Kate Awen is an artist, the co-founder of All About Inclusion, and a disability rights advocate. Kate dreams of a future where communities are inclusive, land and more-than-human centered, and steeped in nourishing stories. She has connected with Gaelic culture through a longing for rootedness and belonging, as well as a love for stories and storytelling. 

Joyce MacDonald grew up in Brook Village, with roots in Mabou, Inverness and Margaree. She started learning Gaelic in the 90s, but gave it up for a long time. She lived in Halifax, Saint Petersburg, Halifax, Amman, Halifax, Digby, Yellowknife and Dartmouth before moving back to Cape Breton in 2009. She started taking Gaelic classes in 2010. She works for Colaisde na Gàidhlig. She recently finished an MA in Celtic Studies from STFX. She lives in North Sydney with her dog. She loves community theatre, board games, and going into the sea.

Alexander/Alasdair/Sandy MacDougal is an educator who has taught adult high school and junior high. He's also worked as a technology mentor to teachers. He's currently employed at the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. Sandy grew up in Cape Breton where he heard occassional Gaelic words and phrases, and, in retrospect he realizes now that he was surrounded by many elements of Gaelic culture and traditional ways of being, however at the time most of those 'ways' were just they way things were without any cultural connection. In September 2022, he started learning Gaelic, online, in sessions facilitated by Shannon MacMullin. This was a turning point for him in many ways and sparked a thirst for knowledge that had, to that point, hadn't been recognized. Since then he has continued learning the language through a variety of mediums including but not limited to, online classes through his employer as well as The Gaelic College / Colaisde na Gàidhlig, DuoLingo, and interacting on several Facebook groups. This has also sparked his interest in family history so he's been doing some geneology research as well. Sandy enjoys theatre, reading and singing. He has been active with a local community theatre in a wide range of positions for almost 20 years and has sung (bass) in two choirs in the last several years. Sandy lives with is partner in Bedford, NS where they both enjoy entertaining, gardening, cooking, eating and wine!

A fluent Gaelic speaker, Nova Scotia native Robyn lives on Unama’ki / Cape Breton Island. Raised in a home steeped in Gaelic cultural tradition, she left for multi-cultural Vancouver in her mid-twenties to pursue a career in music and seek adventure. As a singer/ songwriter, instrumentalist and music educator, her roots go deep, studying and performing a wide range of forms including Maritime traditional, classical, jazz, country, rock, improvised music, Hindustani ragas and Russian song. She is a Gaelic teacher, performer, and activist. Robyn returned to live in Cape Breton in 2018 to work within local Gaelic culture and finally get rid of her home-sickness. In 2022 Robyn started her own cultural tourism company called Gaelic to Go. She attended an on-line Jam during the big break and thought that it was life-changing and has been eager to get another chance to participate. She knits and hugs trees.

Simon Beckford (He/They) grew up unschooled on an organic homestead in rural Maine, on colonized Wabanaki land. They experienced safety and belonging in the woods, often alone, and as an adult have spent over a decade leading multi week wilderness expeditions for teens. Simon and his brother started learning bagpipes at a young age, originally from their father and then from a variety of teachers on both sides of the atlantic. While the pipes have been set down for now, that foundation led to a deeper connection with family (McKim's from West Dunbartonshire who immigrated to Boston in the 1920s) as well as ancestral and spiritual connections going further back to the larger world of Scottish and Gaelic people, language, and identity. Simon has made several trips to Scotland over the years and more recently to Cape Breton, where it has been exciting to find so much Gaelic community and language so close to home. When possible Simon enjoys quiet hours spent listening in wild places, and observing birds.

