Laura Collins of Sault Ste. Marie (left) and Peggy Hemenway of Little Traverse Bay hold medicines used in the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians traditional medicine program Tuesday, August 24. Collecting plants for use in the program is a careful process, and harvesters take care to ensure negative emotions or pollution don't seep into the healing plants. Across Michigan and into Wisconsin and Canada, Peggy Hemenway of Little Traverse Bay and Laura Collins of Sault Ste. Marie roam to find the plants and materials for natural healing. Flowers as commonplace as dandelions as well as bee and wasp nests are gathered. The collected medicines are prepared by the two for use in the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians Traditional Medicine Program at the new Tribal Health and Social Services Clinic in St. Ignace.

Once gathered and prepared, the plants are used by the healers to treat illnesses, both physical and emotional.

The gathering of natural items for medicine is an important part of the treatment process in tribal medicine. Medicine gathering and preparation is a skill passed only to a select few in the tribe, Mrs. Hemenway said, as a person's character and intentions must be evaluated first to see if they are suitable for the important work. A would-be practitioner's standing in the tribal community is also considered, along with how active he or she is in the tribe's ceremonies.

“It's not just a weekend thing,” she said of participating in the ceremonies, “it's every day.”

State of mind is an important element when gathering the plants, they said, as negative emotions can seep into the plants. Someone who is grieving, for example, is not allowed to collect plants for an entire year.

If a particular plant is found growing in abundance, Mrs. Hemenway said, it is taken as a sign that the illnesses that plant can treat will occur often.

“Everything works together, sickness and medicine,” she said.

Preparing medicines from herbs growing in the area is not a simple process, Mrs. Hemenway said, and use of them varies, as each patient is different, as is the type and severity of their illness.

For this reason, knowledge of the healing properties of the plants and recipes for making the medicines are closely guarded. Freely giving away the knowledge could have dangerous consequences, as the medicines could be misused and sicken people, Mrs. Collins said. Those trained in preparing and administering the medicines are also responsible for carrying on the tribal history and traditions.

Mrs. Hemenway, who assists the tribe's traditional healers along with gathering and preparing the medicine, said she has always been interested in plants. She was trained in the techniques, with information passed on orally. With five years experience, Mrs. Hemenway said she continues to learn more with each passing day.

“We believe everybody has a purpose and a gift, and I believe [traditional medicine] would be my purpose,” she said.

Mrs. Collins has always enjoyed outdoor life, and had worked for a tribe in Minnesota before moving to Sault. Ste. Marie. Since she wanted to help her fellow tribal members, Mrs. Collins said, she was selected to learn about the tribe's medical knowledge.

“We wanted to help people,” Mrs. Hemenway said. “That was probably the most driving force, helping our people.”

For the plant gatherers, harvesting medicinal plants is both a spiritual and technical process. Wild plants are taken based on the seasons. August tends to be the busiest season for them, as many plants are ready for collection, Mrs. Hemenway said.

Just enough plants are taken to treat patients, Mrs. Collins said, and nothing is wasted. Since some plants only grow at certain times, patients may have to wait before receiving a traditional medicine treatment.

“Plants don't wait. They only last a certain amount of time,” Mrs. Hemenway said.

Some plants are rare and protected. Simple dandelions or cedar tree foliage, prepared in different ways to treat illnesses, can be taken without issue, but other plants like the lady's slipper are protected and cannot be harvested. In cases like those, Mrs. Hemenway said, rare plants must be purchased for medicinal use.

They must take care when gathering plants in Canada, as dirt and some plants cannot be carried over the border, Mrs. Collins said. Some plants must be dried, prepared, and processed before they can be brought back.

Pollution is also a factor when gathering, Mrs. Hemenway said. Smog from vehicles will damage plants along roadsides, so they walk a distance from roadways to find usable herbs.

Those who have plants they would like to donate may contact the traditional healing program at (906) 632-5200. The program can also be contacted to remove wasp and bee nests that have not been sprayed, which will be used for medicinal purposes.