November 1
Fourteen joined us for a conversation with Penelakut ((https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=Penelkut&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8) Councillor Kurt Irwin, his uncles Ken and Chuck, and Archive volunteer managers Christina Marshall and Ceridwen Ross Collins. A unique and fun ASK Salt Spring, all seemed to enjoy a fascinating glimpse at our past as well as a future Salt Spring rich with First Nations partnerships.
Kurt began by offering a heartfelt and very personal Territorial Acknowledgement sharing his rediscovery of his Indigenous roots. It all began almost exactly a decade ago when he offered an Indigenous funeral service for his Penelakut mother, Lil Sampson Irwin, on October 1, 2014 at Fernwood Dock.
With only four days to prepare, Kurt worked quickly and learned a lot, also quickly realizing that he had much more to learn. RCMP officers and Firefighters saluted as Penelakut Elders arrived at the dock drumming. As a part of the ceremony, Kurt also prepared four plates of traditional foods, including venison, corn, and vegetables, to burn. When the spirits were called, he experienced a life-changing spiritual moment when, with no boats in sight, the waves began crashing on the shore.
A fourth generation Fernwood-area Sampson, Kurt had a family to raise and a business to run. As a result, his Indigenous connections had previously been minimal. Saddened that his mother had grieved her inability to connect with her culture, Kurt realized that it was up to him and his generation to embrace his Indigenous roots. This journey began at his mother’s funeral with the words of Elder Laura Sylvester: “If you don’tlearn your culture, it will die with you.”
As soon as he sold his company, Kurt began that journey of reconnection. Learning a lot and also trying to master some of the Hul’q’umi’num’ language, he soon ran a successful campaign to become a Penelakut Councillor.
This woke up an entirely new world for him. Kurt spoke with passion about his connection with the grief of his band, their struggles, and his hope for better times. He sees a better future as First Nations/settler partnerships strengthen with the possibility of land on Salt Spring and the survival of the age-old Penelakut customs. Our time together was made even more special by the stories of his uncles Ken and Chuck, third generation Salt Springers who were workers on many of the projects that shaped Salt Spring.
Chris spoke of her “excitement and delight” with her many volunteer roles on Salt Spring for the past dozen years. As a photographer for the University of Victoria for 30 years, she had previously been honoured to photograph and build relationships with some local First Nations peoples. When she and her partner returned to Salt Spring, she immersed herself into continuing this journey though volunteer work with the Archives and other community groups such as the Stqeeye’ Learning Society (Xwaaqw’um Village).
A vital part of the small Salt Spring Archives team (https://saltspringarchives.com/), they recently partnered with local and Indigenous experts to install large interpretive panels at Fernwood Dock, along Fullford-Ganges Road at the village entrance, and on the point near the Local bar, all in close proximity to extremely significant Indigenous locations. Check out the Archive’s First Nation pages:
This site includes information on the panels as well as the very important First Nation’s Placenames maps. The Archives has Chris Arnett to thank for the years of research that he shared with the Archives for this project and Brian Smallshaw (webmaster) for his work in creating the site. Particular thanks also goes to Elders Luschiim (Hul’q’umi’num’) and ȻOSINIYE (SENĆOŦEN) for their generous sharing of their knowledge and language.
Ceridwen continued by expressing her delight at being a vital part of the small all-volunteer Archives team. She sits on the Board of the Historical Society along with Chris, and together they work on archives management, maintenance, programs, and projects. We learned that inquiries from local and international researchers come frequently, and she enjoys discovering the needed answers from among our rich and varied archives.
Ceridwen also spoke to us about the future of the Archives. The deaths of Frank Neumann (2019) and Gillian Watson (2018) who (with many others!) spent countless hours for years archiving and digitizing Salt Spring’s history left a gap of knowledge in the Archives’ operations. With their loss, followed closely by the COVID-19 shut-downs, the Archives volunteer staff has had much catching up to do. With a dramatically declining volunteer pool, Ceridwen is concerned about the future capacity of this important repository of our history. Volunteers are very welcome – please connect with Chris Marshall for more information: chris@saltspringarchives.com
Later in our conversation, we learned that the Archives has no base funding, and (like many of our community non-profits) depends heavily on annual grant-writing, membership support, legacy donations, and event revenue. They pay our Library yearly rent for their office and humidity-controlled archive vault upstairs. (Did you even know they were there?) These hardworking volunteers are exploring partnerships with local foundations and government to secure the small amount of annual funding needed to continue their important work and to eventually hire a part-time archivist to ensure continuity.
