INTERESTING NEWS
Elders Gathering holds 48th event in Vancouver
Provincial event is once again held at Vancouver Convention Centre, Lil’wat Nation gives a lively performance
By Eric Plummer Ha-Shilth-Sa Editor
Vancouver, BC - For the 48th time, First Nations elders from across the province converged in downtown Vancouver for their annual gathering.
This year the BC Elders Gathering brought together 1,960 participants - plus their helpers - from 63 First Nations across British Columbia onAug. 13 and 14. This is slightly more attendees than last year’s event, which came after a four-year absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many travelled for days to reach the venue at the Vancouver Convention Centre, including a group of 18 elders from the Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k’tles7et’h’First Nations. It took two full days of travel from their home on the northwest coast of Vancouver Island to reach the hectic destination at the Vancouver waterfront.
“Our original hotel got mixed up with the dates, so last minute we had to get hotels for 18 of us,” said Diane Nickerson, manager of Muscim Services for the Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k’tles7et’h’First Nations. “We’re spread out but we’re close by.”
“It took a whole day,” saidAnnie John, Ehattesaht’s elders coordinator, who brought their group from the First Nation’s community by Zeballos. “I left 7:30 yesterday morning. I got here at 7 o’clock last night in our hotel.”
Fortunately, the Ehattesaht group made a reservation with BC Ferries. On the day before the gathering the backup of vehicle traffic on the ferries resulted in a two-sailing wait as early as 9:30 a.m. at Nanaimo’s Departure Bay terminal. Some other Nuu-chah-nulth participants had to wait seven hours to get their vehicle on a ferry, and by 3 p.m. there were no more spots for vehicles at Departure Bay for the rest of the day.
“We wouldn’t have been here until today if we didn’t have a reservation,” said John.
Martina Pierre and Frank Lawrence are the BC Elders Gathering queen and king on behalf of the Lil’wat Nation.
Organized by the BC Elders Communications Society, for the past few gatherings the event has been held at the Vancouver Convention Centre due to challenges in other locations hosting and catering such a large event. To start the gathering it has become a tradition for the participating nations to pack into the convention centre’s hallway to make a grand entrance into the auditorium.
“When we were outside waiting to march in there was this huge powerful
Martina Pierre, queen of this year’s BC Elders
gathering’s king Frank Lawrence stands before the
sense of pride,” observed Nickerson.
“The build up is so exciting.”
Although the event has been held on the traditional territory of the xʷməθkʷəyəm (Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) First Nations in recent years, the gathering still assigns a host nation to lead the proceedings. This year the Lil’wat Nation took this role, and proceedings began with addresses from members Frank Wallace and Martina Pierre, who were named king and queen of the BC Elders Gathering. This tradition has been in place since 1982.
Wallace spoke of remembering when he took the job of bringing elders to past gatherings in the mid-1990s.
“The shoe is on the other foot now, somebody had to bring me here,” said Wallace. “It’s been a long time, I never knew I was going to get up to 71 years old.”
“I’m really glad to be here,” he added. “I’m glad to be anywhere.”
On the morning of the first day of the gathering emcee John Henderson of the Wei Wai Kum First Nation referenced difficulties First Nations across B.C. have encountered over the past year, includ-
ing the loss of resources due to changing climate patterns and the continuing overdoes crisis. These issues brought particularly widespread devastation to British Columbia in 2023; last year more forest burned due to wildfires than any year on record, and with 2,511 fatalities 2023 was the worst so far amid B.C.’s opioid crisis.
“Learn to respect one another, as we have learned from our parents,” reminded Henderson.
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the BC Union of Indian Chiefs hit an emotional moment during his morning address, as he referenced the effects of the ongoing overdose crisis.
“I lost my son five years ago. Carfentanyl,” he said. “But a few days ago on what would have been his birthday we had our first great grandchild…it’s a wonderful, beautiful feeling.”
BC Elders Gatherings have become expensive to participate in, as accommodation in Vancouver at the height of the summer tourist season can easily be hundreds of dollars a night for a hotel room. The registration fee for the gathering was $550 per person this year.
“It’s worth it. We did fundraising to
help, and the nation sees how important it is to our elders to go,” said Nickerson of the costs. “It would be nice to bring it to the island. Some of our elders are too elderly, the travel is too far.”
“We did some fundraising, but the nation covered most of the cost,” added Carla Short, an elders worker with the Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k’tles7et’h’First Nations. “It’s something to look forward to.”
“The elders really appreciate getting together with the other elders…being supportive of each other and sharing their experiences and their culture,” said Nickerson. “It’s a real sense of unity when they all march in.”
On the opening day the Lil’wat Nation shared their culture with a series of robust performances. For Frank Wallace, this sort of display of pride is what has carried him through life since he finished at residential school.
“Be part of the community you come from, and be proud of who you are,” he said. “I started to live after I left the residential school and be part of society and be counted.
Eric Plummer photo
Gathering, speaks at the Vancouver Convention Centre onAug. 13, as the
crowd. Both are from the Lil’wat Nation, offical host of the 2024 event.
BC Elders Gathering draws nearly 2,000 participants
Participation in the annual event included 1,960 elders from 63 First Nations, spanning across British Columbia
Eric Plummer photos
The Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council (above) was part of the traditional procession into the main hall to begin the BC Elders Gathering onAug. 13. Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the BC Union of Indian Chiefs was among the speakers (below left).Attendees were treated to a performance by the Lil’wat Nation (below right).
Hesquiaht celebrates new run-of-river hydro system
Since 2021 the renewable energy microgrid has successfully weaned Hot Springs Cove off of diesel generators
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Hot Springs Cove, BC – The passenger boat sliced dense coastal fog on the early morning ride to Hot Springs Cove, but by time family, friends and guests stepped foot on the village dock, the sun was breaking.
Wearing two shades of pink, grey pants and a ponytail, Hesquiaht First Nation’s (HFN) elected Chief Councillor Mariah Charleson (łučinƛcuta), 36, greeted her visitors warmly at the entrance of the school as a mound of freshly knifed sockeye sat ready for the grill.
“As Hesquiaht people, we have been self-sustaining for thousands of years. This opening of the project signifies that transformation and we’re really happy that everyone was able to make it here for the celebration,” said Charleson, who now lives in her childhood home in Hot Springs Cove.
Aug. 8 marked a milestone day for the little community of about 55 people, as they celebrated the culmination of Ah’ta’apq Creek Hydropower, a renewable energy project that spent nearly 20 years on the shelves.After finally getting greenlit, it was almost quashed due to pandemic restrictions. Dignitaries from the Government of Canada, the Province of British Columbia and the Fraser Basin Council made the journey to the isolated village, located north of Tofino on Vancouver Island, as well as project team members from the Barkley Project Group, Redd Fish Restoration, Speers Construction and Hakai Energy Solutions.
Hot Springs Cove is not connected to the B.C. Hydro grid and, until recently, the village relied on diesel generators for all electricity. Carrying a flashlight was the norm with the generator turning-off at midnight and rumbling back-on at 6 a.m.
But as of November 2021, HFN successfully weaned off diesel generators with a 350-kilowatt run-of-river hydropower and solar microgrid that is 100 per cent owned by the First Nation. The renewable energy infrastructure has since dramatically reduced the nation’s dependence on diesel fuel consumption, improved their environmental footprint and created a savings of $375,000 in diesel bills in the first year alone.
“We are transforming into a better way of doing things,” said Charleson. “This is a blueprint that other First Nations, not only in British Columbia, but all across Canada, can now follow because of everybody in this room. It’s because all
the different partners who have decided that this is a positive initiative this is a step in the right direction. This is absolutely huge in moving us forward in the right way when we talk about that word reconciliation.”
