When Elaine’s mother Mary Malloway would take her to meetings of the Xyólheméylh and Qwi:qwelstom Elders, little did she know that Mary was preparing for her to take over her role as an esteemed Elder in the Stó:lō community. Mary passed away in 2023 and that is exactly what has happened. Elaine is the Hereditary Chief of the Yeqwyeqwi:ws First Nation, and the oldest of eight children of Mary and Frank Malloway. Her son, Terry Horne, is currently Chief.
Elaine was fortunate to grow up with a strong sense of culture, family, the Longhouse traditions, and canoe races. Between her work as Hereditary Chief, her work as an Elder and her cultural work, Elaine is very busy, but she says the work is very rewarding. “It’s hard to believe I’m 68,” says Elaine. “I still feel young.”
Elaine worked with Xyólheméylh as an administrative supervisor and Northwest Indian College in Washington State. She moved back to the lower mainland to be closer to her aging parents and worked at Seabird College and University of the Fraser Valley in the Indigenous Student Centre. Elaine is married to Tom George and together they have a blended family of seven children.
Elaine says it took her a long time to develop self-esteem, partly because of growing up with prejudice against Indigenous people. But she eventually learned to have confidence after a successful career in the education system. “It made me realize I’m a good worker, people value me and I needed to accept that people believe in me. It’s an honour that people believe in me.”
Elaine’s advice to social workers is to understand Indigenous ways and to ask the Elders questions. She says, “There are no crazy questions, you are not going to learn if you don’t ask.”