Eamag is as rooted as one can be in Gleann nam Màgan “Glen of the Frogs” | Ainslie Glen, Inverness County, with a MacKinnon and MacLellan heritage going back to the Island of Muck and Morar. She was drawn in her youth to Gaelic language and culture and has taken advantage of every opportunity since to explore and learn. She has a Celtic Studies and Bachelor of Education Degree from St. Francis Xavier University and has focused on community-based education. As a Gàidhlig singer and teacher, Emily has done a tremendous amount of work for Gàidhlig Nova Scotia. A hard-working, well-organized self-starter, Emily began the Na Gaisgich Òga program at Colaisde na Gàidhlig and was the founding teacher at Taigh Sgoile na Drochaide. She was language consultant in the youth musical production Brìgh, fieldworker for the An Drochaid Eadarainn website, and was instrumental in getting Gaelic playgroups going for parents and children in Inverness county. She co-organized community events, such as Finlay MacLeod’s Total Immersion Plus (TIP) training and A’ Togail na Gàidhlig, a monthlong Gaelic immersion program for adults. In 2010 she lived in Carmen MacArthur’s Gaelic-only house in Southwest Margaree, which included many Gaelic weekends with peers, lively GaB classes and visiting special elders up the road. She owes her language and cultural fluency to that special time, and to community programs such as Gàidhlig aig Baile classes and working with elders in the Bun is Bàrr mentorship program. She is a Gaels Jammer alumna and has spent the last four years on a personal healing journey. Emily enjoys opportunities to slow down, spend time visiting friends, and speaking Gaelic, especially alongside her two children, Archie and Rosie.

Amber is a creative, loving soul who started her career in nursing but has largely stepped away from the traditional role and is in transition in her life in many ways. Thinking back to childhood, Amber remembers feeling so connected to and curious about her grandfather and was in awe that he could speak Gàidhlig, and wishing so much to know it too. She still doesn't have the ability to speak Gàidhlig and it's been difficult in many ways to cultivate the safety, opportunity, and confidence to learn the language. She is invested in seeking out, creating, and diving into spaces where healing is possible, for herself, the ones before her, and the ones after her. 

Grief, death, and dying have become a real area of passion for Amber and she is slowly exploring and unfurling how that is deeply connected to her culture, her purpose, and desire to allow grief to be present, acknowledged, and witnessed in our everyday lives.  She is learning to be a bridge builder of what was known and passed down o glùin gu glùin | from knee to knee and then largely forgotten, to what we can learn, remember, and hold ontoand reimagine a way forward in  community where death is honored and sacred, and not completely avoided.

Amber also loves DIY projects, crafting, cuddling up with her pup, and taking walks in the woods, and spending downtime with family. She longs to feel more connected in community and committed to figuring out different and creative ways to help make that happen.

Donna is an energetic & optimistic lady entrepreneur who likes to be busy. She works a “regular job” as a teller at a local credit union, she runs her own “passion business” called Donna MacGregor Antiques & Aspirations, and she dabbles in creative and historical writing. She has been a collector of wild and wonderful things since she was a child, has created more than one Haunted House with which to inspire & entertain the neighborhood kids (before it was the “IN” thing!), & has a fascinating gift for putting together amazing and detailed Halloween costumes for herself. Her inner child is alive and well!

As is typical of most people born on the East Coast, Donna spent a number of years working in Alberta. She worked her way up to an area manager position for an interesting retail chain with a territory that stretched from Saskatchewan to British Colombia.  Through that job she was able to drive & explore a lot of this incredible country. But as with many Maritimers, she couldn’t wait to get back to Cape Breton, her family, her community and her culture. After nine & a half years she moved back, bought a home not far from where she grew up and finds absolute contentment in doing yard work, planting perennials, and spoiling the two cats that allow her to share THEIR home. 

Donna learned simple Gaelic words as a child because her grandparents, though no longer fluent themselves because Gaelic was on the way to being a “dead language”, believed no harm could come of teaching the kids the names for animals and small phrases of the Gaelic. The stories of how previous generations came to be in Nova Scotia fascinated Donna and she took up reading about Scotland & the history of its people. There was always a fascination with arms and armor and she wondered about the possibility of past lives, reincarnated souls and genetic imprinting of memories. She dreamed about going to Scotland to stand in the places that left indelible marks on the Scottish people and the history. Culloden, Glencoe (her maternal lineage in CB began with MacDonalds), the Highlands & the Hebrides. In April of 2023, Donna made that dream come true. It was a truly emotional & profound feeling. Through working in a tourism for years in CB before going to AB, she had heard so many people “from away” who, upon arriving in CB, said they felt like their souls had come home. That was almost how it felt to stand in some of those places in Scotland. Although beyond that was a melancholy, a yearning, a sadness. Imagine how it felt for our ancestors who left those Islands to come to this Island with no notion of what this Island could possibly be like? But they took the leap of Faith. 

