Metlakatla is a small, west-coast village at Metlakatla Pass near Prince Rupert, BC.
Metlakatla village is a progressive community, 5 km north of Prince Rupert on an ancient site. For thousands of years, the Metlakatla people have lived there. Metlakatla means saltwater pass in Sm’algyax, the language of the Coast Ts’msyen (Tsimshian) people.
Metlakatla honour their history on the land. Its council oversees a number of services in the community to ensure members have the best quality of life possible, including access to healthcare, education, recreation, and social development.
About the library
This is the 10th library Write to Read BC installed, in partnership with the community. Its sponsors included Camera Buildings and Coquitlam Chrysler (Now Journey Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram).
The Ditidaht First Nation is a band government on southern Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. The government has 17 reserve lands: Ahuk, Tsuquanah, Wyah, Clo-oose, Cheewat, Sarque, Carmanah, Iktuksasuk, Hobitan, Oyees, Doobah, Malachan, Opatseeah, Wokitsas, Chuchummisapo, and Saouk.
Several of these lands are part of the newly established Pacific Rim National Park and can be reached on foot by the West Coast Trail. The land, waters, resources, and environment have always been the source of life, culture, and spirituality of the Ditidaht People.
Ditidaht First Nation is governed by an elected Chief and councillors. Ditidaht Economic Development Corporation manages economic development the nation.
About the library
Write to Read BC installed its ninth library here, in partnership with the community. The Rotary Club of North Delta was a sponsor of this library.
The Kwakiutl, in Fort Rupert, are a First Nation community located next to Port Hardy.
The Kwakiutl have lived on the north-eastern shores of Vancouver Island, since time immemorial. Their ancestors hunted and fished on these lands and waters, and developed a rich culture through which they celebrated the diversity of life around them. They continue to be strong by honouring all that our ancestors have taught them.
The Kwakiutl are a part of the larger Kwakwaka’wakw cultural group, known for their distinct art, language, and ceremonies. Their ancestors were skilled fishers, hunters, and gatherers who lived in harmony with the natural world. Through potlatches, storytelling, and intricate carvings, they passed down knowledge, values, and traditions from generation to generation.
The Kwakiutl Band operates a certified band operated school providing grades preschool to grade seven.
About the library
This is the eighth library installed by Write to Read BC. Its sponsors included Rotary Club of Burnaby Metrotown, Rotary Club of Port McNeill, Rotary Club of Port Hardy, Success By 6, and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
Oweekeno is located on the banks of the Wannock River at the entrance to Owikeno Lake east of Rivers Inlet, south of Bella Bella on the BC coastline. Oweekeno is home to the Wuikinuxv Nation, many who live off-reserve in other areas of the province. The Wuikinuxv have an affiliation with the Oweekeno-Kitasoo-Nuxalk Tribal Council in Bella Coola.
Currently the reserve hosts a band administration office, a health centre, a Kindergarten to grade 7 school, a fire hall, an airstrip, and a newly constructed ceremonial Big House, used for cultural purposes. The community also has a multi-purpose flex court for healthy, recreational activities such as basketball, volleyball, ball hockey, and tennis.
A group photo before the grand opening of Wuikinuxv Nation’s Oweekeno library.
About the library
This is the sixth library Write to Read BC installed, in collaboration with the Wuikinuxv Nation. Its sponsors included Rotary Club of Lions Gate and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
This facility was a cooperative venture between the rural Wuikinuxv and partners from other communities, organized by Write to Read BC volunteers.
Malahat First Nation is a Coast Salish First Nations community living on traditional lands on the western shore of Saanich Inlet, Vancouver Island in BC.
The Malahat Nation’s traditional territory is rich in natural resources. And the community’s origin story ties humans to their ancestral land, and their oral history includes creation stories about mountains, deer, and blue jays, as well as what happens when humans forget their obligations to nature. Malahat environmental activism aims to restore depleted species, including from years of overfishing and from being settled in the 1700 to 1900s.
The community responded to Covid-19’s economic changes by focusing on community projects that develop their economy.
The chief and council focus on good governance and community engagement, to create opportunities, a stable economy, employment, health, education, expanding boundaries, and to build Malahat culture for future generations.