B.C. Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation Minister Josie Osborne gave a speech at the celebration. She acknowledged Hesquiaht’s hereditary chiefs and the Hesquiaht people for being stewards of the land for thousands of years and expressed pride in being part of a government that believes in Indigenous-led clean energy projects.
“That’s the way forward. Moving forward we can only do business in a way that is Indigenous-led and that has Indigenous stakes and equity in these projects,” said Osborne, who was a fisheries biologist for the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council before entering politics.
Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) echoed the sentiment.
“I hope in years to come we will be able to see other projects to fruition in your community. I hope this is one project of many more to come. Thanks for having us and thanks so much for welcoming us with open arms. It’s been a treat and a privilege,” saidAveril Lamont, director of community infrastructure for ISC.
HowAh’ta’apq Creek Hydropower works
Five pick-up trucks took the group up a bumpy, 2.5-kilometre gravel access road to view the water intake structure,
comprised of a weir and a concrete inlet structure.
“We all did our fair share of working on the road,” Hesquiaht maintenance crew Richard Lucas said on the drive.
The intake collects water from seven streams, and when the rain comes in September, the water flows through 2.3 kilometres of large pipe to the powerhouse. This produces enough energy to displace 75 per cent of the community’s diesel-generated electricity.
“When it rains, the power can go for days and days,” Lucas said, adding that he pays about $30 a month for the electricity.
To help fill the gap when the weather is dry, HFN interconnected a 133-kilowatt solar photovoltaic (PV) system, so they don’t have to go back to relying solely on diesel. Hakai Energy Solutions installed the solar panels on the gymnasium roof top, and they have a lifespan of about 30 years.
Honouring late chief councillor Richard Lucas
Acommemorative plaque for late chief councillor Richard Lucas, a lifelong champion of the clean energy project, will go in the powerhouse.
“This project meant the world to Richard,” said HFN Executive Manager Norma Guerin-Bird.
Members of his direct family were wrapped with blankets as a reminder of the important work Lucas did for the village of Hot Springs Cove.
“I hope on days that you might be having a tough time, that they are a reminder of the strength that comes directly for your family; the strength that he gave our community that we can continue on… And I hope that it’s reminder for you to come home,” said Charleson.
After the Good Friday 1964 Tsunami destroyed most of the housing in Hot Springs Cove, many Hesquiaht families relocated to PortAlberni.
“Abig thank you to all of you for you’ve been able to complete for this community. This gives my wife and I more of a desire now to be home than in PortAlberni,” said elder Linus Lucas.
“What you’ve done here is created a place for us to feel safe 24-hours a day.”
Ah’ta’apq Creek Hydroelectric Project won theAward of Excellence in the 2023 of ExcellenceACEC-BC (Association of Consulting Engineering Companies British Columbia), Energy and Industry category.
The roughly $4.1 million project had six funding partners: Natural Resources Canada’s Clean Energy for Rural and Remote Communities program, Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program Rural and Northern Communities stream, Fraser Basin Council’s Remote and Indigenous Communities Clean Energy Program, Indigenous Services Canada, BC First Nations Clean Energy Business Fund and BC Rural Dividend Fund.
Nora O’Malley photo
TheAh’ta’apq Creek Hydropower project team celebrate the opening of the renewable energy achievement for Hesquiaht First Nation onAug. 8 at Hot Springs Cove.
Waste transfer stations open at Ty-histanis, Opitsaht
First Nation introduces new communal recycling facilities, with the goal of becoming a ‘zero waste’ community
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Ty-Histanis, BC – Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation (TFN) opened two recycling transfer stations at the beginning of August.
One is located at the Ty-Histanis maintenance yard and the second is in Opitsaht on Meares Island, where the heritage dump used to be.
The depots feature three large green bins for storing oversized items like mattresses and construction debris as well as electronics, small appliances, automotive items and household hazardous waste.
Opitsaht’s site also has a Jora Composter for community organic waste.
“We want to minimize our carbon footprint, we want to make sure to get as much into the recycling stream as possible, work with the other nations and get to zero waste. That will ultimately lengthen the lifespan of our landfill,” said TFN public works manager Shawn Quick at anAug. 7 opening event at Ty-Histanis.
Saya Masso, TFN’s natural resource manager, welcomed the guests to the opening event on behalf of the ḥawiiḥ (hereditary chiefs) and acknowledged the haḥuułi (territory) for the land and sustenance it gives.
“We ask the Creator for the teachings of respect and strength; that our work today be felt by our grandchildren,” Masso said.
TFN Chief Councillor Elmer Frank thanked everyone involved with the project.
“We are saving more of our traditional territory from plastics and waste, things that can environmentally impact our haḥuułi,” said Frank, noting that one bag of garbage every two weeks is achievable if citizens use the recycling streams properly.
TFN’s new transfer stations were funded by Indigenous Services Canada as part of the B.C. First Nations Zero Waste Program, an initiative launched in 2008.
“Currently, we have about 115 nations in the program. No one is excluded, it’s just time,” said Emily Chu, a community planner that has worked with TFN since 2006. “We actually started work here withAhousaht because they had a big dump on the Island, which has been closed. That was the first one and then slowly Hesquiaht.”
As the president of the Indigenous Zero Waste TechnicalAdvisory Group (IZWTAG), Lil’wat Nation member Calvin Jameson travels all over B.C. to help improve waste management in First Nations communities.
“The reason why we do it, when I was a superintendent, we were digging holes as deep as we could and burying anything and everything one kilometre above the reservation and four kilometres at the bottom of the hill. I’m tapped into the aquifer and I’m pumping water into the community,” Jameson told the Ha-ShilthSa Newspaper at theAug. 7 event.
“We’re going to contaminate our water
if we don’t stop this. The kids are going to have nothing, this is what pushed me over, I resigned from my job and carried on with this,” Jameson continued.
Courtenay-Alberni NDP MP Gord Johns attended TFN’s grand opening.
“They are taking huge leadership when it comes to solid waste management. They are joining a parade of First Nations that are getting support and working together collaboratively to deal with their waste responsibly.Again, it fits in with Indigenous values. This is a great day,” said Johns.
MLAJosie Osborne was also at the event.
“Having infrastructure like this is something that most of us take for granted; we live in modern cities and towns.
Sometimes we forget that there are communities like Ty-Histanis, Esowista and Opitsaht, that don’t have this infrastructure,” said Osborne.
“It’s a return to the way things used to be done and fully circular. I think it’s a really great expression of hišukʔiš cawaak, everything is one, everything is connected,” she said.
Opitsaht is a small community of about 150 people located across the inlet from Tofino. It costs TFN $2,500 every time a barge goes over to collect debris, and Quick says the new transfer station will likely stretch that monthly trip to every other month or even longer.
The transfer station at Ty-Histanis/ Esowista, a community of about 375 members that neighbours Long Beach in the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, is currently open for locals only during regular maintenance yard hours.
Mobile Hair Stylist
Nora O’Malley photos
Tla-o-qui-aht staff Kali Touchie and Saya Masso hold the cedar ribbon as public works manager Shawn Quick takes the honour of officially opening the transfer station at Ty-Histanis onAug. 7.
TFN hereditary chiefs and elected chief and council join public works and local government leaders to celebrate the grand opening of the Ty-Histanis transfer station.
The transfer stations at Ty-Histanis and Opitsaht feature three huge green bins
recyclables and waste.
