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PATON, Sheryl Patricia

Driftwood Obituary
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PATON, Sheryl Patricia

We sadly announce the passing of Sheryl Patricia Paton on September 20, 2023, in Christchurch, New Zealand, aged 67 years. She was the beloved daughter of Shirley and Ken Baker, and sister of Rhonda and Myrene.


Sheryl cherished her role as wife to Rick, mother to Sean, Carina, Kenny, Nicola, and Andrew, mother-in-law to Isaac, Rowena, and Craig, and grandmother to Danielle, Joshua, Ella, Chloe, Leif, and Mira.


In lieu of flowers and cards, please share condolences and memories of Sheryl at https://shorturl.at/suEU6, where details are also given for a gathering in December for all loved ones.

Ferry meeting cancelled due to security fears

Robb Magley
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Ferry meeting cancelled due to security fears

The first meeting of Salt Spring Island’s Ferry Advisory Committee (FAC) since April was cancelled with little warning last week, after ferry officials reported they faced abuse and threats at similar meetings elsewhere. 

BC Ferries issued a notice cancelling — technically “postponing” — the typically biannual meeting abruptly on Thursday, Sept. 28, saying the move had been made on advice of the company’s corporate security personnel. 

“This change is due to aggressive comments made, and behaviours exhibited, at some recent public events,” read the notice. “These instances have raised security concerns for our team and contravene BC Ferries’ zero tolerance policy for abusive behaviour.” 

BC Ferries added: “Over the past several months, our team members have noted a rise in aggressive, threatening and abusive behaviour while out in the community, including the keying of vehicles, shouting, foul language and a disrespect for personal space.”

The company said it would “be back in-person as soon as possible with fulsome safety and security plans to support our staff at these events,” although BC Ferries did not respond to questions about what measures, if any, would be needed on Salt Spring Island before FAC meetings could resume.  

 Salt Spring FAC chair Harold Swierenga said simmering tensions came to a head at the Southern Sunshine Coast FAC meeting the previous week, where one member of the public said they would “take a gun to everyone” if changes weren’t made by BC Ferries. 

“There’s no reference whatsoever to Salt Spring, or any issues we’ve had,” said Swierenga. “None of it happened here, but we’re caught under the same response.” 

Swierenga said he believed BC Ferries would have “some kind of protocol” within the coming weeks, and that the company was consulting with all the regional FAC chairs to find a way forward. Salt Spring’s FAC decided as a group not to switch to an online format at the last minute, as other FACs had considered, believing that an in-person meeting within a week or two was a better option. As well, said Swierenga, matters on their agenda weren’t “immediately critical,” although he regretted having to put off several people who wanted to appear before the committee.

“It’s too bad that this has even come up,” said Swierenga. “I mean, we’ve had some meetings here where there have been strong words, but nothing like this. I’ve never run across this kind of thing before.”

Journalist Angela Sterritt talks about Unbroken book

Contributed Article
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Journalist Angela Sterritt talks about Unbroken book

By ANDREA PALFRAMAN

FOR RAVEN

RAVEN and the Salt Spring Public Library are joining forces for an evening with journalist and author Angela Sterritt, in conversation with Cowichan educator Maiya Modeste (of the Stqeeye’ Learning Society) about Sterritt’s new book, Unbroken. The event is Tuesday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. at ArtSpring, with an option for livestream viewing from home.  

Though the topic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirited (MMIWG2S) people is heavy, Sterritt’s storytelling is incredibly life-affirming. As much as Unbroken is a story of her investigations, frustrations and discoveries, it is also a story about the making of a new kind of journalistic approach and career. By sharing her personal journey, Sterritt invites us to bear witness to the beautiful unfolding of an Indigenous woman emerging from trauma, who through her advocacy and her empathy, becomes a healer.

Bestselling author Tanya Talaga says, “Sterritt’s story is living proof of how courageous Indigenous women are. Listen to her voice and hear the sound of the land, hear the sound of our women weeping but also raging — refusing to be neglected or ignored any longer.”

