Empowering our Community for
Truth and Reconciliation:
“What
did you do that helped the constituency grow in awareness of the TRC, grasp its
importance
and engage it?”
Mennonite
Church Canada (MC-Canada), formally known as the General Conference Mennonite
Church in Canada, has had a relationship with First Nations People going back
to the 1940s if not earlier. This relationship has grown to a connection that
spans at least all the western provinces in Canada. As such, it was probably
almost a natural that MC-Canada should become involved with the Indian
Residential School Survivors Society and the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission. This denomination has long had a ministry working with First
Nations, first known as Mennonite Pioneer Mission, then Native Ministries and
now, in keeping with a more appropriate recognition of what that relationship
should look like, I working together of equals, it has become the National
Ministry: Indigenous Relations.
I have
become involved with this thrust and so am being kept in the communications
link about what is going on presently. As such, I received an article from
MC-Canada Indigenous Relations Coordinator Steve Heinrichs about HOW the Saskatchewan Mennonite
TRC Group engaged their constituency, and what – in hindsight – they could have
done. The document was entitled “Empowering
our Community for Truth and Reconciliation: Learnings from the MC-Sask &
MCC-Sask TRC Prep Group.” It asked the
question: “What did you do that helped the constituency grow in awareness of
the TRC, grasp its importance and engage it?”
I have
considered myself a part of the movement within Mennonite Church BC, a provincial
arm of MC-Canada, of working towards reconciliation with the First Nations in
our communities. This led me to begin to look at what I have done and am doing.
The following document was the first step that has been recorded of that
process.
1. In the
first place, I grew up in a home among First Nations people, to a father who
had already worked in this community for three years, teaching school and then
serving as a United Church minister. My mother had joined him a year before my
birth.
The first
year of my life, 1946-47, was spent partly at Oxford House, a community in
North-eastern Manitoba, followed by several months at the home of Stanley
Collie in Buffalo Narrows, Saskatchewan, where my parents were relieved this
couple as they went out to do deputation work for the Northern Canada
Evangelical Mission which they were working for.
Then we
spent nine years in Grand Rapids, Manitoba, a Historic community at the mouth
of the Saskatchewan River, where it runs into Lake Winnipeg. This was a Métis
community on one side of the river and a Cree reserve on the other side. My
parents were working for the Northern Canada Evangelical Mission and we built a
new home and a worship space we called the Gospel Tabernacle.
In 1957 We
Moved To Loon Straits, Manitoba, a largely Métis Community on the east side of
the south basin of Lake Winnipeg, where my father became the local pastor in
the chapel they had there.
So, all of
my schooling and all of my playmates were either Metis or First Nations
Children. To my parents' credit, I grew
up with accepting all of these people as equals and, indeed, in many ways
superior to us, because of their knowledge of the land, their adaptation to it
and their ways of living in it. I never heard my parents say anything
discriminatory or negative against them.
2. With that
background, we moved to Winnipeg in 1962. It was around that time that Winnipeg
was beginning to become something of a Mecca for first Nations young people
looking for work and to further their education. My father opened up a mission
there to provide tutoring, help with finding employment and simply a drop-in
center to facilitate relationships between the Mennonite church in Winnipeg and
first Nations people. Youth Opportunities Unlimited, as it was called, located
on Notre Dame Ave., ran from 1963 until after my parents moved to Meadow Lake,
Saskatchewan, in 1967. During the time in Winnipeg and before, I remember
accompanying my father to Indian-Metis conferences. He also made connections
with prisoners at Stony Mountain Penitentiary and I remember our family
accompanying him for a powwow on the grounds one Sunday afternoon.
3. When I
moved to Saskatchewan in 1968, to Saskatoon, my connections to first Nations peoples
dwindled. It was not until I moved back to Winnipeg to study medicine in 1972,
that I began to re-establish my connections with First Nations people. After
first year medicine, and again after second year, those being the only two
years where we has medical students had the summer off, the University of
Manitoba's Faculty of Medicine's Northern Medical Unit offered employment in
northern nursing stations for those who wished. This was to help facilitate
physicians going to rural areas on graduation and also to help provide better
healthcare for these people, mainly of First Nations Origin.
The first
summer, 1973, it was my great joy to return to Grand Rapids, my childhood home,
to spend the summer working in the Nursing Station there. Naturally, I reconnected
with a number of people from my past. My parents came to visit and showed
slides from the time that we had lived in the area for the community in the
local band hall.
