Osborne was born on the reserve of Norway House, Manitoba, to Joe and Justine (née McKay) Osborne. She wanted to become a teacher. There was no secondary school in Norway House so she had to leave home for further education. She spent two years at Guy Hill Residential School, just outside The Pas, Manitoba, a town of European Canadians, Métis, and Cree people. In the fall of 1971, Osborne attended Margaret Barbour Collegiate in The Pas. Back then in Canada, a collegiate institute was a high school for students who wanted to go to university. She stayed with the Bensons, a non-aboriginal family.