Unbroken takes a rigorous and unflinching look at the failures of colonial institutions — from the overt genocidal policies of residential schools, to the neglectful incompetence of the social services ministry, police and those charged to protect women, girls and two-spirit peoples.

But the book does not leave readers there.

Sterritt points to the strength, wisdom and power of survivors, and to a new generation of uncompromising leaders who are demanding that we all do better when it comes to protecting those who are most oppressed, and preventing the violence that must never become “just a set of statistics.” Through a broad cast of characters, she reminds us that the human beings at the heart of the MMIWG2S crisis are possessed of solutions, innovations and resiliency that — when they are listened to and centred within the larger story — show a way forward grounded in respect and healing. 

Funds from tickets and the sale of books will be generously donated to RAVEN, an organization that raises legal defence funds for Indigenous nations’ access to justice.

To get tickets for the Oct. 10 event or join the online presentation go to raventrust.com/events/angela-sterritt. Tickets are also available through ArtSpring.

NSSWD shares budget and tax info at open house

Robb Magley
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NSSWD shares budget and tax info at open house

Most customers within Salt Spring Island’s largest water district won’t see any increase in their parcel tax base rate this year, according to district officials, who offered a preview of 2024 that included what might be the region’s only pause in tax hikes. 

But water users will still likely face an increase in per-gallon rates and capital surcharges, according to North Salt Spring Waterworks District’s (NSSWD) financial officer Tammy Lannan, who presented a draft 2024 budget and five-year plan to trustees at their regular meeting held Thursday, Sept. 28.  

In preparation for the new water treatment plant for Maxwell Lake, she said, customers will again see a capital construction surcharge for the second of four years — a phased-in schedule that cost $90 this year, and will come in at $200 in 2024 and $300 in 2025. 

That surcharge is predicted to rise to $400 in 2026, although the last phased-in amount could change as detailed design plans for the Maxwell plant are completed later this year. The surcharge is expected to fund the long-term debt incurred by the plant, currently budgeted at $10 million. 

And for water tolls, the NSSWD board is considering a 10 per cent increase in water rates for 2024 — although Lannan said she expects that to only result in an 8.5 per cent increase in revenue because of the “elastic response” the district noticed over the summer — i.e. customers choosing to use less water when per-gallon costs rise. 

There will also need to be more toll rate increases in upcoming years, Lannan said, admitting rate hikes in the five-year plan were “aggressive” but necessary. 

“We need to save for the long-term debt,” said Lannan. “There have been many years where either the rates were not increased at all, or were only increased one or two per cent. That was just never getting us to a place where we actually have a healthy reserve after paying long-term debt.” 

The draft plan envisions an eight per cent toll increase in 2025, and another five per cent in 2026. 

“I’m hoping in 2027 we can get to a consistent two per cent [annually],” said Lannan. “We were the cheapest district forever. I think we’re now starting to get in line with the rest of the districts, and with the reality of how much it costs to provide water.” 

Notably, parcel tax rates in 2024 will not increase under the draft budget, other than the final phase-in for premiums to properties with multiple units, and properties classed as commercial or institutional. Bare lots, single-family dwellings, farms and stratas will not see a base rate increase in the current budget plan.  

A customer impact report suggests most NSSWD customers will notice a relatively small increase in their annual water tolls — less than $7 per month for about 70 per cent of households, according to the report, if their current usage remains the same. 

“Our single family dwellings, bare land, farms and stratas are mostly going to notice that $110 increase for the long-term debt from Maxwell,” said Lannan.  

The draft budget will be presented to ratepayers at an open house event at Community Gospel Chapel on Thursday, Oct. 5 from 3 to 6 p.m. The budget can also be viewed on the district’s northsaltspringwaterworks.ca website. 

Ballet Kelowna opens ArtSpring season

Contributed Article
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Ballet Kelowna opens ArtSpring season

By Kirsten Bolton for ArtSpring 

Performing for the first time on Salt Spring Island, Ballet Kelowna opens ArtSpring’s much anticipated 2023/24 season with “taqəš and Other Works,” a high-energy three-in-one program featuring a stunning line-up of signature contemporary works on Sunday, Oct.1 at 2:30 p.m.

