Chief Gregory
Sarazin

I was born and raised in Pikwakanagan and have lived here all of my life.  This is where I live today with my wife Helen and our youngest son,16 year old Kaleb.  Together we have 7 children and 7 grandchildren.  Our family was a large one. I am the first born of 7 children.

In our family we lived and learned our traditional ways from an early age. I learned traditional arts and crafts, participated in Pikwakanagan’s early Pow Wows as a dancer and accompanied my father on the hunt and on the trapline.  Our parents made sure from an early age that we understood our past and our present.  My father, Stanley taught his children the traditional art of building the Algonquin birch bark canoe.  

In addition to being of the Sarazin family, I am also descended from and therefore related to many of the major families in Pikwakanagan including Meness, Amikons, Benoit, Jocko, Whiteduck and Aird. My family has always served Pikwakanagan.  My father was a member of Council in his time.  My grandfather Daniel was Chief of Pikwakanagan and three of my great grandfathers were Chiefs of Pikwakanagan.  Chief Paul Benoit, Chief Angus Amikons and Chief Peter Meness.

As a traditional artisan and knowledge holder, I am very proud to honour my traditional responsibilities of passing that traditional birch bark canoe building knowledge on to the next generation of Algonquin people as my father did before me and as his father did before that.  

I am university educated and have over 35 years of direct leadership and management experience serving Pikwakanagan in many different roles.

Chief of Pikwakanagan
Grand Chief S.E Anishinabek
Councillor of Pikwakanagan
Manager of Negotiations
Chief Negotiator of the Land Claim
Manager of Nature Department
Manager of Economic Development
Successful business owner for past 14 years employing our members in Pikwakanagan
Traditional Knowledge Holder and Artisan (Birch Bark Canoe building)
I also have extensive training in negotiations and in community economic development, creating business plans for people and helping them to start their businesses and establishing my own businesses.