Master carver Stan Hunt said he was moved by the strong turnout in Nanaimo as his monument pole makes its way south on Vancouver Island. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

impactful art

Monument pole honouring residential school victims stops by Nanaimo

Jun 20, 2023 | 5:23 AM

NANAIMO — A unique monument pole drawing attention to the plight of residential school victims made its way through Nanaimo.

Under development since last August in Fort Rupert just outside Port Hardy by Kwakiutl master carver Stan Hunt, the nearly 20-foot pole arrived on the back of a flat-deck truck on Monday, June 19 at Nanaimo’s VIU campus.

About 100 people attended the event where a traditional First Nations greeting and drumming welcomed Hunt and his traveling entourage.

The monument pole has a distinct black base headed by a raven overseeing vulnerable children.

“It’s telling the story of the children, it’s telling the story of a dark story in our history when bad decisions were made,” Hunt said.

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Hunt said the raven at the top of the pole features a beak cradling the seed of life. Ravens depict creators in their culture, he said, which in this case represents a pledge to find the children and bring their spirits home.

Stan Hunt explicitly stated his work was never intended to be a totem pole, but rather a monument. (Indian Residential School Memorial Monument/Facebook)

“I think some very bad decisions were made in those days and I think that we need to recognize all the participants that thought it was okay to murder our children. That’s hard to say and its hard to say, but it’s the truth.”

Hunt said he was moved by the large crowd that formed in Nanaimo, many of whom were wearing orange shirts.

He said people have approached him with their own residential school stories in other communities on Vancouver Island as his travelling party makes its way from Port Hardy toward Victoria.

“I think as we go along on this journey we’re finding that all of our hearts beat the same and when our hearts beat the same we’re all powerful and we’re strong again,” Hunt said.

Both of Hunts’ parents attended residential schools.

“They didn’t have anything good to say about their experiences there,” he said.

Stan Hunt said there were many cold and went days carving his monument pole in a tent in Fort Rupert, on northern Vancouver Island. (Indian Residential School Memorial Monument/Facebook)

Residential school survivor Gary Manson (Xulsimalt) welcomed Hunt in traditional First Nations headwear.

Manson is an Elder-In-Residence at VIU’s Nanaimo campus.

“I feel it right now; the presence, the power that it has, the power of the story that it’s going to tell.”

Manson said he was a product of the story Hunt is telling.

The Canadian Coast Guard and RCMP are assisting with transporting Hunt’s monument pole down Vancouver Island and to Vancouver in time for National Indigenous Peoples Day on Wednesday, June 21.

Hunt said the pole will then make its way to Kamloops, but stated its final destination is unknown at this time, but should be decided in the weeks ahead.

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On Twitter: @reporterholmes