A new welcome pole stands proudly at Maffeo Sutton Park, installed ahead of the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

SOMBRE OCCASION

‘It’s so painful:’ Nanaimo’s Truth & Reconciliation Day to share lived experience of residential schools

Sep 30, 2021 | 5:18 AM

NANAIMO — A residential school survivor wants people to understand how profoundly negative that education system was and how it directly impacts thousands of families to this day.

VIU Elder Barney Williams spent 13 years educated in residential schools, including at the infamous Kamloops Residential School were a mass unmarked grave of hundreds of children was detected earlier this year.

“It’s so painful, the abuse that I went through was horrendous. It happened to me as a child, as a young boy,” Williams said.

Snuneymuxw First Nation, the City of Nanaimo and Nanaimo Ladysmith Public Schools are hosting a National Truth & Reconciliation Day event on Thursday, Sept 30 at Maffeo Sutton Park from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Stories like the horrors experienced by Williams will be shared openly.

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“We’re not looking for sympathy, or somebody to feel sorry for us, we want you to understand that this happened to us and the struggles that we’re faced with is actually related to that time and space,” Williams told NanaimoNewsNOW.

Williams said news throughout the summer of thousands of unmarked graves found at residential schools across the country, including at nearby Penelakut Island, left him trembling.

“People that are looking from the outside need to understand that ‘yeah they are suffering,’ but it’s because of what’ we’re seeing now,” Williams said.

The Campbell River man escaped substance abuse in his late 20’s and went on to enjoy a long, successful career as a social worker after enrolling at the Nanaimo Malaspina College campus in 1969.

“I met people that believed in me, that there was something else below that anger, that hate…There was an opportunity for me to find the real me, to find that little boy inside of me that was still there.”

Thursday’s event in Nanaimo will include addresses from Snuneymuxw First Nation members who will share their stories of the impacts of residential schools.

Noel Brown’s towering welcome pole, seen here from Front St., is a major focal point to Maffeo Sutton Park. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

A major piece to the gathering will be the official unveiling of a new, 50 foot tall welcome pole stationed at the entrance to the park.

Carved by Snuneymuxw artist Noel Brown, the 1500 year old red cedar log is Brown’s biggest project to date and the largest pole of its kind in the city.

“The log is so big and where it is, everyone will see it,” Brown told NanaimoNewsNOW. “[Swy-a-lana] was one of our villages, we used to live there, fish the coho and get the certain ducks that came through there. We’ve always been there, now a piece of my art is where we always lived.”

The pole features four main elements which work together to tell a story. On the bottom is the matriarch, who Brown says takes care of us and holds everybody up.

“The killer whale is above her, who protects us at sea. The bear is above the killer whale which protects us on land and tells us when the salmon are coming, when he’s coming around the river. On top of the bear is an eagle that carries our prayers up to the creator.”

Carving of the pole took around a year with a full time team of five, including Brown. Many of his friends would also come and help chisel and paint, making the finished product the results of countless hours of work from a large number of people.

Brown said the community spirit which created the welcome pole is mirrored in its messaging of togetherness, welcoming and inclusivity.

“Nobody’s going anywhere, we’re all here so we’ve got to get along. It’s a welcome pole to welcome everybody…this is our home and we’ve got to work together.”

National Truth & Reconciliation Day was officially recognized this past spring as a federal statutory holiday to take place annually on Sept. 30.

The day, in which people are encouraged to wear orange, honours the lost children and survivors of residential schools, their families and communities.

A brief list of events planned for a sombre day of reflection, stories and togetherness planned at Maffeo Sutton Park on Thursday, Sept. 30. (SD68)

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