About the library
Write to Read BC installed its seventh library here. Sponsors included Rotary Club of South Cowichan (Mill Bay), and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
Haida people have occupied Haida Gwaii since time immemorial. Their traditional territory includes parts of southern Alaska, the archipelago of Haida Gwaii, and its surrounding waters.
Pre-contact, the Haida population was in the tens of thousands in several dozen towns throughout the islands. During the time of contact its population fell to about 600, due to introduced diseases such as measles, typhoid, and smallpox. Today, Haida people make up half of the 5,000 people living on the islands. Haida reside throughout the islands but are concentrated in two main centres, Old Massett at the north of Graham Island and Skidegate at the south. Besides these two communities there are 2,000 more Haida scattered throughout the world, including in Vancouver and Prince Rupert.
The Haida Nation collectively holds Title to its territories and the cultural and intellectual property rights of the Haida Nation. All people of Haida ancestry are citizens of the Haida Nation. Every Haida citizen has the right of access to all Haida Gwaii resources for cultural reasons, and for food or commerce, as reflected in the laws of the Haida Nation.
About the library
Old Massett village council operate the library, which was the third library Write to Read BC installed. Its sponsors included Rotary Club of Langley Central, and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
The library officially opened in a ceremony attended by many community members and representatives of Britco and Government House. The opening was followed by a dinner in the community hall. With its books and through Internet access, the library has made a difference in Old Massett.
Ceremonial paddles at the opening ceremony of the library.
Yunesit’in, previously Stone, is part of the Tsilhqot’in First Nation. It’s territory is about 110 km west of Williams Lake, in BC’s west-central interior Chilcotin region, along the south side of the Tsilhqox River. Its offices are located at the town of Hanceville, about 20 north of the Yunesit’in nation. The nation’s language is Chilcotin.
Yunesit’in ancestral stories define the community’s spiritual relationship to the land and the animals; it explains how the land was shaped, and teaches the basis of Yunesit’in law. Yunesit’in have a special relationship with horses, which remain a foundation of their culture.
Yunesit’in are a hardworking people who hunt and fish, and who value the land for its healthy food. The traditional knowledge of how to live from the land is passed, through families, to each generation.
About the library
This was the second library installed by Write to Read BC. Sponsors included Rotary Club of Williams Lake, Rotary Club of Sechelt, Rotary Club of Commerce City in Colorado USA, and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
Historically, the Halalt First Nation had villages on Willy Island (offshore from the town of Chemainus) and in the lower Chemainus Valley. Today, Halalt reserves are found on Willy Island and in the lower Chemainus Valley (although only the latter reserve is occupied).
The Halalt originate from the village of Xeláltxw, which means ‘marked houses’ or ‘painted houses’, a reference to the fact that the house posts in this village were decorated. According to information collected by Rozen (1985), this village was once located in the Cowichan Valley, at the spot where the Silver Bridge currently crosses the Cowichan River, at the south-eastern edge of the city of Duncan. According to Cowichan oral history, the forefathers of both the Cowichan and Chemainus people (Siyóletse and St’éts’en, respectively) originated from this village.
The residents of this village later relocated to a village at the north end of Willy Island, the largest of the Shoal Islands located just off the mouth of the Chemainus River, perhaps in the early part of the 19th Century. When they moved, they took the village name with them. Rozen (1985) reports that, historically, there were at least five or six houses in the village in Willy Island. Although the entire island was designated an Indian Reserve (Halalt Island No. 1), the village was abandoned in the 1920s and the residents moved to the Westholme reserve on the lower Chemainus River (Halalt No. 2).
About the library
This is the fourth library Write to Read BC installed, in partnership with the community. Sponsors included Rotary Club of Steveston, and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
The Tsilhqot’in National Government represents Tl’etinqox (Anaham), Tsi Deldel (Redstone), Yunesit’in Government (Stone), Xeni Gwet’in First Nation Government (Nemiah), Esdilagh (Alexandria), and Tl’esqox (Toosey).
The Toosey First Nation (or Tl’esqox First Nation) is a Tsilhqot’in First Nation in the Fraser Canyon region of BC. It is 50 km west of Williams Lake. Its Indian Reserves include:
Baptiste Meadow Indian Reserve No 2, on Riske Creek, 5 km northwest of the Riske Creek post office, 2.6 km².