With Cameron Fraser-Monroe’s powerful and compelling taqəš [tawKESH], Guillaume Côté’s mesmerizing Bolero and Alysa Pires’ vivacious audience favourite MAMBO, the performance promises to please a wide range of audiences.

Cameron Fraser-Monroe brings his classical ballet training, knowledge of traditional Coast Salish, Grass and Hoop Dance, and experience as a contemporary dancer to taqəš (2021) which means “to return something” in Ayajuthem, the language belonging to the Homalco, Klahoose, K’omoks and Tla’amin Nations. Set to several songs by Polaris Prize-winning composer and singer Jeremy Dutcher, taqəš follows the traditional Raven Returns the Water story, centred around raven and frog.

National Ballet of Canada choreographic associate Guillaume Côté brings strength and fragility to a fascinating interpretation of the beloved Bolero by Maurice Ravel, one of music’s most famous and identifiable melodies. In what Dance Magazine called a “riveting tour de force,” Bolero (2012) features breathtaking lifts and virtuosic choreography.

Rounding out the program, audiences will be treated to the Ballet Kelowna commissioned MAMBO (2018) by Pires. The work gained worldwide acclaim after performances at Beijing’s China International Performing Arts Expo and Toronto’s Fall for Dance North Festival in 2018. Pires’ “crowd-pleasing MAMBO” (The Globe and Mail) is a colourful joie de vivre set to a vibrant soundtrack of Latin, swing and jazz standards by musical legends such as Dean Martin, Perry Como, Rosemary Clooney, Sarah Vaughn and more. 

Opening in 2003, Ballet Kelowna presents a dynamic repertoire of neo-classical and contemporary dance and is a leader in commissioning works from emerging and established Canadian choreographers. Dancers include members of First Nations, B.C. and Canadian dancers, and international dancers from Japan and Mexico.  

The performance will feature a post-show talk-back with the artists and choreographers.

Tickets are available online and at the box office, including youth tickets for $5 which ArtSpring hopes will encourage young people and students to experience ballet. More community accessibility is also available through ArtSpring’s new Theatre Angel Program, which puts 20 tickets on sale one week prior to a performance for only $15 each. This season marks ArtSpring’s 25th anniversary, which promises to bring more shows, concerts, workshops and community festivities to the calendar than ever before.

ArtSpring wishes to thank Joan Farlinger, Debbi and Mark Toole, and Salt Spring Coffee for sponsoring the Ballet Kelowna performance, with special thanks to Dance West Network for supporting this presentation.

Electric truck joins Salt Spring’s PARC fleet

Robb Magley
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Electric truck joins Salt Spring’s PARC fleet

EV work trucks, chargers, mowing equipment rolled out in electric effort

The first of two new electric work trucks have landed on the island, according to Parks, Arts, Recreation and Culture (PARC) manager Dan Ovington, who told Salt Spring’s Local Community Commission (LCC) the vehicles would replace both the fleet’s aging gas-powered Chevy and a second truck PARC had been leasing. 

The new EVs are part of PARC’s work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by supporting electric transportation options, according to Ovington. Funding for both vehicles had been set aside from the equipment replacement fund, and the trucks themselves ordered a couple of budget cycles ago. 

“Obviously, we’ve been on the wait list for the last two years,” said Ovington. “We received one yesterday, and there’s some fine tuning to the second one and it should arrive in the next few weeks.” 

In addition to the two new EV trucks, a new charger at the Rainbow Recreation Centre pool has been completed, partly through grant funding, and is fully operational and free of charge for visitors using PARC facilities, recreation programs or services. And late last year, Ovington said, PARC purchased an electric mower to replace another aging machine, for maintaining parks and playing fields. 

“Unfortunately, we’ve had some difficulties with that one,” said Ovington. “So it’s been returned to the manufacturer.” 

Ovington said PARC was working to source a different mower — still electric — from another manufacturer. A greenhouse gas reduction study was recently completed for the Rainbow Recreation Centre, identifying several ways PARC can lower its emissions there; Ovington said staff are including recommendations from that study both in the five-year capital plan and as part of their equipment replacement program.   