Teen hit by truck while on scooter, driver fled scene
Maddexx George was knocked to the ground in Port Alberni, the incident caused alarm among other drivers
By Holly Stocking Ha-Shilth-Sa EditorialAssistant
PortAlberni, BC – Maddexx George is recovering from being hit while riding his scooter in PortAlberni, an incident where he was left on the sidewalk after a truck fled without stopping, according to witness reports.
OnAug. 14 at 6:15pm the 15-year-old was riding his scooter up a Roger Street sidewalk across from the Best Western Barclay Hotel, when a brown pickup truck being driven by what George describes as an older man came out of the alleyway, onto the sidewalk and struck him. The vehicle immediately took off heading down Roger Street and turned right onto Gertrude.
Passersby Michelle Campbell, Francis Campbell and Robert Stanley witnessed the whole event while coming up Roger Street. They and many other drivers were honking their horns at the truck as he sped away.
Robert Stanley recalls seeing the truck also hit the curb while turning onto Gertrude St.
“The truck didn’t even stop, just went around him and took off,” said Stanley.
“Maddexx was on the ground for many minutes before he was able to get up.”
Michelle Campbell, who knows George, stopped to help, offering him a ride and to contact George’s mother Leticia Charleson.
George told Ha-Shilth-Sa he sustained
George stands at the alley where he was hit by a truck onAug. 14, knocked to the ground as the
some injuries, such as a scrape on his right hand, a large scrape on his left elbow and arm, a hyper-extended left leg and has a lot of muscle soreness. He said he was hit by the front of the truck, and that the driver didn’t say anything, just looked at him and drove away as Maddexx was on the ground.
“Fortunately he is only banged up a little and he is doing ok,” wrote the teen’s mother on a Facebook post. Charleson is also asking for help from the public, as they are looking for anyone who saw the incident and any surveillance footage that may be available. The RCMP were contacted, and a file has been opened by Const. Bruce, #20248029. The PortAlberni RCMP can be reached at 250-723-2424.
Charleson also urged parents to remind their kids to be cautious of careless drivers, things could have been a lot worse for her family, she said.
New upgrades for Toquaht, Uchucklesaht back roads
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The Maggie Lake Forest Service Road (Toquaht Bay Road), located about 10-kilometres northwest of Ucluelet, and the Canal Main Forest Service Road (FSR), which runs for about 38-kilometres parallel to theAlberni Inlet south of Port Alberni, are getting upgrades.
Work includes widening and realigning the roads in multiple places, building new bridges to replace narrow ones and improving road surfacing, reads anAug. 6 news release from the BC Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation (MIRR).
Maggie Lake FSR routes to the Toquaht Nation village of Macoah, the Secret Beach Campground and Kayak Launch and the recreational community of Salmon Beach. Canal Main FSR connects Uchucklesaht citizens to their treaty lands and the village of Ehthlateese. It is also the main access road to the south portion of Nahmint Lake and Hucuktlis (Henderson) Lake.
“Improved access to Uchucklesaht’s territory and village is a meaningful and important step to successful treaty implementation,” said Chief Councillor Wilfred Cootes of Uchucklesaht Tribe in the media release. “Uchucklesaht values the collaborative work to date that has resulted in this important commitment by B.C. to improve our road access.”
Uchucklesaht’s deputy CAO and director of lands and resources RyanAnaka said the $500,000 grant funding for road maintenance and improvements will create meaningful jobs, while boosting their ability to maintain the roads within their territory. It also paves the way for future economic opportunities.
“People can get to our territory a little
The bumpy forest service road that leads to Toquaht Nation’s beautiful Secret Beach Campground and Kayak Launch and the mouth of the Broken Group Islands is about to get smoother.
bit easier and safer,”Anaka said. “We’re very appreciative of what the province gave us. We are planning to buy equipment and intend to provide training to our citizens to operate the equipment to maintain our roads to our village as well as to work towards maintenance opportunities on provincial roads.”
Toquaht Nation’s director of operations Donna Monteith said Toquaht was awarded a $750,000 grant from the MIRR earlier this year.
“Toquaht Nation plans to use the funding specifically to purchase much-needed equipment to support road and ditch
maintenance, as well as building the capacity of our team by enabling staff to obtain Heavy Equipment Operator Certification,” Monteith said in an email.
“Improved road maintenance will provide safer access to Macoah residents, Toquaht Nation citizens, visitors, and emergency responders.”
Toquaht Nation ChiefAnne Mack says the financial support will help make Macoah both accessible and a viable route for citizens, year-round.
“Safe, reliable access to health care, school and work is an important factor in our citizens being able to return home,
which is a priority for our nation,” said Mack.
Rachelle Cole, Ucluelet and Oceanside District Unit Chief and Community Paramedic, weighs in.
“Connecting people and communities as efficiently as possible with the care they need is one of our core duties at BC Emergency Health Services and fundamental to effective paramedicine,” said Cole. “Improving road access for Toquaht Nation and Uchucklesaht Tribe members will increase their access to care, helping balance historical inequalities while improving health outcomes.”
Eric Plummer photo
Maddexx
driver fled.
Nora O’Malley photo
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Prepare for emergencies, urges Tseshaht
Aug. 6 wildfire ‘huge reminder’ for Nuu-chah-nulth communities, says First Nation
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
PortAlberni, BC - When a wildfire broke out near Tseshaht’s main reserve on Aug. 6, elected Councillor Leisa Hassall says she could almost instantly smell the smoke.
“My house is actually 1.6 kilometres away,” said Hassall. “We have infrastructure that is close too, like the Maht Mahs (Gym), the NTC building and a few other buildings are all within less than two kilometres (of the fire).”
Thanks to the quick response from BC Wildfire, the Sproat Lake Volunteer Fire Department and Mosaic Forest Management, the wildfire was unofficially classified as ‘being held’the same night it was reported.
“We ended up with three different bodies responding to this one fire, which is fantastic.As far as I know, Mosaic remained on site until it was unofficially classified as out,” said Tseshaht’s emergency program coordinator Kaitlin Minvielle.
“We are just so thankful as a nation. We really appreciate the firefighters and security team that acted so quickly,” Hassall re-iterated.
She urged Tseshaht members to be prepared as individual households for emergencies like wildfires and to understand local evacuation routes, which can be found on: https://www.acrd.bc.ca/ emergency_preparedness.
“This event was a huge reminder for everyone to be prepared,” said Hassall.
“We never knew what’s going to happen. We never knew what Mother Nature has in store. What’s different with the heat that continuously rises each year, we as Nuu-chah-nulth communities especially need to be prepared.”
This is the second year in a row a wildfire has burned land around Tseshaht’s main reserve. In addition to learning the evacuation routes, Minvielle recommends having grab-and-go bags and important documents ready.
“If you have pets, have pet food prepared and maybe extra water dishes,” she adds.
Hassall says Tseshaht has a strong collective team within the administration
Eric Plummer photo
The fire was reported by BC Wildfires on Tuesday,Aug. 6 at 6:34 p.m. on Mosaic’s private forest land near the Tseshaht reserve.
building that follows a process, depending on the scenario.
“We would have a team supporting elders, but one of the most important steps is for individuals to be prepared and to know their plan,” Hassall said.
TheAug. 6 wildfire was likely caused by humans. Shortly after the blaze broke out, PortAlberni RCMP arrested a 27-year-old woman in the area suspected to be responsible for the blaze.
“The housing crisis that we are in is unfortunate,” Hassall said about the arrest. “Tseshaht is making multiple steps towards housing initiatives for our members specifically. There are a lot of people struggling right now and this is a good reminder for community and our neighbours to be vigilant and report suspicious or unusual behaviour to the local authorities.”
