Sharing Our Stories

What Sharing Our Stories does

Sharing Our Stories, operating under the Mohawk name Ionkwaká:raton, is a Canadian non-profit cultural preservation initiative headquartered in Kahnawake, Quebec (Old Chateauguay Road, PO Box 2190). The organization collects, documents, and shares oral stories told by Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) elders and knowledge keepers, presenting each narrative bilingually in English and Kanien'kéha with audio recordings and minimal editorial alteration to preserve authenticity. Its primary constituents are the Kanien'kehá:ka community seeking to reconnect with cultural heritage and Kanien'kéha language learners; approximately 3,500 people currently speak Kanien'kéha, making the dictionary a key revitalization tool.

The organization's product surface is an integrated digital platform hosted on Squarespace, comprising six interconnected components: a Stories/Narratives Collection, the Kanien'kéha Oral Dictionary (linking words to the stories in which they appear), Audio Interviews, History and Culture Articles, free Kanien'kéha Language Workshops held in-person (e.g., Kahnawake United Church Hall) and online, and Story Collection services. Workshops span beginner to advanced levels and incorporate the Praat computer speech analysis program for pronunciation instruction. Distribution channels include the company website (sharing-our-stories.com), Facebook, Instagram, and a monthly email newsletter.

Revenue is generated entirely through donations and sponsorship. The organization accepts charitable contributions (with tax receipts on request) and operates a five-tier corporate sponsorship program — Platinum $50,000+, Gold $20,000+, Silver $10,000+, Bronze $5,000+, and Mentions $2,000-$5,000 — plus a Place Bell Suite offering at $2,500 per event for the September 1, 2024 to August 31, 2025 season. Disclosed Platinum-tier sponsors include Centraide and the Government of Canada. The team consists of 6 employees led by Executive Director Steve, and the organization has no parent company, subsidiaries, funding rounds, or M&A activity in the source data.

Name

Sharing Our Stories

Legal name

Sharing Our Stories

Website

https://sharing-our-stories.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sharing Our Stories (Ionkwaká:raton) is a Kahnawake, Quebec-based non-profit that preserves Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) culture by collecting bilingual oral stories from elders, maintaining the Kanien'kéha Oral Dictionary, and hosting free language workshops for community members and learners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Preservation and Indigenous Language Documentation

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Libraries and Archives (51921)

akta.pro primary industry

Indigenous, Ethnic & Folk Arts/Heritage Organizations (BPAGAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Indigenous & Community Cultural Institutions (THAJADAK), Tribal Teacher Education & Indigenous Language Colleges (Educator Prep/Language Revitalization) (EDAHANAG)

Keywords

• Indigenous cultural preservation
• Language revitalization
• Oral history documentation
• Kanien'kéha language education
• Community storytelling platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Kahnawake

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: The organization accepts donations to support its mission of collecting and sharing stories that provide historical, traditional, and cultural importance. Charitable tax receipts are available upon request for donors.
2. Event Sponsorships: Place Bell Suite sponsorship packages offering corporate visibility at events, games, and concerts. Suites include 12 tickets, premium parking, and free snacks and soft drinks for $2,500 per event.
3. Corporate Sponsorship Tiers: Multi-tiered sponsorship program with Platinum ($50,000+), Gold ($20,000+), Silver ($10,000+), Bronze ($5,000+), and Mentions ($2,000-$5,000) levels offering logo placement and recognition.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sharing Our Stories (Ionkwaká:raton) is a digital cultural preservation platform that collects, archives, and shares oral stories told by Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) elders and knowledge keepers to preserve Indigenous culture, tradition, history, and language. The platform features a bilingual story archive in English and Kanien'kéha, a Kanien'kéha oral dictionary linking words to stories in context, audio interviews, and free language learning workshops held in-person and online.