Toosey Indian Reserve No. 1, on Riske Creek, 6 km west of its mouth on the Fraser River. 23.4 km².
Toosey Indian Reserve No. 1A, west of Indian Reserve No. 1, about 0.1 km².
Toosey Indian Reserve No. 3, 5 km east of the mouth of Riske Creek, 0.5 km².
Toosey Chief Frances Laceese in 2014
The reserves are about 40 km south of Williams Lake. Many run and work on farms and cattle ranches, or work in trapping or logging. The band has a woodlot license.
Elders provided information about Tŝilhqot’in land use, language, history, traditions, and laws, which played and will play an important role in legal decisions about Title for the Tŝilhqot’in Nation. This information helps protect important sites from logging and mining operations. It also has a purpose in education about Tŝilhqot’in culture, history, laws, and language.
About the library
This was the first library that Write to Read BC installed. Sponsors included Rotary Club of Williams Lake Daybreak, Rotary Club of Langley Central, and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
Community members in the library’s learning centre at the Tl’esqox library.
The present-day Heiltsuk Band of Indians, formerly Bella Bella, are the main descendants of Hailhzaqvla-speaking peoples who inhabited an area of approximately 15,000 km² in the central coastal region of BC. Heiltsuk traditional territory extends from the southern tip of Calvert Island, up Dean and Burke Channels as far as Kimsquit and the head of Dean Inlet to the northeast, and up the Mathieson and Finlayson Channels to the north. It includes Roscoe, Cousins, and Spiller Inlets, Ellerslie Lake, the outer coast regions of Milbanke Sound, Queens Sound, the Goose Island Group, and Calvert.
The word Heiltsuk
Heiltsuk, according to grandmother Hilistis Beatrice Brown’s personal communication, originally referred to all Aboriginal people or groups elsewhere. For example, the Gitsxan would have been referred to as Heiltsuk. Over time, as Indian Bands and reserves were established, the present-day Heiltsuk Band was initially registered as the Bella Bella Band, then renamed to Heiltsuk as its formal Title name.
There is also reference to Heiltsuk meaning to speak and act in the right way, which reflects a traditional value that was a foundation of our principles and relations.
Heiltsuk College
The Heiltsuk College is a First-Nation-owned community college in Bella Bella. It offers post-secondary academic programs and training. Waglisla Adult Learning Centre is a seamless adjunct of Heiltsuk College and it offers upgrading programs from basic literacy to Adult Dogwood Grade 12 graduation. This educational institution has been in place for approximately 40 years and is housed in a church basement and in two aging portable trailers.
Aboriginal Student Transitions handbook
Based on the history of successful transitions of Heiltsuk College students from Bella Bella to off-reserve continued education or training, IAHLA took notice and wanted to research what made our college unique in this way. When Joann Green was an instructor, she developed a College Survival Skills mini-course that was a mandatory course for any student who planned to leave the community to attend further education or training elsewhere. Its focus is life skills training, but also gave students a practical tool for navigating systems in the city, such as the transit buses, applying for rental housing, etc. The student supports didn’t end when a student left town—they continued to be supported long distance and received encouragement, Heiltsuk food gifts, or whatever else was required to make their transitions easier. IAHLA worked together with UVIC and NVIT to do create the Handbook, and out of this came the ongoing practice of hosting aboriginal students on campuses in order to give them direct experiences and inspire them to move forward. Several Heiltsuk university students have participated and benefited from this initiative including Jessica Humchitt, who is enrolled in Health Sciences at SFU. This wrap-around service is seen as a best practice because it is a natural process that not only supports but also dignifies students.
Facing the shore is the Write to Read BC library in Bella Bella, along with a wooden deck, chairs, table of the Koeye Café. Two boats are pulled up onto the shore.
About the library
In 2019, the community planned an immediate temporary space for an Employment Centre, and a multipurpose structure that would include Heiltsuk College, MCFNTS, and Employment and Training Centre by 2020.
The Bella Bella library is the fifth Write to Read BC library. Sponsors included Rotary Club of Steveston, and Britco Structures (now Boxx Modular).