Ha-Shilth-Sa belongs to every Nuu-chah-nulth person including those who have passed on, and those who are not yet born.Acommunity newspaper cannot exist without community involvement. If you have any great pictures you’ve taken, stories or poems you’ve written, or artwork you have done, please let us know so we can include it in your newspaper. E-mail holly.stocking@nuuchahnulth.org. This year is Ha-Shilth-Sa’s 50th year of serving the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations. We look forward to your continued input and support. Kleco! Kleco!
Mosaic has a Wildfire ResponseAgreement with BC Wildfire Service, which means Mosaic has access to wildfirefighting expertise and equipment, including aircraft.
“Mosaic can respond aggressively to wildfires on its private forest lands that might otherwise have adverse impacts on neighbouring communities. It’s a responsibility we take seriously,” Mosaic said in an email statement.
During wildfire season, the forest management company conducts daily aerial and ground-based surveillance in partnership with BC Wildfire, and also has 100 all-terrain fire trucks and fully stocked equipment caches in active areas throughout Mosaic lands.
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Tseshaht says goodbye to oldest member, Cody Gus
The 93-year-old was the last surviving former student of the Ahousaht residential school; an active life followed
By Eric Plummer Ha-Shilth-Sa Editor
PortAlberni, BC - On Friday,Aug. 16 hundreds packed Tseshaht’s Maht Mahs gymnasium to mark the passing of the First Nation’s eldest member.
At the age of 93 Cody Gus passed of natural causes onAug. 7, still living on the property that had been in his family on the Tseshaht reserve for as long as he could remember. He was born March 16, 1931 to Gladys and George Gus on Nettle Island at the northern end of the Broken Group, which is recognized as the origin site of the Tseshaht.
The near century that followed encompassed a series of events that Gus lived through, wide-reaching developments that would eventually be considered historic for PortAlberni, British Columbia and Canada.
Gus had 10 brothers and sisters, and in an interview with Ha-Shilth-Sa earlier this year he recalled no electricity, telephones or wood for heat during his early childhood in the Broken Group, where the family would paddle amongst the islands.
By the time he was five Canadian law required the young boy to leave home to attend residential school, just as his siblings and parents had done. But in 1936 the closest residential school in Port Alberni had burned down – one of several fires that occurred during the institution’s history – meaning that Gus would instead be sent up the coast toAhousaht. He ended up being the last surviving former student of theAhousaht Indian Residential School, a Protestant-run institution that operated on Flores Island from 1904 to 1940.
After a year or two Gus was relocated to the newly rebuiltAlberni Indian Residential School, where he would stay for eight years. The hundreds who came to mark his passing gathered in Maht Mahs, one of the residential school’s two remaining structures. His time at the assimilationist institution was something that those closest to him rarely heard anything about.
“He never wanted his kids to know what happened to him or anything. The same with my mom,” said Cody’s daughter, Samatha. “They made an agreement when they got married and had children that they were not going to let us hear any of those stories.”
“We don’t really know what happened to them,” added Samantha. “He probably had his moments, but I don’t believe we’ve ever seen them.”
He preferred to tell stories about berry picking in Washington state, where his family would venture in the summertime to make some money.
“He said that was the best time of his life, going down there travelling with his family, meeting new people,” said Samantha. “They would make money and give it to their parents.”
Family members look back on Cody coming from a particularly tough generation, where people were expected to work and do what was needed. Cody’s three older brothers were drafted for military service during the Second World War, and he tried to get into the army as well.
“My buddy and I went down to Victoria to enlist but we got kicked out – I was only 14!” he laughed during an interview with Ha-Shilth-Sa in March.
Decades working in forestry followed for Gus, at a time when there was no shortage of opportunity for willing men on Vancouver Island. For 40 years he
worked for MacMillan Bloedel’s Sproat Lake Division, including time operating a tugboat around the log booms that were across theAlberni Inlet from the Harbour Quay.
“He didn’t like it when anybody missed work or missed school,” recalls Samantha.
Cody’s brother Reginald worked with him around the log booms. In the ‘50s and ‘60s it seemed like every Tseshaht man had a job in forestry, recalled Reginald’s daughter Elizabeth Gus.
“All of them had jobs,” she said. “I don’t think there was such a thing as welfare then. So basically they had to work.”
In 1958 young Cody met Bertha Saxey from the Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k’tles7et’h’ First Nations. This led to a marriage of nearly 60 years.
“My niece introduced me to her,” recalled Cody during the interview in March. “I fell in love.”
Cody insisted on being the family breadwinner during his long career in forestry.
The couple had Samantha and Gloria, and raised another girl as a daughter,Angie Forsberg, whom they took in from family when she was an infant.
“They provided for us,” said Samantha of her parents. “My dad was very hard working.”
But this changed when Cody was forced to retire in 1992. The logging industry was declining, causing the Sproat Lake Division to close.
“My mom didn’t work for that whole time, he didn’t want her to work, but as soon as he retired she got a little parttime job in the evenings, janitorial,” said Samantha. “She was telling dad, ‘It’s my turn now to take care of you’.”
In 2020 Cody’s world was forever changed with Bertha’s passing. Left without his lifetime partner, Samantha and Gloria kept a close watch over their father, who insisted on living independently.
“He was lost. Me and my sister stepped up and took care of him,” said Samantha. “We’d get doctor’s appointments done and dinners ready so he could just warm up or put coffee on.”
Fortunately Cody was always active, and this lifestyle undoubtedly led to his
longevity. He was a long-distance runner, a competitive boxer who had matches at the old Nanaimo civic arena, and in his senior years could often be seen taking long walks around PortAlberni.
“He liked to meet just anybody on the street,” recalled Samantha. “If he knew they were native, ‘Where are you from?’ He thought he might know them. He knew a lot of people from residential school.”
“He cared for everybody,” added Samantha. “He was always worried about his nieces or nephews or family members who were in the hospital.”
Cody was one of Tseshaht’s few remaining fluent speakers of Nuu-chah-nulth, although in this respect the influence of residential school appeared to still be present among elders of his generation.
“They spoke their language, but not in front of us,” said Elizabeth. “My dad never spoke it to us, but we knew that they spoke it.”
“They beat it out of them in the residential school,” commented Elizabeth’s sister, Yvonne. “The traditional thing that they really carried on was the bone game.”
Cody could often be found in Tseshaht’s old Somass Hall with his peers playing lahal, a betting game in which someone guesses where an opponent is hiding bones as a drum pounds.
“It’s a gambling game, trying to guess where the bones are,” remembers Elizabeth, who watched the men playing lahal when she was a child, betting a few dollars at a time. “That was their entertainment.”
Denise Titian photo
Cody Gus in his home with daughters Sam (left) and Gloria, on the day before the Tseshaht elder turned 93 on March 16. He died onAug. 7.
Cody Gus was active throughout his life.Among other activities, Gus boxed for 10 years.
Tlu-piich returns with eight teams representing west coast nations
The games come back to Port Alberni after a five-year absence, with a simplified format of track events, 3-on-3 basketball and slo-pitch
By Eric Plummer Ha-Shilth-Sa Editor
PortAlberni, BC - More than a hundred participants came to the opening ceremony for the Tlu-piich games on Saturday,Aug. 10, bringing back to life a long-held annual Nuu-chah-nulth event.
Eight teams came for the ceremonies, representingAhousaht, Tseshaht, Hupacasath, Ditidaht, Tla-o-qui-aht, Uchucklesaht, Huu-ay-aht and the Healing Hearts group made up of the large extended family of Karen Sutherland, who competed in honour of her surviving cancer. During the opening ceremonies on Saturday evening the teams followed the past tradition of marching down the track at Bob Dailey Stadium and performing several cultural songs with booming voices.
