Mali (which is Indian for Mary) was named for her grandmother and was born in Keene, New Hampshire in 1931. She grew up next door to her grandparents, Israel and Mary Sadoques, hearing the stories of how her grandfather brought his family from the north woods of Canada, down the Connecticut River and settled in Keene in the 1880s. Using skills and knowledge from their Abenaki heritage, Mali's grandparents prospered and were accepted as an Indian family, into the life of the community. Mali, the daughter of an Abenaki woman and a white man, learned the ways of her native ancestors by example because they were part of the fabric of her everyday life. Family was of primary importance and women were accorded the same respect as men. She in turn has actively involved herself with the cultural, spiritual, and political affairs of
her people, serving now as a member of the Wabanaki Confederacy and traveling to the Ojibway
people for spiritual teaching. Mali was an Abenaki elder, a grandmother of seven and a keeper of
tradition. She passed away in 2001.