Product overview

Ionkwaká:raton (Sharing Our Stories) is a digital cultural preservation platform designed as a collection of stories told by Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) elders and knowledge keepers. The platform operates as a unified ecosystem comprising multiple integrated offerings: the core Stories/Narratives Collection featuring oral stories in English and Kanien'kéha with audio recordings, the Kanien'kéha Oral Dictionary for language learning and reference, Audio Interviews for traditional oral content, History and Culture Articles, and Kanien'kéha Language Workshops (events). The platform preserves culture, tradition, history, and language by presenting stories from the elders' perspective in as close to oral form as possible.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ionkwaká:raton (Sharing Our Stories) Digital Platform A digital cultural preservation platform that collects, organizes, and shares stories told by Kanien'kehá:ka (Mohawk) elders and knowledge keepers to preserve culture, tradition, history, and language. The platform features oral stories, audio interviews, a Kanien'kéha dictionary, and community events for the Kanien'kehá:ka community and language learners.
• Kanien'kéha Oral Dictionary A written and oral dictionary preserving the Kanien'kéha (Mohawk) language, featuring words sorted alphabetically with links to stories where each word appears in context. Serves as a decolonization tool for language relearning for Kanien'kehá:ka community members.
• Stories/Narratives Collection A collection of stories told by Kanien'kehá:ka elders and knowledge keepers, presented in both English and Kanien'kéha language with audio recordings, covering topics including history, culture, family, spirituality, and personal experiences. Designed for the Kanien'kehá:ka community and language learners.
• Audio Interviews Audio content featuring oral stories and interviews with Kanien'kehá:ka elders and knowledge keepers, preserving oral traditions in their original form with audio playback integrated into story pages.
• Kanien'kéha Language Workshops Educational events including beginner to advanced level workshops on Kanien'kéha language topics such as possessives, translocative and cislocative grammar, directions, verb phrases, and pronunciation using speech analysis tools. Offered free of charge to language learners at locations including the Kahnawake United Church Hall.
• History and Culture Articles Written articles documenting Kanien'kehá:ka history and culture, providing educational content about the community's heritage for community members and learners.
• Story Collection Services Services for collecting stories from elders and knowledge keepers, with a dedicated contact channel ([email protected]) for story submissions to support the cultural preservation mission.

Quantifiable outcome

• Cultural preservation and revitalization for Kanien'kehá:ka communities
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Place BellminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership for suite sponsorship at events, games, and concerts. Place Bell Suites are sold through Sharing Our Stories at $2,500 per event, with proceeds supporting the cultural preservation project.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Onkwawén:na Kentyóhkwa / Mohawk Language Custodians: A Mohawk immersion school and language custodian organization in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory. Directly comparable in its mission to preserve and teach the Kanien'kéha language, though focused on classroom-based immersion rather than digital storytelling.
• FirstVoices: A leading Indigenous language technology platform that provides digital archives, dictionaries, and language-learning tools for First Nations communities. Directly comparable to Sharing Our Stories' dictionary + story archive approach, though FirstVoices operates across many Indigenous languages rather than focusing on Kanien'kéha.
• The Eastern Door: A Kahnawake-based Indigenous newspaper covering the Mohawk community. Directly comparable as a Kanien'kehá:ka community media outlet, and Sharing Our Stories' Facebook page is identified as The Eastern Door / Sharing Our Stories, indicating a close operational relationship.

Broad incumbents

• Duolingo: A major language-learning platform that has begun offering Indigenous language courses (e.g., Hawaiian, Navajo). Comparable in providing structured language learning to Indigenous communities, but as a global commercial platform rather than a community-led cultural preservation project.
• Canadian Museum of History: Canada's national museum of human history, including substantial Indigenous collections and exhibits. Comparable in mission to preserve and interpret Indigenous heritage, but far larger in scope, audience, and budget, with a focus on physical exhibits rather than oral storytelling.
• CBC Indigenous: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Indigenous content division, producing stories, video, and audio about Indigenous communities in Canada. Comparable in distributing Indigenous oral history and cultural content, but as part of a much larger public broadcaster with national reach.

Emerging players

• Memrise: A user-generated language-learning platform that hosts community-created Indigenous language courses. Comparable in offering accessible Indigenous language learning, though driven by community content rather than a curated cultural archive.

Regional players

• Wanuskewin Heritage Park: A National Historic Site in Saskatchewan dedicated to Northern Plains Indigenous culture, language, and ceremony. Comparable as an Indigenous cultural and language preservation institution, but focused on Plains Cree culture rather than Kanien'kehá:ka and oriented around a physical heritage site.
• Aboriginal Multimedia Society (AMMSA): An Alberta-based Indigenous publisher producing newspapers, books, and digital content for Indigenous communities. Comparable in producing Indigenous-language and cultural content for community preservation, but serving Plains Indigenous communities rather than Mohawk.

Others

• Endangered Languages Project: A collaborative online resource documenting endangered languages worldwide, including resources for revitalization. Comparable in its mission to preserve and teach endangered languages, though it operates globally and as a broader reference rather than a community-specific storytelling platform.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/TheEasternDoor.SharingOurStories
• Instagraminstagram.com/_sharingourstories_
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ionkwaka-raton

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sharing Our Stories