By Spencer Sterritt

Nanaimo’s Indigenous youth preparing for cultural canoe trip along Vancouver Island

Jun 12, 2017 | 11:43 AM

NANAIMO — An upcoming excursion along Vancouver Island’s rivers and coast will help Indigenous youth engage with their heritage and culture.

This year, youth from Kw’umut Lelum will canoe for two-weeks from Port Renfrew to Campbell River in August as part of Tribal Journeys 2017. It’s an annual trip designed to reconnect Indigenous teens and young adults with their heritage by visiting other bands and communities along their path.

“A lot of kids, when they come into our care, are disconnected from their community and their culture,” Kw’umet Lelum executive director and city councillor Bill Yoachim said. “This is a start of bringing the kids back…in a sensitive, beautiful experience.”

Before they leave in mid-July, the Kw’umet Lelum youth who will take to the water are building their regalia and learning songs they’ll sing along the way.

Over the years, Yoachim said he’s seen teens who had completely turned their back on Indigenous heritage become more involved over the two-week journey and come to accept and appreciate their culture.

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He told NanaimoNewsNOW about how his heart had broken the first year when he heard a teenage girl talk about not wanting anything to do with being Indigenous.

However, she was leading the singing and drumming circles by the end of the two weeks.

“These young kids, it’s amazing to see their self-esteem as they grow into these proud, knowledgeable, respectful individuals. I already know these kids have this in them and (Tribal Journeys) brings it out of them,” Yoachim said.

All 75 canoes will row into Nanaimo on July 30, before moving up Vancouver Island to Campbell River.

Yoachim said, even as an adult, it’s rewarding to take part in the journey.

“It’s so nice to be grounded and sit around the circle, hear the stories of individuals and the teachings of the elders. I learn something about myself and others…it’s an amazing experience and I’m very humbled and blessed.”

spencer@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @spencer_sterrit