Donna is a proud Gael. When she heard about the Gaels Jam it seemed intriguing despite not quite knowing what it was about. Certainly the idea of building a community of like-minded individuals seems a good idea. So she’s taking a leap of faith!

Leslie Buchanan is determined to live a life of personal adventure. The outdoors is her happy place (walking, hiking, backpacking, kayaking, geocaching, camping, bicycling.) Living solo for her is fabulous, but she also finds connections amazing. Although financial contraints rope her in, her ADHD ensures for her a life of joy. She is involved with different groups and organizations, but will alway keep her individual relationships nurtured. She's on the Hike-the-Highlands Board of Directors, a WalkNS Leader, member of Winter Camping Nova Scotia, and part of the North Sydney Seniors' & Pensioners' Club. She values quiet time to reset. She also loves NYT Crosswords, jigsaw puzzles, sewing, reading, model building, multiple crafts, listening to music, and writing letters. She even bought an enclosed cargo trailer and built herself a camping trailer for one! She boondocks around the province in it whenever she can.

Heather Sparling is a professor of ethnomusicology at Cape Breton University. She researches Gaelic song, music, and dance in Nova Scotia as well as disaster songs of Atlantic Canada. She published her second book, *Disaster Songs as Intangible Memorials in Atlantic Canada,* last year. She is a fluent learner of both Gaelic and French. A classically trained flutist, she plays with the Cape Breton Orchestra. She is also learning to play the fiddle. She is married and has a teenaged son. She loves reading novels on her porch in the summer, and her happy place is Bruce Beach on the shores of Lake Huron in Ontario. She is trying to decide between developing a nascent interest in quilting or crocheting.

Nick is a born and raised Cape Breton Island man. He grew up on the coast of a small mining community called Glace Bay where honor, pride and respect for your own went a long way.

He from day one had a fascination with the stories of his grandfathers and their battles fought overseas, the love of his grandfather's legacy opened him to a whole world of how his ancestors fought, claimed, protected, farmed, and preserved what was there's right from the motherland and back again. Historical battles, negotiations, trades and compromises always sparked passion within him, and coming from the Clan Ranalds of Loch Moridart it left him with amble tales to trace and retell.

Now in life he finds most of his comfort outside , spending time with his niece and nephews and his best cat friend, named kitty.. the cat. He recently found himself accepted into the social work program in Annapolis Royal and has a personal passion to connect the fighting spirit of his ancestors and apply it back to making our communities what we are truly capable of becoming. United, proud and strong. 

Sandra is a 65 year old widowed female retired from a 25 year career in health care. She worked as Director of Spiritual Care and Cultural Diversity for the Cape Breton District Health Authority. During her years at work she taught Clinical Pastoral Education helping her students get in touch with their feelings and become more self aware. She is an ordained United Church Clergy having served in churches in her 30’s before going into health care in her 40’s. She is well travelled and always wondering where she will be off to next. She enjoys entertaining, attending Celtic music events and is looking forward to the Orkney Folk Festival in May on her seven week journey/pilgrimage to Scotland via a trans Atlantic cruise. Her hobbies include spinning, knitting, darts and line dancing.