Not held for five years due to the COVID-19 pandemic and staffing challenges, the Tlu-piich games came back with three days of sports in PortAlberni,Aug. 11-13. Open to Nuu-chah-nulth-aht, events began on Sunday morning at Bob Daily Stadium with infant crawl races at 8:30 a.m. Other ages followed, including a “Turtle” race for elders.Avariety of sprint and mediumdistance races were held through the day, engaging ages 7-17.
On Monday a series of 3-on-3 basketball matches were held at the Maht Mahs outdoor courts. Then Tuesday brought a day of slo-pitch baseball games at PortAlberni’s Rec Field.
When it opened in mid-August, the Tlupiich Games still needed volunteers. Many came forward to contribute their efforts, hoping that the games will continue its past tradion of being an annual event.
During the opening ceremonies on the evening ofAug. 10 the teams followed the past tradition of marching down the track at Bob Dailey Stadium and cultural songs with booming voices
3-on-3 basketball and slo-pitch baseball
Tlu-piich Games 3x3 basketball hits the outdoor court at Maht Mahs
‘It’s like therapy,’ says one of the dozens of players from the youth event on Aug. 12
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
PortAlberni, BC - Nuu-chah-nulth youth played their hearts out during theAug. 12 Tlu-piich Games 3x3 basketball tournament at Tseshaht’s outdoor, NBA-size court.
With 15 teams in the U13 division and nine teams in the U17, the summer hoops tourney brought together young players from all over Nuu-chah-nulth territory. Each game was 13 minutes long, split with a minute break. Players earned two points for sinking a three-point shot and one point for regular shots.Any fouls resulted in one point for the opposing team.
“It’s been a while. It’s nice for the Tlupiich Games to make a strong comeback. They kind of broke-up because everyone started having their own regional games,” said Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation Dwayne Martin, who posted up with his camping chair to cheer on his daughters, Wiinuk, 17, and Helen, 12.
His daughters came up from Neah Bay, Washington where they live on the Makah Reservation.
“They are both high level. They travel all over the States. They are accomplished ball players,” Martin continued.
Wiinuk or ‘Nunu’as her family and friends call her, helped her team Hot Dogs hustled their way to the top spot of the 3x3 basketball U17 tournament bracket.
“I didn’t expect to win,” said Tofino-based Tla-o-qui-aht/Ahousaht player Brielle Tom, the mastermind who brought the Hot Dogs together.
The Hot Dogs outscored two strong Ahousaht teams en route to their somewhat anticlimactic victory – all the kids just went on shooting hoops after the official time clock ran out.
Hot Dogs player Cassius Robinson, 15, sank a trio of spicy three-pointers in the final.
“Basketball is something that’s always there for me. It’s comforting. It’s like therapy,” he said.
Tlu-piich
concludes
By Eric Plummer Ha-Shilth-Sa Editor
PortAlberni, BC - The Tlu-Piich Games concluded this year with a day of baseball, including slo-pitch for adults and a T-ball session for young ones.
Baseball was the third sport to be hosted by the Nuu-chah-nulth event, which was heldAug. 10 to 13 in PortAlberni. On Tuesday,Aug. 13 slo-pitch games took over Rec Field, engaging dozens of adults. For young children learning the game, T-ball took place nearby, with batting and base running.
The annual Tlu-piich Games have not been held since 2019. This year’s comeback offered a scaled-back schedule, with an opening ceremony onAug. 10, a day of track events at Bob Dailey Stadium, then 3-on-3 basketball at the Maht Mahs outdoor court.
Stay tuned to see what happens with Tlupiich next year.
Their fourth player, Vaughn Robinson, just came off winning a bronze at the B.C. Summer Games in the U14 basketball category.
“Brielle just asked me to play, so I showed up. I thought it would be fun to play with Cass,” said Vaughn.
Tseshaht First Nation opened Maht Mahs outdoor court inApril 2022. It is built on the site of theAlberni Indian Residential School where Peake Hall once stood.
“I think basketball for Indigenous People has been healing, especially for the generational trauma that has happened throughout the years and especially for the first generation going through the generational trauma,” said 17-year-old Hannah Frank, a Tla-o-qui-aht Tribal Parks Guardian who grew up playing basketball with her brothers.
“I think basketball helped them. That was a way to escape. It was a way for them to have fun and a way for them to get communities and Nations together,” she said.
with a day of baseball
Eric Plummer photos down the track at Bob Dailey Stadium and performing several
Holly Stocking photo
Chris lambert of theAlcoballics crossing home plate as Felicia Dennis tags him out. TheAlcoballics took first place overall in the tournament onAug 13.
Families come together for annual Huu-ay-aht Days
Journey home to Anacla is easier with Bamfield road paved, aÅracting members from Nevada and Washington
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Anacla, B.C. – Orange painted rocks line the main stretch of road in the heart of Huu-ay-aht First Nation (HFN) territory like memorials for every child that didn’t make it home.
HFN was a population of 2,800 in the late 1700s, but by 1881 the nation was decimated by a smallpox epidemic and colonization; parents were forced to send their children to Indian residential schools, it became illegal for HFN to sell fish and the IndianAct imposed rules that made it illegal to host cultural ceremonies like potlatches.
Despite a long history of adversity, HFN’s resurgence was plain to see on at Huu-ay-aht Days 2024,Aug. 16 to 18, at the paradisical Pachena Bay Campground located on the west coast of Vancouver Island within the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.
“You could hear the kids laughing,” said Marlene Mickey, a HFN grandma of 18. Mickey journeyed from Victoria to camp on her traditional territory with her family for the special weekend.
“Last year, there weren’t this many people. We used to be able to park our car beside our tent, but this year the cars are all on the side. The kids are having fun,” she said.
“The road improvements definitely opened up our little community to the rest of the world,” adds Qiic Qiica, a cultural interpreter for Kiixin Tours (HFN’s ancient village site) and speaker for the nation. “This is probably our biggest Huu-ay-aht Days event we’ve ever had, and I think that’s because of the road access.”
After decades of lobbying and many traffic fatalities, the resurfacing of the 77-kilometre Bamfield Main road that connects the HFN village ofAnacla to PortAlberni was completed in October 2023 to allow for safer passage.
Event organizer Kimmie MacDonald told the Ha-Shilth-Sa that going forward, Huu-ay-aht Days will always be on the third Friday, Saturday and Sunday of August.
“We’re keeping it at a set date, so
Splash! Trevor Little goes two for three at the good old game of ‘Dunk-the-Chief’,
people have a year in advance to prepare to be here next year. We had 190 registrants and 122 registered to camp,” said MacDonald. “One HFN couple travelled from Reno (Nevada) and another travelled from Tacoma (Washington).”
For the first-time, HFN rented bouncy castles from Campbell River and a dunk dank to raise money for the youth gathering Pow Wow in Utah. For five bucks, participants had three chances to dunk a community leader, including: HFN Group of Businesses CEO Patrick Schmidt, RCMP Const. James Wingfield, Parks Canada First Nations Manager Tammy Dorward and HFN Chief Councillor John Jack.
“I put him last so people would stick around,” MacDonald chuckled.
Born in PortAlberni, elders Theresa Peters and Jane Peters moved toAnacla in the early ‘70s when HFN began to rebuild their traditional summer village site after a magnitude 9.1 earthquake struck off the coast, causing a tsunami on Jan.
26, 1700.
