Lorraine Joe
Lorraine Joe was on the board of directors of the Indian Craft Store co-op in the early 1960s. The first store was located in the old Martha Black house on First Avenue. Pat Ellis was hired in 1969 by DIAND to manage it. By that time, Lorraine Joe was creating beautiful parkas of her own design and selling them in the store. Eventually she started work as Ellis' assistant. DIAND withdrew their support in the early 1970s, and Ellis left to do other things. Lorraine ran the store for the next four years. In 1974 she bought the store that by that time was located on Main Street.1) The original Yukon Indian Craft Shop was operated under a board of directors including judge Buz Hudson, Bob Erlam (publisher of the Whitehorse Star), Emma Williams of Kaushee women’s centre , and Emma’s sister Josephine Muff. Sale of the store included a clause that stipulated funds for the inventory at time of sale would be donated for the good of First Nation people.2)
Joe was a founding member of the Yukon Aboriginal Women’s Council in 1975. It was originally organized as a way for women to influence the decision-making process on issues related to Indigenous women in Whitehorse and Yukon. Other women at the first meeting were Margaret Joe, Frances Woosley, Josephine Muff, Patt Delaney, Kathy Rear, Pat Martin, Maxine Grant, Emma Harris, and Edi Bohmer.3)
In 1980, Lorraine Joe turned the proceeds from the Indian Craft store co-op inventory over to the Yukon Foundation to promote education and research on Yukon's cultural heritage. 4) She became a director and founding member of the Yukon Foundation.
Lorraine Joe has been involved with many craft and fashion shows as far away as Vancouver. She has also been a Yukon government economic development board member and was a member of the Western Aboriginal Economic Development Board for two years. In 2006, Lorraine was still operating her Indian Craft Shop store.5)