PARC’s moves toward electrifying its fleet come as increased demand for electric charging facilities seems to have led to a shift in priorities for BC Hydro, according to LCC member and CRD director Gary Holman — at least in terms of how it views electric vehicle charging on Salt Spring Island. Holman said a meeting set up by the Salt Spring EV Group’s Jim Standen with the provincial utility has led to a “reasonably good possibility” for DC fast chargers on the island, with the first one likely to be sited near current Level-2 chargers at the northwest side of the Country Grocer complex.  

“The devil’s in the details,” said Holman, speaking during the LCC’s Sept. 21 meeting. “But just within the space of a couple years, this is a completely new attitude that BC Hydro has toward Salt Spring specifically, but I think also to smaller communities.” 

Earlier focus, he said, had been on highway-based solutions for larger metropolitan areas. Just a couple of years ago, according to Holman, BC Hydro had no interest in participating in capital, labour or operating expenses for a fast charger on the island — what would have been, and still is, a “several hundred thousand dollar” investment. But given the adoption rate on Salt Spring — and the push by BC Transit toward electrification of its buses, even in rural areas — attention is turning toward those smaller user bases.  

“Salt Spring is on their radar, because we put ourselves on their radar,” said Holman.  

Ovington said Growing Community grant funding had been secured to develop conceptual designs for the CRD property on Kanaka Road — not only to support PARC’s maintenance needs, but as a support and charging location for the eventually all-electric BC Transit buses on Salt Spring.  

“We were approved for close to $500,000,” said Ovington, with a timeframe of five years. 

PARC applied for funds to prepare the site for a future build, including design, clearing the lot and bringing in sewer, water and power. A fabricated steel maintenance facility could also be included with this grant funding, said Ovington — with matching funds from PARC of 25 per cent. 

Ovington called the project “very preliminary” as conceptual designs need to be developed first; LCC member Brian Webster said he felt a site tour for the commission would be appropriate, given some public feedback that envisions other uses for the property. 

“I think commissioners would find it useful to see it relative to Rainbow Road, and in the context of the activities that go on there that are required for PARC,” said Webster, “to make sure either everybody is comfortable, or everybody is clear on the direction.” 

The LCC agreed to schedule a tour before their next meetings in October — an evening town hall meeting planned for 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 12, and a regular meeting commencing at 9 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 19. LCC chair Earl Rook gave a notice of motion indicating that this schedule — evening meetings on the second Thursday of the month and daytime meetings on the third —  was likely to become the norm.  

Park groups aim to collaborate

Robb Magley
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Park groups aim to collaborate

Cooperation trumps competition in Portlock master plan process

The different user groups that had seemingly been competing to advance their preferred visions for Salt Spring’s Portlock Park master planning process are now collaborating together, according to organizers, who believe the give-and-take will help inform a better plan for all islanders. 

The consensus-building was first floated during an evening town hall, held by Salt Spring’s new Local Community Commission (LCC) Aug. 31, as people representing some interest groups that use the park — baseball, soccer, tennis, pickleball, walking and running  — said they felt pitted against one another during the public input phase of park planning.  

Salt Spring’s Parks, Arts, Recreation and Culture (PARC) project team had begun a survey process early this year as part of developing a 20-year master plan for improvements to aging infrastructure at Portlock Park — identified as a priority in 2019 during PARC’s strategic planning process. And in August, a new survey offered three conceptual designs for the community to pick from, incorporating changes that could have removed the extant running track completely, or avoided building the long-requested new senior ball field altogether. 

At the Sept. 14 regular LCC meeting, baseball advocate and coach Blaine Johnson told commissioners that something of a summit meeting had taken place between the various user groups, and that everyone seemed happier working together to craft a plan that functioned— at least, mostly — for all groups. 

“We met as a [single] organization,” said Johnson, adding that the group included advocates for baseball, running, soccer and pickleball. “We were all willing to bend a fairly large amount to make a better facility up there. We realized we are willing to all work together [to] make Portlock the best thing we can.” 

