Shylah Nokusis is a mother of one son and comes from the Peepeekisis Cree Nation situated in Treaty #4near the town of Fort Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan. As a young Indigenous person, Shylah was taught the value of hard work and perseverance which has served her well in the trades industry for the past fifteen years. Shylah not only represents the carpentry and scaffolding trades, but was also an Iron worker working across Canada from British Columbia to Nunavut.In2016,she achieved the status of Red Seal Journeyman Carpenter and was the recipient of the Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technology’s Outstanding Journeyperson Award.

It wasn’t until her time working with the Office to Advance Women Apprentices(OAWA) in 2020 that she saw the obstacles for not only women, but Indigenous Peoples, that prevented them from entering into the trades.

She saw a solution to those obstacles and in 2021, she decided to step down from her position, and created Osihcikewin “To Build”,an Indigenous owned and operated company that offers exploratory trades programs for men and women in Indigenous communities and as well, Summer Trades Workshops for Indigenous youth.

In addition to offering exploratory trades programs and workshops, Osihcikewin also works with Indigenous communities in meeting the demands of their housing portfolio.In 2022, she was one of thirteen women selected across Canada to participate in Canadian Apprenticeship Forums first cohort of the National Leadership Development Program for Tradeswomen.

Shylah is also a Trades and Apprenticeship Consultant working with Indigenous Communities across Saskatchewan.