The second
summer, 1974, I went to work at South Indian Lake, accessible in the summer
only by boat or aircraft. I spent such an enjoyable time there that when I
heard about a vacancy over the Christmas/New Year's season, I volunteered to go
and work there for another 10 days. I even had to find my own nurse to work
under, which I was able to do, using a friend from my church. I again had a
very good time. It was here that I met a number of individuals whose situation
stimulated me to write folk songs about them, which I was to perform years
later (see below). When I left the community, I ended up leaving the guitar
that I used to compose and perform the songs with in the hands of our
housekeeper, Betsy Linklater, who wanted it. The deal was that she make me a
beaded best in the Woodland Cree tradition, which she did, and which I have continued
to wear at events through the years.
4. Then, when
I got into the Family Practice Residency in 1976, one of the outreach programs
the Family Practice Unit of St. Boniface General Hospital ran was where we as
residents would fly up to first Nations and Métis communities in eastern
Manitoba every six weeks to deliver health care. I was able to secure Bloodvein
River, just 30 miles north of my former home in Loon Straits, and which I had
once visited with my father, Little Grand Rapids and Puaingassi as my outposts
and thoroughly enjoyed going there for the second year of the program. This was
in part in because I could renew and also build on some previous connections,
as these communities had been mission sites of Mennonite Pioneer Mission, the
agency under which my parents had worked at Loon Straits and then in Winnipeg.
5. Then,
when I moved to Gladstone, Manitoba, a small rural community in north-central
Manitoba, I began to make weekly visits to the Sandy Bay Reserve, a Saulteaux/Ojibway
or Anishinabe community. Many of these people also made their way to our clinic
and especially hospital in Gladstone as well. We were even invited to take part
in some of their social events. On one occasion we were en route to a powwow when
we went into the ditch, so we never made it.
6. When we
moved to Brandon in 1985, I worked as a Family Physician for 4 1/2 years. I had
some First Nations patients. One young
woman who was afflicted with schizophrenia, and whom I had looked after in the
hospital and then helped her through her prenatal period, remarked to me on one
visit, "You really like Indians don't you?" I received that as a
wonderful compliment. Brandon had also been the site of the large
residential schools to the northwest of the community. The buildings were still
standing.
7. When I
completed my psychiatry residency in 1994, I began a new chapter of connecting
to the first Nations in south-western Manitoba. I began to make regular
consultation trips to communities, which served large First Nations populations,
who took advantage of this service. These included communities such as Swan
River, Dauphin (the site of a residential school), Russell, Birtle (another
past residential school site), Shoal River, Rivers, Minnedosa, Neepawa,
Wawanesa, Souris, Virden and Killarney.
8. It was
during these years that I became aware of the residential school issue,
although I had known about it at some level all my life. At the same time, I
was seeing a lot of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. I then realized that many of the non-First Nations Peoples'
unfortunate, discriminatory and derogatory stereotypes of Indians were of those
who ran into trouble with alcohol and were probably even suffering from FASD.
The characteristics that came to be so closely identified with First Nations
individuals who lived in the cities and towns are too similar to the features
of FASD. I always maintained that the people who held to these negative
views really did not know First Nations people, particularly those who lived in
their own communities and were leading successful lives and therefore not
attracting the negative attention that led to the perpetuation of these
stereotypes.
9. Then, in
2005, we felt the timing was right to move west and felt led to Richmond, BC.
There were pros and cons to the move. In some ways, the cons became more
evident even after we arrived, although they were not major. For me,
professionally, I felt somewhat saddened that all of my experience and good
relationships with First Nations people was basically not being drawn on here,
at least not initially and professionally. There are references to first
Nations in Richmond but the oft-quoted 2500 of them that are seemingly here
must be mostly invisible, although I'm not sure if that means well integrated.
I did run into the occasional patient from time to time, but sometimes I did
not even realize I was seeing a First Nations person.
10. In, I
believe it was 2006, I had volunteered/accepted the nomination as Deacon of The
Missions and Service Committee of Peace Mennonite Church and was duly acclaimed
for that role which I kept until June 2012. Part of my reason for continuing in
this as time went on was to advance the agenda of the relationship with First
Nations people.
11. Richard
Twiss, a Lakota Sioux from the prairies who now lives in Oregon and runs Wiconi
International was brought to our church for an evening session by Daryll
Klassen of the Neighbours Program at MCC BC. A Presbyterian Cree elder by the
name of Mary Fontaine was also present that evening. I believe we met.