On Sept. 21, as the LCC continued its meeting, PARC manager Dan Ovington told commissioners he’d since met with representatives of that new multi-user coalition, who were coming to an agreement on what the conceptual design could look like, and would be bringing him a mock-up of the result. 

“Which I think is great,” said Ovington. “So then I will take whatever information they give me, I’ll include it with all the information we’ve heard from the community, and I’ll bring it all to the LCC for consideration.” 

Dragons finish year on high note 

Contributed Article
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Dragons finish year on high note 

Last races with team for founding coach Mary Rowles 

by Donna Cochran

Salt Spring’s dragon boat team brought home a bronze medal in the top grand final mixed division at Comox on the Sept. 16-17 weekend. It was a thrilling way to end the 2023 dragon boat festival season.  

The Comox Marina Park venue in beautiful Comox Bay was the perfect setting for the festival and it was organized for the first time by Vancouver Island Paddling. The one-day event featured 200-metre sprints in both standard boat (20 paddlers) and small boat (10 paddlers) in women’s and mixed divisions. Spirit Point raced in the standard boat mixed division. Their times from the first two races placed them in the top mixed division grand final, third fastest out of nine mixed teams.  

We faced two tough races against Dragon Riders and Navy Dragon Anchors — both teams that had been way ahead of our team in past competitions. With combined times of the semi-final and two rounds of the grand final, Spirit Point posted a very impressive bronze finish with a time of 1:55.1. That was 1.3 seconds behind second-place finisher Dragon Riders at 1:53.8. First place went to Navy Dragon Anchors at 1:49.8. These were the three fastest posted times of the 30 teams in the festival.

Paddlers included Cora Platz, Donna Cochran, Mary Lou Cuddy, Lisana Dodd, Shari Macdonald, Audrey Denton, Sheena Frisch, Robyn Huntley, Melynda Okulitch, Wendy McEachern, Ann Marie Davidson, Wendy Andrews, Michael Peirce, John Ortlepp, Sam Goddard, Andrew Okulitch, Janet Bright, Gwyneth Ortlepp, Chloé Frisch and Chris Ortlepp.  Special thanks to guest paddler Mahdu Bannur from Fairway Gorge Momentum Club.  

A huge shout out to retiring coach Mary Rowles, who called the first two races and paddled for the final two, and to assistant coach Lynda Green for calling the two exciting grand final races. 

Our nimble steersperson Tom McKeachie and “attention to detail” team manager Barry Green rounded out the team roster.

It was our last official race with Rowles, our long-time coach and friend who has moved to Metchosin to be closer to her own outrigger team at Fairway Gorge paddling club. Rowles started the dragon boat team in 2006, so this is her 18th year as coach. She has helped the team grow and thrive, encouraging paddlers young and old. 

Our practices were on Long Harbour when we started out and now are on St. Mary Lake. In every type of weather, Rowles was at the front of the boat keeping us in time with shouts of encouragement, sometimes using very salty language. But she always used good humour and a focus on improving our technical skills, building great team spirit and, most of all, having fun. She will greatly missed! 

Thanks for everything, Mary. 

Growing apples on Salt Spring: then and now

Contributed Article
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Growing apples on Salt Spring: then and now

Upcoming festival gets historical context

By Brian Webster

Nearly a quarter of the way through the 21st century, many Salt Spring Island residents are painfully aware of shortages: housing, drinking water, ferry staff and — during tourist season — a shortage of peace and quiet.

But there’s no shortage of skeptics on Salt Spring. So, when some refer to the island as “Canada’s Hawaii,” there’s (justifiable) rolling of the eyes. When the Province promises to repave Ganges Hill any day now… well, we’ll believe it when we see it.

So it’s understandable if skeptics doubt that Salt Spring was once western Canada’s centre of apple growing and doubly doubt whether our island can ever again rate as anything more than a novelty grower of the fruit.

After all, China produces more than 45 million tonnes of apples each year, half of the world’s total production. And Canada produces considerably less than half a per cent of that amount, ranking a mere 33rd on the list of world apple growing countries, trailing Serbia, Moldova and Algeria, among many others.

