Rita Joe was born March 15, 1932, in Whycocomagh, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. She was the child of Josie Gould and Annie (Googoo) Bernard, and from the age of ten she lived a hardscrabble existence, from foster home to foster home, experiences that helped her decide to admit herself to Shubenacadie Indian Residential School, a place most Mi’kmaq people had come to dread —“to better myself,” to get an education. In 1954 she married Frank Joe, and lived most of her life in Eskasoni. Her work received many recognitions including the Order of Canada.