12. There
were various things going on though in the nation and province, as well as our
own area, that kept me in touch with and interested in what was going on with
the First Nations. There was still
enough in my heart for me to go to Winnipeg in June 2010 and take a one-week
course at the Canadian Mennonite University School of Peace Building on
treaties and justice with respect to the First Nations. It was a wonderful week
spent with eight other students under the mentorship of Cree Elder and former
United Church of Canada Moderator Stan McKay. When I returned from that
course I resolved to put my experience to good use in terms of what could be
done in our community to improve the situation between first Nations and the
rest of us. One of my thoughts was that, having gotten to know many immigrants,
they really have little idea of the place of First Nations peoples in this
country. Unfortunately, too many of them have too quickly swallowed the
stereotype I discussed in .8. A fantasy I entertained was of First Nations
Welcoming Teams meeting new immigrants and arrivals at Vancouver International
Airport with entertainment and information about this land and the place of
First Nations peoples in it. I still think this would be a wonderful thing to see
come to fruition. After all, there is already a loss of First Nations artwork
and display their. It just needs to be accompanied by present-day information
and reality.
13. Mennonite Church BC decided to hire an
Indigenous Relations Coordinator to help oversee the relations between the
First Nations and our conference and congregations. The first incumbent,
Steve Heinrichs, had gained his experience with First Nations people while
pastoring at Burns Lake BC. I met him when he came to speak at our church and
joined a network of individuals that he was forming to promote this cause.
14. Mary Fontaine, introduced in .11, is the
Executive Director of Hummingbird Ministries. We began to make connections.
This was underscored when I found that one of my friends in the congregation,
Tim Corlis, a musician, had been involved with their sharing circles for the
past year. He and his wife Sarah Fretz had even performed at their second
annual Peace through the Arts Festival at South Delta Baptist Church in the
fall of 2011.
15. Steve
was snatched up, within months of his having taken up the position referred to
in .13, by Native Ministries of Mennonite Church Canada and moved to Winnipeg. A
gentleman who identified himself as a Cree, Brander McDonald, replaced him. We
had Brander come to our church to speak to us and give us further input about
First Nations and their ways and worldviews in our Adult Education Hour. I had
discovered that we had connections going back to Grand Rapids. When Brander
came for lunch and began looking at the photo albums I offered him while lunch
was being readied, I discovered we had even closer ties from my days in Loon
Straits.
16. Brander
established a Facebook accounts of which I became a friend and so furthered the
network concept that Steve had begun.
17. Through
this network I became aware of Don Claassen and Isadore Charters. Isadore had begun
to attend the Sardis Church of which Don was a member. By this time we were all
becoming aware of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission coming to Vancouver
in 2013 and beginning to think of how we needed to be prepared for that in our
conference and congregations. This was an agency established to give a hearing
to victims of the residential school fiasco and educate the rest of Canada more
about what had happened here and how it related to the whole First
Nations-Canada relationships that has suffered so much. Isadore had the idea of
creating a healing totem pole for First Nations and whites to all take part in
carving together as an act of reconciliation and taking it to church is and
other places in BC where it could be well come and able to meet that
expectation. One of these places was the international Mission Festival that
takes place in January every winter in Vancouver.
18. I
attended the MC-BC conference in 2012. I attended Brander's workshop there. Don
and Isadore were there with their pole, but we were already planning to have
them come to our congregation, so I did not carve on the pole at the time.
19. I
learned at the conference that the Service, Peace and Justice Committee was
looking for members. I discussed this with a former Missions and Service
Committee member of Peace Mennonite Church, Ken Kehler, and we both decided to
check this out further. This resulted in both of us attending a couple of
meetings of the committee, after which Ken decided he needed to withdraw at
this time.
20. Anne and
I also went at the end of February to make our first appearance at a sharing
circles with the Hummingbird Ministries folk at Tsawassen First Nation Band
Hall for a potluck and sharing evening. This was, of course, hosted by Mary
Fontaine and other leadership of Hummingbird Ministries. We were well received
and made many good connections that's we have continued to build on.
21. Anne and
I also stopped at the Marpole Midden site next to the Arthur Lang Granville
Bridge In Vancouver. The Musqueam band was protesting the development on what
turned out to be burial ground of theirs. I had sent emails to the Musqueam
band to try and make a connection leading up to the MC BC conference being held
here and just in general but had gotten no response. I got some further names
from the people at the site but still got no response when I tried those.