Tha Lodaidh an sàs ann an iomadh rud a tha a’ buntainn do dh’fhéin-aithne, co-dhiubh ’s e bhi an sàs ann an obair choimhearsnachd nan Gàidheal ann an Albainn Nuaidh, iomadachd chànanachas air neo ag obair gus a ghualainn a chur ri coimhearsnachdan dì-riochdaichte eile a tha a’ dèanadh strì an aghaidh ana-cheartas. Tha esan a’ fiachainn ri gillean math a dhèanadh do dhithist ghillean a tha a-nist ’nan inbhich! ’S e a’ bhean treun aige, ’na tobar do chùram is do thaic dhà. Aig an taigh air neo air chuairtean goirid ’s a’ chàr ’s e an cù, Sradag a tha dà-chànanach ’na chompanach seasmhach aige! ’S e Siorramachd Antaiginis an t-àite a dh’àraich e gu math dlùth dh’a chridhe is sin far a bheil a athair mìorailteach a’ fuireach ann fhathast is bidh e ’dol a chéilidh air a mhàthair a tha ann an dachaidh nan seann daoine ann an Sherbrooked cho tric ’s a ghabhas. Tha e glé bhòsdail ás an dà thùs-cinneachail aige: Gàidhealach is Acadach. Tha Spàinnis is Gàidhlig na h-Éireann aige cuideachd is beagan do dh’fhaclan is dh’abairtean ann an cànanan eile. Tha e a’ faicinn cànan mar dhrochaid eadar daoine a bheir cuideachadh gus ceangailichean nas daingne a thogail. Bidh e ri bhàrdachd, bheagan-teagaisg ’s a’ Ghàidhlig is obair nan òran a h-uile an dràsda is a-rithist. Gu minic, théid iarraidh air òraidean is taisbeanaidhean a lìbhrigeadh mu na Gàidheil ann an Albainn Nuaidh is cuideachd bidh e a’ bruidhinn air a’ bhàrdachd a bhios e a’ dèanadh a h-uile an dràsda is a-rithist. ’S toil leis a bhi a’ togail chuideaman is a bhi a’ cur ùine seachad ag obair air an lìonaig. Ged nach e tuathanach neo fear-gàrraidh math a th’ann idir, ’s toil leis a bhi a’ fiachainn r’ a dhìcheall a dhèanadh. Bidh e a’ faighinn misneach is stiùireadh o thraidisean draoidheil Crìosdaidh, o fheallsanachd Rumi is sòlas o channt Griogarach is o’n cheòl a rinn Hildegarde á Bingen, o sheann-fhacail is ghliocas nan Gàidheal, nan Tùsanach is o dhlùth-bheachdan Mharcuis Aurelius. Tha e ’n dùil ri Slighe an Naoimh Seumais á Compostela a choiseachd ann an 2025! Is toil leis a bhi a’ leughadh mu eachdraidh nan Gàidheal, nan tùsanach, nan seann Impireachdan o na linntean a dh’aom is a bhi a’ leughadh nobhailean eachdraidheil. Bidh e a’ faighinn bòidhcheid á iomadh seòrsa do dh’ealan.
Lewis is engaged in many things that pertain to identity.   Whether it is being involved the work of the Gaelic community in Nova Scotia, linguistic diversity or working to be an ally for underrepresented communities who are struggling against injustice, he is trying to make good boys out of his two boys who are now adults! His brave wife is a source of support and care for him. When home or on short excursions in the car, his bilingual dog, Sradag is his constant companion! Antigonish County the place that reared him is very near to his heart and that is where his remarkable father still resides and he goes to visit his mother who is in a nursing home in Sherbrooke as often as able. He is very proud of his two ethnocultural origins: Gaelic and Acadian. He speaks Spanish and Irish and has words and phrases in many other languages. He sees language as a bridge between people that assists in building stronger connections. He makes some poetry, teaches a bit of Gaelic, and engages in work on songs every now and again. He is frequently asked to deliver talks and presentations on Nova Scotia Gaels and every once and awhile on the poetry he composes. He likes to lift weights and spend time working on his yard. Though he isn’t a good farmer or gardener, he likes to try and do his best. He receives inspiration from the Christian tradition and guidance from the philosophy of Rumi, solace from Gregorian Chant and the music Hildegarde Von Bingen created, from the proverbs and wisdom of Gaels, Indigenous Peoples and the meditations of Marcus Aurelius. He plans to walk the Camino Santiago de Compostela in 2025! He enjoys reading about the history of the Gaels, First Nations People, the Empires of times past and reading historical novels. He finds beauty in many forms of visual art.

Sìleas is a single mother to three children who's currently attending Cape Breton University to complete a BA in Psychology. She works as a support person to individuals struggling with mental health issues and addiction. She spends her free time singing, playing music, dancing and writing, and shares these hobbies with her children.