A fundraising campaign raised over $150,000 for investigative work on former residential school and Indian hospital sites in B.C. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

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Search for potential unmarked graves at former Nanaimo Indian Hospital site to begin

Sep 15, 2021 | 10:34 AM

Editor’s Note: The following story contains descriptions of trauma and abuse suffered by Indigenous peoples at residential schools and hospitals. Discretion is advised. The National Indian Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide 24/7 support to residential school survivors and others who are affected. Call 1 (866) 925-4419.

NANAIMO — Snuneymuxw First Nation has necessary funds to help bring the remains of their ancestors home.

A GoFundMe campaign diverted $77,250 to support a search for unmarked graves at the former Nanaimo Indian Hospital site off Fifth St., across from the Nanaimo VIU Campus.

“Our people were treated less than human, as medical experiments and disposed of without regard to the sacredness of human life and deposited into unmarked graves in our territory,” Mike Wyse, Snuneymuxw Chief, told a gathering on Wednesday, Sept. 15.

A total of $157,050 was raised and split among multiple First Nations. The amount donated on Wednesday represents the final donation from the campaign.

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“These resources will go towards investigative works, conducted by our Nation at the Nanaimo Indian Hospital, specifically to locate our ancestors who were placed there at the time of their death,” Wyse added.

A message of support to investigate potential unmarked graves outside the former Nanaimo Indian Hospital site. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

He said the work and findings of the investigation will guide how Snuneymuxw moves forward and begins to heal from past traumas.

“Moving with one heart and one mind when dealing with this cultural and spiritual work is important.”

Wyse said their community is marked by enormous physical, emotional and spiritual pain which is passed through the generations and still carried today.

Snuneymuxw First Nation also plans to work with neighbouring Coast Salish peoples who had patients at the hospital, with Wyse saying “we have a lot of work ahead of us.”

He said ground-penetrating radar would be used to examine the vast former Nanaimo Indian Hospital site, noting it’s intended for the work to be done in the coming months.

Several SFN elders abused at the Nanaimo Indian Hospital told their stories at the SFN administration building on Wednesday, recounting harrowing physical and emotional trauma at the long-closed facility.

including having most of their teeth pulled out, leading to excruciating pain and a fear of dentists.

A female elder reported being strapped naked to a table in the hospital and force-fed alcohol.

Earl Manson remembered being at the hospital for several months after breaking his arm.

Manson recalled being strapped into his bed and using his small size to run under the beds to escape hospital staff.

Manson called being at the hospital a dark part of his life.

“It opens some doors for me right now. It just clicks in, hearing about a high bed,” he said.

The Nanaimo Indian Hospital operated between 1946 and 1967.

In June, the province announced a $12 million fund to investigate 18 residential school sites and three Indian hospital locations across B.C.

Under the program, each community could access up to $475,000 to investigate local sites.

The provincial initiative was made as hundreds of children’s remains were detected at several residential school sites in B.C., including on Penelakut Island east of Chemainus.

Wyse confirmed SFN is attempting to also tap into provincial funds, pointing to other potential unmarked burial sites in the Nanaimo area requiring examination.

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ian@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @reporterholmes