Apples are big. Canada really isn’t. And Salt Spring is a speck on Canada’s drop in the bucket.

But things were once different.

If you visited Salt Spring Island around the turn of the 20th century, you were far more likely to bump into an apple tree than a human being. An 1891 census of the island reported 435 residents, while an 1894 report by the B.C. government indicated that the apple tree population — planted by settlers over the previous two decades — was closing in on 14,000. By early in the 20th century, Salt Spring was shipping 360 tonnes of apples off the island annually. Barges carried this bounty to the mainland, where trains loaded up and transported Salt Spring apples as far east as Winnipeg.

Apples played a significant role in the settling of Salt Spring by Europeans as well as African Americans, Hawaiians and others. Unsurprisingly (although still disturbingly), it’s hard to find historical references to Indigenous peoples participating in Salt Spring’s apple growing boom, given that history as written by settlers largely ignored them in every respect.

Apple trees grew well in Salt Spring’s moderate climate and they didn’t mind the island’s uneven topography and rocky soils. While they originated in Asia and were increasingly grown everywhere in the world that wasn’t tropical or arctic, apples were particularly well suited to Salt Spring.

Apple growing continued to be significant on our island, until it wasn’t. By the 1920s, technological advances allowed vast arid areas such as B.C.’s Okanagan Valley and eastern Washington State to be irrigated and planted. Cheap fossil fuels dramatically lowered shipping costs, making viable huge orchards located far from their markets. Salt Spring’s small orchards couldn’t compete, so a sector that had been important to our island shrivelled to semi-irrelevance, except for local consumption.

Leap forward a century and Salt Spring is now a different place. More than 11,000 residents live on the island, few of them engaged in agriculture. Yet, in small ways, apple growing is coming back.

People like Harry Burton (Apple Luscious Organic Orchard), Charlie Eagle, Jessica Kavanaugh and John Pattison (Bright Farm), Bob Weeden (Whims Farm) and Salt Spring Apple Company, run by Peri Lavender and me, grow significantly diverse collections of apple varieties, even if our orchards are tiny by commercial standards. Almost certainly, there are more than 500 different apple varieties being grown here on the island.

Our harvests are sold on Salt Spring, on Vancouver Island and — increasingly — Salt Springers use them to make distinctive value-added products like cider and distilled spirits that can be sold much farther afield.

The number of people employed on Salt Spring in apple growing and processing is still very small, but it’s growing. And as Salt Springers, as well as folks living in nearby urban centres, increasingly look to learn more about they food they eat and the people who grow it, Salt Spring Island apple orcharding is experiencing a modest resurgence.

This Sunday’s Salt Spring Island Apple Festival is a great opportunity to explore our evolving world of apples. Fulford Hall will feature a display of the dozens and dozens (okay, hundreds) of apple varieties that produced fruit here on Salt Spring during 2023, collected from orchards up, down and across the island. The festival’s self-guided orchard tour includes historic orchards such as Ruckle Farm and Beddis Castle among its 17 stops, as well as modern orchards like Apple Luscious and Salt Spring Apple Company. You can visit value-added producers such as Salt Spring Wild Cider, Salt Spring Apple Company’s Ciderworks and the brand-new Sweetwater Distilling Co. And food options are numerous.

Apple growing on Salt Spring has had its ups and downs, but continues to play a role in maintaining and enriching the rural fabric of our island. Skeptics will always be an island staple and so are delicious, crunchy, sweet, tart apples of every shape and size.

Coming Home campaign launched 

Gail Sjuberg
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Coming Home campaign launched 

10-acre parcel of land anchors Stqeeye’ projects 

Part of the Truth and Reconciliation journey involves learning about Indigenous people’s history and connections to one’s community. For residents of Salt Spring and the other Gulf Islands, there is lots to learn.  

For example, Xwaaqu’um (pronounced “hoo-wah-kwum” and also known as Burgoyne Bay) is the site of a Quw’utsun (Cowichan) village that was inhabited until colonization occurred about 150 years ago. 

One of Maiya Modeste’s ancestors was the chief of that village, and she and others involved with the Stqeeye’ Learning Society (SLS) are excited about an opportunity that will see the non-profit society acquire a 10-acre parcel of land in Xwaaqu’um. 