The sisters, who are kixƛaaqa or beachkeepers, joined the Huu-ay-aht Days celebration for lunch and opening prayers at the House of Huu-ay-aht on Friday and wandered down to the campground to take part in the afternoon activities.
“We’ve welcomed so many (to Pachena Bay) we’ve lost count,” said the Peters sisters. After a hearty pancake breakfast on Saturday morning, HFN citizens took part in canoe rides and learned some traditional paddling chants.
“For the future, I’d like to see more cultural tourism or eco-tourism. There is a lot of opportunity there,” said Qiic Qiica from the bank of the Pachena River.
Phrase†of†the†week:†+’uup’iic^h=š†aa+q’uu†sii%a+iš†%a>†q’awii†%uuqwi>c^i%niš†%a>†t’asa>y’ak!
Pronounced ‘Clue palth shay koo si alth slith ish kaa wi ooh qi tluth slith nish alth Taa sulth yuk!,’it means ‘Summer time is when the berries get ripe, time to get picking and making some jam!’Supplied by ciisma.
Illustration by Koyah Morgan-Banke
Photos by Nora O’Malley
part of festivities for Huu-ay-aht Days.
Caitlynn Baker beams during her braiding session with hairstylist Christine Sirois onAug. 16.
Services support sexual assault victims on west coast
West Coast Community Resource Society’s new program informs survivors of options and supports available
By Alexandra Mehl Ha-Shilth-Sa Contributor
Jenna Pearce, coordinator for the West Coast Community Resource Society’s (WCRS) SexualAssault Response Program (SARP), hopes “more than anything” that survivors living in the Clayoquot region “feel seen and heard” when seeking new support services.
“I want them to feel safe,” she said. “And like they’re not alone because they’re not. There’s so many people that are here for them and want to support them in whatever way that looks for them.”
Over the last year, WCRS has been rolling out SARP as a means to support sexual assault victims and provide consent-based education throughout the Clayoquot region.According to Laurie Hannah, executive director of WCRS, the organization services all of Clayoquot Sound, including Hesquiaht, Tla-o-quiaht,Ahousaht, Toquaht and Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ communities, plus Tofino, and Ucluelet.
“The primary… role of the program is to provide emotional support and advocacy for people of all genders who are survivors of sexual assault,” said Pearce.
“Abig piece of that is just offering a space for people to come and talk and be heard, without judgment.”
Among other services, SARP provides accompaniment at the hospital, RCMP detachment and in court, as well as advocacy and information about medical and justice options.
“Having a worker go with them helps to educate them around what their options are,” said Hannah. “You don’t always know all your options unless you have a worker.”
The organization recently trained a batch of 12 volunteer responders who, once protocol has been made with Island Health, will be available to accompany individuals to the hospital for a forensic exam. This was previously known as a “rape kit”.
According to Hannah, their SARP coordinator is currently available for accompaniment to the hospital while they await approval for their emergency volunteer responders.
“I am taking referrals; either self referrals, or from victim services from other agencies,” said Pearce. “I can [provide] survivors with emotional support, and information about their medical options, their reporting options. I can accompany them to the police station if they want to make a report and they’d like a support person with them, and I help them plan
for their own safety, as well as help plan for healing.”
Another service available through WCRS’s SARP is Third Party reporting.
“This is an option for survivors to make a report to police anonymously through a designated third party,” said Pearce, noting that herself or another staff member at WCRS would be involved in this support.
According to Statistic Canada data from 2019, only 6 per cent of sexual assaults “came to the attention of police” and are 80 per cent less likely to be reported to law enforcement than other violent crimes.
“That’s incredibly underwhelming; there’s so many reasons for why survivors choose not to report that are perfectly valid,” said Pearce, adding that the organization is trying to give people more options and change what is available.
“It’s an option for survivors to make a report [and] to share their story in a safe way,” said Pearce, noting that the victim can do so and remain an “arms length” distance away.
Pearce went on to explain that Third Party reporting can be useful for RCMP, giving them a more distinct vision of what is happening in the community.
“From there, hopefully, we can imple-
ment more practices and protocols to keep our people safe,” she said.
According to the Government of Canada, one in three women in the country experienced unwanted sexual attention or physical contact in public, while one in four have experienced “inappropriate sexual behavior” in their workplace.
Nearly five million women in Canada have been sexually assaulted since the age of 15.
According to Hannah, in 2022 the organization received funding from the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust to conduct preliminary research regarding information for sexual assaults in the region.
Based on their research and engagement throughout the communities, Hannah shared that it was found that sexual assaults are a concern in the region.
“Unfortunately, there is a big need for this program here, as there is in every area,” said Pearce.
Ellen Frood, executive director of the Sage Haven Society, referred to SARP as a “critical program” that is important to bring to rural and remote communities.
“The fact that West Coast [Community] Resource Society does have a program now is a testament to the need and to acknowledging that there’s a need for somebody to be performing these services,” said Frood.
Sage Haven, a PortAlberni organization that offers transitional housing and support services to women and children, provides SARP services with similar support to that of the WCRS program.
This includes emotional support, client advocacy, safety planning, information assistance, referrals to other supportive
programs, among others.
“I think even just having this program, having this title, and these services available, it takes away that hiddenness and that secretness that perpetuates the feelings of isolation and shame among people who’ve been victims and those who are survivors of sexual assault,” Pearce told Ha-Shilth-Sa.
Hannah shared with Ha-Shilth-Sa that the team has been educating the community through workshops on consent culture.
“They’ve been going to resorts, and educating all the staff,” said Hannah. “[And] educating on the new definition of sexual assault, which is any form of unwanted sexual contact.”
“Every human deserves support, and everyone deserves to have access to support and know what their options are and what their rights are,” said Pearce.
“We, as a society, have a generational trauma around it, and we don’t talk about it, we don’t talk about it in families,” said Hannah. “In order to heal this we need to be able to discuss it and talk about it and to forgive each other.”
Jenna Pearce, SARP coordinator is responding to SARP calls from Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. She can be reached through call or text at 250-7265480, on Facebook messenger on Jenna wcrs, and at sarp@wccrs.ca. Victims of sexual assault can also reach out to WCRS’s 24-hour support line at 250726-2020. The Sage Haven, in Port Alberni, can be reached at their 24-hour line at 250-724-2223.
West Coast Resource Society photo
Laurie Hannah is executive director of the West Coast Resource Society, which in the last year has introduced a SexualAssault Response Program to support victims and provide consent-based education throughout the Clayoquot region.
USMA News
+u>-ik-yuk (Be The Good Story)
Over the course of this summer, Nuuchah-nulth Tribal Council’s Usma program has been busy with many activities and events for Nuu-chah-nulth children, youth, and families.
In July, Usma hosted three Connection Days, an event organized by the Care Support Team, for children, youth, families, and caregivers to come together through facilitated arts, crafts, activities, and culture to focus on social emotional learning, connection, and healthy relationships.
On 10 acres, children and youth aged 4 to 14 engaged in play and activities including connecting to their cultural heritage. Led by special guest, Trevor Little, each day began with a prayer and a chant to acknowledge the families and the land.
Ahighlight from Connection Days this summer was the pride that children and youth carried as they connected and engaged with Nuu-chah-nulth culture. With Trevor, they sang songs, drummed, danced, and connected with Nuu-chahnulth regalia including a bear skin, wolf skin, cougar skin, bear mask, and eagle mask. Three more Connection Days are to come before the end of this summer!
InAugust, Usma hosted its second annual Youth Gathering, organized by the Youth Services team. The event was opened in a good way by a representative of Tseshaht First Nation.