22. Don Claassen
and Isadore Charters came to share in our worship service and Adult Education Hour
about the legacy of the residential schools among first Nations peoples. They
came to Richmond on Saturday and stayed overnight with us in our home. They
also returned to our place for lunch on Sunday before returning to Sardis. Isadore,
or Yemmo, his childhood name, which he likes being called, tells a powerful
story. With his history of being a child in the residential school, I had some
concerns about him sleeping in a strange bed, especially an exposed one in our
loft, but to my great relief and joy, he said he had a wonderful rest.
23. In
attending the Vancouver School of Theology Convocation because of former
patient of mine was being honoured with an Honorary Degree and really wanted me
to attend, I took note of the part in the ceremony played by Musqueam Elder
Rose Point.
24. Towards the end of June, Anne and I motored
out one rainy Saturday to the Sto:lo Band Hall east of Agassi to attend a
potluck and sharing circle hosted jointly by that First Nation, MCC-BC and
MC-BC. Darryll Klassen of cc, Gary Janzen and Brander and his wife Jill were
part of the proceedings. First Nations Singer Cheryl Bear-Barnetson, her
husband Randy and one of her sons were also featured artists. It was a good
time of fellowship, sharing and learning from one another.
25. I was
notified in June that Rose Point had passed away and that it would be a good
connection to attend the funeral. Pastor Tim Kuepfer and I did, although we did
not make any connections there other than signing a guestbook.
26. I made
connections again with Brander McDonald, Don Claassen and Isadore Charters at
the MC Canada conference in Richmond in July. Don and Isadore had the Healing
Pole there and I finally took steps to carve in it. We had hoped, and I had tried,
to make the proper connections and invitations for the Musqueam to give us a
traditional welcome to their territory. However, we were not successful and
Brander had to do somewhat of a stand-in. Besides Brander and Don/Isadore’s
being at the conference to present what they had to offer, we did also have
another First Nations lady and an academic presenting a case together from a
local (Chilliwack) situation of where the mother was being prosecuted for
fishing.
27. I
maintained my contact with Hummingbird Ministries and on October 27, having
gotten approval from our Peace Mennonite Church Council, we hosted them in our
building to have the workshop and practice for their upcoming third annual
Peace through the Arts Festival.
28. Thus it was, that on November 9, Friday and
10, Saturday, our church hosted this Hummingbird Ministries Peace through the
Arts Festival. A number of people from our congregation helped out, in
particular the sound people Erwin Klassen and Roby Chakrabarti. Others helped
prepare the food during the day on Friday. Others, particularly my wife Anne
and daughter Anika, helped the Hummingbird People and their guests in the
kitchen and with the food and dining all day, as well as the big clean-up after.
As I had on the 27th, I remained present to do what I could to help things
proceed and work out smoothly enough. I did also give of my own time and
talents to share in singing for songs of my composition, accompanying myself on
the piano, as one of the artists. Two of the songs dealt with particularly First
Nations Topics, having arisen from my time in South Indian Lake many years
previously.
According to
word from Executive Director Mary Fontaine afterwards, they felt the Festival
had been quite successful in terms of the number of performers, what was shown,
the number of volunteers and attendees. We had been advertising it with
bulletin inserts In our congregation and I was a little disappointed at the
attendance. I subsequently also had a bulletin insert given out for a couple of
Sundays to promote the new Hummingbird Ministries CD, Silent Voices, which was
released about the time of the festival.
29. Then, on
December 15, Anne and I again made the journey to the Tsawassen First Nations
Band Hall to help and be a guest at the Hummingbird Ministries Christmas
Sharing Circle. This time we were pleased to see that our MC-BC Conference
Pastor Gary Janzen was that there. In fact, he read the Christmas story from
Luke chapter 22 help begin the sharing Circle. Brander McDonald and his wife
were also present. To emphasize the multicultural aspects of this gathering,
there were a number of guests of Pakistani origin, linked to a Gospel Church in
Surrey, who also played and sang for us. Other nationalities and ethnicities
present included Korean, Dutch, Irish, and Chinese. First Nations represented
Prairie, BC interior and BC coastal peoples.
30. I’ve
accepted the nomination of Henry Krause, Chair of the MC-BC Service, Peace and
Justice Committee, to become a full-fledged member of the committee if I am
elected at the annual meeting in February. That platform is another vehicle to
advance this cause of reconciliation between First Nations people and us.
- This document was first completed and shared with other members of this movement on January 1, 2013. The first three paragraphs were added as an introduction to this blog.
I would invite any readers of this to raise questions that might help me clarify my stand, role and direction in this process further. Thank you.