Despite these challenges, both Chris and Ceridwen agreed that times were exciting for the Archives, made especially rich through the First Nations partnerships they are building.
Economic development for the Penelakut is vitally important to Kurt. We learned that there is high unemployment on the island, but he is not convinced that bringing economic changes to Penelakut is wise. He spoke of truly rich and continuing cultural practices and visible daily indicators of their traditional lifestyle: clam shells on decks and deer hides waiting to be tanned on each property.
To preserve this culture but also create the needed revenue from expanded hunting, harvesting, and other sources of income, Kurt serves on the Penelakut Land Committee intent upon getting some of their ancestral Salt Spring land back. This land would be used to continue traditional cultivation and hunting activities but could also be used for enterprises such as affordable housing built on land with a long term lease.
A participant spoke of a potential piece of watershed land north of St. Mary Lake. Kurt and this participant will continue this conversation. Kurt told us that he had brought an offer of the donation an island near Sidney to his band. They responded that, while this was wonderful, it belonged to another band. Such is the mutual respect between nations.
We learned of sadness and lost opportunities that could change if there was Penelakut land on Salt Spring. In the too-frequent cases in which human remains are found, there are no Penelakut burial grounds here. Instead, they are given by RCMP to Penelakut Elders in a shoebox to be buried far away from where they lived and died. Also, when archeological pieces are found, there is nowhere to acknowledge them; they remain hidden away.
This generated one of Kurt’s most quotable statements of our time together: “The Ganges Firehall site should be repatriated as a First Nations museum.” Not only would some relics finally have a place to be displayed but this central site could become an educational centre, an acknowledgment of our Indigenous presence as well as current First Nations/settler partnerships. An interesting notion, with potentially large federal and provincial funding streams, future use of this Ganges Firehall is expected to be a very important and interesting Local Community Commission discussion in 2025.
And, yes, don’t forget to plan for Indigenous panels on the HarbourWalk!
Did you know that there are the remains of a longhouse on our north end? Did you know that a large area of Fernwood was once Sampson land? Did you know that the location of Fernwood School was donated by Chester and Elizabeth Sampson? We learned that the family was disappointed that the new school building was not named “Sampson School.” It was asked: Could the name of Fernwood School be changed to Sampson School to recognize this generosity?
As our time together was drawing to a close, Kurt spoke briefly of his concerns about the controversial proposed Booth Canal/Baker Beach work, telling us that it is an important clamming region for the Penelakut band; any work could negatively impact this important Indigenous harvesting area.
Kurt also spoke briefly of his deep concerns about the rapidly-growing numbers of freighters in our area transporting 750,000 barrels a day from the Trans Mountain Pipeline (https://www.transmountain.com/). Everyday, these freighters damage our waters. But, well beyond this constant damage to our water and shores, Kurt lamented that there are limited plans and very little equipment for clean-up. He is convinced that there will be spills wreaking havoc to the shores, waters, and wildlife so critical to the survival of the Penelakut and other First Nations.
Before letting our guests leave, we could not miss the opportunity to learn a bit about the interesting life of the ancestor of our guests, Henry Sampson, a Hudson Bay employee, Salt Spring’s first peace officer, and, in a strange twist of fate, having to arrest his wife (https://canadianmysteries.ca/sites/robinson/murder/castofcharacters/1715en.html). Only one of many stories with very large families, Kurt laughed, saying that he was related to most of the Penelakut band and had many, many stories.
Too soon time to leave, we bid our guests a fond farewell, thanking them for a fascinating conversation, appreciative of all the new things we learned, and intrigued by possibilities for land, a burial ground, a renamed school, and, yes, possibly even a Ganges First Nations museum/educational centre. (Thanks Kurt, Ken, Chuck, Chris and Ceridwen!)
Just in case you are interested. . . .This report has been written by Gayle Baker, founder of ASK Salt Spring, currently also a Salt Spring Local Community Commissioner. This report has also been edited by this week’s special guests.
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