Throughout the three days attendees were busy with fun and cultural activities. On the first day, participants were focused and meticulous as they painted traditional stencils, made by various Nuu-chah-nulth artists, onto canvases, as sounds of Nuu-chah-nulth music played from nearby speakers. The day ended with storytelling from Tseshaht and a movie night.
The second day began with storytelling from Nuu-chah-nulth elder, Louie Frank Jr., and after, they prepared to take one of the Usma’s č̓apac (canoe) to Sproat Lake.
Arepresentative of the RCMP’s Indigenous Policing Service skippered the č̓apac, as youth eagerly awaited to jump in. With the č̓apac filled with enthusiasticparticipants, they paddled together, even passing some turtles perched on a log. Nestled near the shoreline across the water, they found a spot to cool off with a fun swim in the lake. Upon arriving back
on land, the skipper facilitated a practice of Nuu-chah-nulth protocol as the č̓apac approached the shore. Before heading back for an early dinner, they went out again for a paddle toward the petroglyphs and closed the day with a game night.
On the final day of the Youth Gathering,Anita Charleson-Touchie guided participants through a closure activity where they were invited to reflect on their strengths, comforts, supports, and joys, as they adorned their answers on paper paddles.After, they carefully picked beads to represent each answer, making a necklace with a mini paddle carved by Nuu-chah-nulth artist, Bill Morris.
InAugust Usma’s Intake team hosted their annual five-day,Your Sacred Journey program, a family camp at Strathcona Park Lodge for those who had participated in the Ńaańaačtuqḥsi program (Parenting 101)throughout the past year. With a refresher to the Ńaańaačtuqḥsi program, Your Sacred Journey is an opportunity for parents, caregivers, children, and youth to come together to create memories through fun and cultural activities.
Families had access to paddle boards, kayaks, canoes, a zip line, high ropes course, rock climbing, and hiking. They participated in drum making and cedar weaving, as well as excitedly engaging in a Nuu-chah-nulth-themed scavenger hunt where in the end, everyone was awarded prizes for their participation.
The group sat together for buffet-styled meals, building connections with one another. In the evening, they gathered around a propane firepit to roast hot dogs and marshmallows, where the older children helped the younger children.
This upcoming year the Ńaańaačtuqḥsi will be held in PortAlberni from October 21 to 25 and February 24 to 28, in addition to being held throughout the year in various Nuu-chah-nulth communities.
To participate, contact Dave Jacobson or Ramona Mark.
As summer comes to an end, Usma is excited to welcome autumn with the many activities and celebrations in store.
We’ve named our brand-new column, ƛuł-ik-yuk, which is pronounced like Klooth-ick-yuk, and is translated to, Be The Good Story.
We look forward to connecting with you again. Until next month!
Open Invitation - Indian name giving Sept 28
Thunderbird Hall, Campbell River
Starts at 10am, lunch be served at 12pm and supper at 6:30pm. Please come Share a meal with my family & friends. Hosted by Barb Wells(Amos) and family Nuu-chah-nulth Baby Group
Every Monday
CYS - 4841 Redford Street, Port Alberni
10am-12pm. We offer Prenatal and infant development information, special guests, snacks provide and $20.00 food voucher per family. Referrals when needed. NTC Nursing and Doula’s 250-724-3939. Enter from 4th avenue side, building with orange stripe.
Girls Group
Every Tuesday
Usma culture space, PortAlberni
5:00pm-7:00pm Girls ages 13-18. Need a safe space? Want to express yourself? Looking to learn to bake and cook? Do you enjoy doing crafts? Come join us for fun activities with food and refreshments every Tuesday!
Eating in Balance Wednesdays
Correc on
&Community Beyond
PortAlberni Friendship Center –Treasure our young ones childcare center
Group works together starting with planting seeds up until preserving the food. Participants will receive a $10.00 grocery coupon that can be used at Quality Foods and Buy Low Foods. Open to all families with children 0-6. To register please contactAmber at 250-723-8281 ext. 233 or aflaro@ pafriendshipcenter.com or on FBAmber PAFC
Drop In Play Group
Every Thursday
July andAugust
Roger Creek Water Park – 4720 Pemberton Rd. PortAlberni, B.C.
1:00pm – 2:30pm. The PortAlberni Friendship center invites you to meet us for our Drop In play group. Light snack provided and a $10.00 nutrition coupon. For more information please call Leanne or Tamara at 250-723-8281
Cultural Brushings with Quu asa
Every Friday
RedfordAdministration Building, Port Alberni
9:00am-12:00pm Cultural Brushings in support of the Tseshaht Community. If you have any questions, please call Leanne Harding,AdministrativeAssistant 250-724-1225
An ar cle in the June 27 edi on of Ha-Shilth-Sa contained an inaccuracy regarding a totem pole taken to New Zealand in 1990. The page 3 story states that ar sts Art Thompson and Tim Paul went to New Zealand to present the pole they made. Art Thompson was invited to go on that trip, but the pole was actually made by Tim Paul and Kevin Cramner. We apologize for any confusion this might have caused.
Port Alberni Friendship Centre Volunteers Needed
Need work experience? The Port Alberni Friendship Centre is looking for interested applicants for various positions. Call 250-723-8281
View more job postings at www.hashilthsa.com or h ps://www.facebook.com/ groups/1025031948676842
Alberni Valley Rescue Squad sees a hectic August
The volunteer team responds to back-to-back-to-back calls from coastal and mountain hikes, plus a river rescue
By Nora O’Malley Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
PortAlberni, BC - It’s been an actionpacked mid-August for theAlberni Valley Rescue Squad (AVRS).
The team was called out three times recently,Aug. 9,Aug. 11 andAug. 16, to assist injured hikers on the Juan de Fuca Marine Trail, which stretches along Vancouver Island’s southwest coast from the Jordan River to Port Renfrew. Then onAug. 17 their heli-team found two people lost on 5040 Peak, and in between trail rescuesAVRS performed a highangle rope operation at the Wally Creek swimming holes onAug. 14, just off Highway 4 en route to Ucluelet-Tofino in Ha’uukmin (Kennedy Lake) Tribal Park.
“There was a bit of a run there.Almost every second day we were getting a call, back-to-back,” saidAshley Oscienny, AVRS board member and medical lead.
“Because we are volunteer, everybody just does the best we can.”
“Thankfully it was happy endings for all of them.All the subjects were able to get out, we were able to locate them, get them out of whatever spot they were in, and they were able to seek medical attention if they needed it,” Oscienny continued.
TheAVRS rope rescue team was able to get the rigging system up in about 30-minutes to “go over the edge” and save Casey Munro, a mom of three who was stuck in a 25-foot-deep narrow ravine after going down a waterfall at Wally Creek.
“Because of the nature of her lack of injuries, she was able to be put in a harness and assisted up the ravine wall,” said Oscienny.
Munro hit her head on the drop, but walked away with a headache, five stitches and a bruised ankle.
“The paramedics were just so helpful and comforting while they waited for search and rescue to get set-up,” said Munro. “I’m so grateful. I don’t know why I lived through that. I had three hours down there just wondering…”
Munro and her family are visiting from Saskatchewan, but she grew up in B.C. and says she should have known to look downstream before swimming.
“I just wasn’t paying much attention. The current at the top of the falls was very slow and gentle, so I wasn’t worried about being swept away. But I had no idea there was an actual drop,” Munro said, adding that people gave her kids food while she was stuck, and someone dropped a blanket down for her.
Oscienny reminded folks to be aware of downstream hazards when swimming in rivers.
“That includes waterfalls, downed trees, large rocks, changing depths of the river, fast moving water… those are big hazards,” Oscienny said.
