bags for working men.
Knipfel shares, “The centre’s focus is on helping those who are struggling or are homeless. They come into the dorms, then they work their way up to a room or apartment. Our hard-working staff help them navigate their way through the centre. It is very gratifying to see them get back on their feet.” Knipfel says there is a need for centres like The Salvation Army. “We take in as many as we can. There are so many out there that can’t find a place to go.”
Knipfel loves her job so much she has been in the same position for the past two decades. In a unionized environment through Local UFCW 1400, Knipfel says she has been thankful for the decent paying job with benefits, “I started at the bottom and worked my way right to the top.” Knipfel has been a shop steward for the past 10 years. The union covers the food service team, housekeeping as well as the frontline workers. Between 40-50 people work at the centre.
Knipfel, now 54 is proud of her most recent accomplishment, becoming a homeowner. She purchased a home close to the centre on her own in 2022. “I’m happy where I am, I help people every day. I now live close to work. If I hadn’t been employed for as long as I have I would have never been able to purchase a home and move in a daughter and six grandkids. She became a single parent at the beginning of COVID,” adds Knipfel.
Knowing the importance of education Knipfel instilled this into her kids. All four have graduated high school. One of her daughters earned an Early Childhood Education diploma through Sask Polytech in 2020. Knipfel says, “Another one of my daughters has more of an entrepreneurial spirit. She has her own lawn care business in Regina.”
Something Knipfel is exploring is writing a memoir about her journey. When she found out she was a 60’s scoop survivor she submitted an essay to a writer, a fellow survivor who was looking to capture the trials and tribulations of survivor stories. “I was surprised when the editor emailed me and told me she would be including my story.” Knipfel still finds it very difficult to talk or write about what she went through. “I have been out to the White Bear First Nations. It is strange seeing people who look like me, sound like me but I have no real connection to.” Knipfel hopes the memoir will be a way to create a history for her kids and 14 grandkids to know about their past and the success of their mother and grandmother.
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— Submitted by Sask Polytech Media Relations