Munro told the Ha-shilth-sa an offduty firefighter pulled her kids out of the creek.
“I watched him grab her arm and haul her out. I was worried my kids were going to come down the waterfall too. I think he left with his family and drove to call 9-1-1- because we had no cell reception,” she said.
When it comes to hiking backcountry trails, Oscienny recommends visiting adventuresmart.ca, a website that outlines packing essentials, communication tools and more.
“5040 has definitely taken off on social media and all people see are the highlight reels, but the actual technical aspect of the hike is lost on a lot of people. With that, there is a lack of preparation that might go into taking on a hike like that,” she said.
Stranded campers rescued by Coast Guard at Pachena
By Eric Plummer Ha-Shilth-Sa Editor
Anacla, BC - Campers at the Pachena Bay campground recently got a harsh lesson in how quickly the tide can change when they were stranded on the other side of the rising river.
OnAug. 17 during low tide the campers walked across the Pachena River, which runs from Panchena Bay and by the Huuay-aht village ofAnacla. But as night fell Huu-ay-aht member Stella Peters said it became apparent an emergency was unfolding, as they hadn’t crossed back to the campground side of the river. The tide was rising, making the river too deep to cross.
At 10:23 p.m. the Joint Rescue Coordi-
nation Centre in Victoria received a call from others in the campground about three people stranded on the other side of the river.
“The stranded campers were able to notify other campers who called JRCC,” said Kelly Stark, a communications officer from Marine Forces Pacific, in an email to Ha-Shilth-Sa.
By 11:36 p.m. that night a Canadian Coast Guard vessel reached the stranded trio, one of whom had minor injuries, according to reports from the scene.
The vessel was unable to drop them off at Pachena Bay’s shallow beach, so they were transported to Bamfield, where a Canadian Coast Guard truck was able to return them to the campground, according to Stark.
AVRS Facebook photo
Casey Munro awaits a member of theAlberni Valley Rescue Squad after dropping down a waterfall at Wally Creek onAug. 14.
At low tide the Pachena River can be crossed by foot, but as the water rises the flow from Pachena Bay can quickly become too deep to return.
Salmon run uncertain after Chilcotin landslide
Task force forms for the next steps, after the Tsilhqot’in Nation asks members to not catch salmon this summer
By Sarah Banning Ha-Shilth-Sa Contributor
The floodwaters have receded along the Fraser and Chilcotin Rivers, and 30,000 cubic meters of wooden material have been captured in the Fraser River Debris Trap nearAgassiz. Yet, the effects of the July 30th Chilcotin landslide on this year’s salmon migration have yet to be realized.
Every spring hundreds of thousands of salmon begin the ultimate journey to complete their life’s work. Starting at the mouth of the Fraser River, in Vancouver, they end at Chilko Lake to spawn and die; a span of 500 kilometres.Around August, tribal communities who call themselves “the River People” gather along the banks of the Chilcotin River to catch salmon using their traditional method of dip net fishing - immersing a large net into the water to catch the migrating salmon, one by one.
Between the five different types of salmon that migrate up these rivers to spawn, roughly 120,000 fish were expected this year, as stated by anAugust 12 situation report from the Tsilhqot’in National Government.According to anAugust 7th press release from the Pacific Salmon Foundation, the salmon returning to the Fraser River this year were already facing a challenge due to rising water temperatures. Now they will suffer increased difficulties with the buildup of sediment and debris and lack of a clear pathway.
“This was the last healthy run left on the Fraser River,” said Chief JoeAlphonse, Tsilhqot’in Government Tribal chair, recently in a press conference. “Everyone in the province can benefit from that. Whether or not you’re a commercial fishery inAlaska to salmon lodges all through the coast, they depend and live off of our resources that we produce here in the interior.”
The Tsilhqot’in Nation depends on the salmon as a food and economic source.
“We don’t fight for that fish for the benefit of the mighty dollar. We do it to have food on our table,”Alphonse stated.
Tribal Chair of the Tsilhqot’in National Government and Nits’ilin Chief Francis Laceese agreed, emphasizing, “the salmon are part of our identity. They are our biggest food source.”
The Tsilhqot’in National Government quickly initiated a task force, composed of members from Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), the Province of B.C., the Upper Fraser Fisheries Conservation Alliance (UFFCA), and several external experts, to determine the best course of action for the salmon.As an immediate action, Tsilhqot’in National Council of Chiefs have asked their tribal members not to harvest salmon this summer, and, according toAlphonse and Laceese, are asking the B.C. government to immediately limit openings of commercial and recreation fisheries.
Connie Chapman, the provincial government’s director of Water Management, said they are monitoring salmon stocks - particularly the sockeye as they come into the system - and assessing the Chilcotin and Fraser River banks to ensure that additional slumping and sloughing does not create a new challenge for these salmon.
The task force has set up SONAR monitoring just above the slide site, in Hanceville, and in the Little Chilcotin, Taseko and Chilko systems to track when and how fish are passing through the location to help inform decisions. They are
Fraser River debris trap, located nearAgassiz in the Fraser Valley, is a uniquely designed set of
that intercepts large volumes of natural wood debris (45-55,000 cubic metres on average) during spring high water.According to the Fraser Basin Council, without the trap woody debris would move into the lower reaches of the river and Strait of Georgia, posing a risk to human safety, navigation and foreshore structures. also monitoring water levels, flow, and clarity up and down stream of the slide.
“We will continue to monitor to determine whether they are able to make their way up the river to spawn,” said Nathan Cullen, B.C.’s minister of Water, Land, and Resources Stewardship.
The hope is that the water carves a channel that the salmon can pass through.
Previously, in the Big Bar Landslide of 2021, the salmon were not able to migrate naturally through the Fraser River north of Lillooet and were manually transported over the slide area. That will not work in this instance, because the stress of the transport will leave them in no condition to spawn, saidAlphonse.
Of the five different species of salmon, Chilko chinook and Elkin Creek chinook may not be as severely impacted due to the later timing of their migration. Chilcotin chinook reached their spawning grounds prior to the landslide, which is great news in an unfortunately
bleak salmon forecast. Several Taseko sockeye were detected by the SONAR system earlier in July, but their highest concentration is due to come through the system presently. This salmon is critically endangered, and at high risk of extinction
as a result of the Big Bar slide. Chilko sockeye, with numbers only reaching 100,000, are expected to reach their peak return onAugust 25-26, and are of high concern due to their low numbers.
Cullen explains that they are working with First Nations on a plan B if Mother Nature doesn’t resolve itself.
“Salmon and Mother Nature are resilient and may resolve itself as the water gets cleaner and debris diminishes.”
If Mother Nature has other plans, DFO is currently working on potential fish passage mitigation that includes emergency enhancement, trap and transport.
The rivers will recover over time, but the current impact of debris and erosion on the salmon’s natural habitat is severe, and the imprint this destruction leaves on the livelihood and food security of First Nations in the area is being felt.
As it stands, the only thing that is certain, is uncertainty.
Bowin Ma/X photo
The
floating booms
Chief JoeAlphonse
Central Cariboo Search and Rescue – CCSAR photo
Alandslide is seen on the Chilcotin River southwest of Williams Lake on July 31, as a pool grows behind the dam of earth.
Thank You
On behalf of the Tlu-Piich Games staff, We would like to say a big thank you to our volunteers from this year’s games! All your hard work does not go unnoticed! We would also like to thank this year’s donators! Buy-Low Foods, Flandangles, Kuu-us Café & Gifts, Pita Pit, Quality Foods, Save-On Foods, Starbucks, Tseshaht First Nation and the Tseshaht Market. We greatly appreciate your generosity.