The land purchase and project are the subject of a $2-million fundraising effort called the ‘mi tse’t’akw’ (Coming Home) Campaign, which was publicly launched Sept. 16 at the Mateada Convergence event in Ganges. 

Just under half of the cost is for the land purchase itself, which came about in a “meant-to-be” kind of way.

Modeste told the Driftwood last week that SLS had been seeking a parcel of land for its activities for a long time, and members were working hard to acquire one in the Burgoyne Valley, but all sorts of barriers kept popping up to make it unworkable. Then one day at a strategic planning meeting they were approached by a couple who said they had a property at Xwaaqu’um that they wanted to see go to people who loved the land as much as they did. 

“They said, ‘We couldn’t picture any better people to take over this property.’ So it was so special.”

About $500,000 has been raised from generous individuals and foundations to date, and those involved are eager to see the purchase completed and improvements initiated. Plans include upgrading an existing residence for Quw’utsun Elders to live in, creating a base of operations for a youth-focused, land-based education program, a native plant nursery and SLS staff housing. The vision is to create a special place for weaving together food security, stories and community.

“It’s been a really amazing journey so far,” said Modeste, “and we’ve just felt an overwhelming amount of support from the community. I think there’s just such a need and a desire for relationships with us, with Indigenous people of the land. A lot of people will say that it is an enriching experience to connect with the Indigenous people of the land, because we look at the land in such a different way. There’s so much appreciation, reciprocity, relationship and knowledge that a lot of people weren’t aware of, and it’s been strategically withheld from the general public. I think we’re coming to a time where Indigeneity is celebrated. And I think a lot of people are looking for truth. They’re looking for people like us to learn from and I think to have a space to do that is just so heartwarming.”

Stqeeye’ (pronounced Stah-kay-uh) has had a presence in Xwaaqu’um in Burgoyne Bay Provincial Park lands for a number of years. A watershed restoration project has been ongoing, as well as Youth on the Land camps and other activities connecting youth with Elders and traditional knowledge keepers. 

Modeste is the Garry oak ecosystem restoration coordinator. Her partner Tyee Joseph is a water data technician, and both were originally volunteers with the society. 

“It’s been a pleasure to work with the Stqeeye’ Learning Society,” said Joseph. “I’ve learned a lot in the past couple of years, working with experts in the field. It’s been very hands-on and that’s the way I really like to learn.”

He also appreciates being involved with a group that has a positive impact on both Indigenous youth and the environment.

“To be able to say that we helped even a little bit in creating wetlands or getting some youth in contact with culture — and to practise culture on the land would have been illegal for a long time — it feels really good to be able to say that we’ve helped to heal some of those intergenerational wounds, even if it is a small bit.”

But he and Modeste look forward to transferring operations from land under BC Parks jurisdiction to a private setting, as there are certain restrictions and permitting issues connected to activities in the provincial park. 

Having a native plant nursery on the property is another exciting part of the plan, as plants used in Xwaaqu’um restoration work are currently grown in the Cowichan Valley and trucked over to the island. 

An area to grow culturally significant plants would also show people what sustainable living looked like in the pre-colonization period, said Joseph, and traditional meals could be prepared there. 

People who have participated in or witnessed Quw’utsun cultural activities on Salt Spring may be familiar with Modeste, Joseph and Modeste’s grandfather Tsoulim (Ron George). Tsoulim is an Elder and member of the Tzinquaw Dancers who often speaks at public events. His great grandfather was the chief of Xwaaqu’um village, so Tsoulim is its hereditary chief, as the eldest surviving brother in his family, explained Modeste. 

Facilitating the family’s return to Xwaaqu’um has immense meaning and an underlying urgency. 

“There’s really a fire under us to get our Elders home. My grandfather’s health is declining and we just want him to be able to rest there; to be in his traditional territory. He has a right and a responsibility to that land, and he expresses that all the time.” 

To learn more about the Coming Home campaign and how to donate, and to see a short film made by Alex Harris with Modeste talking about the project, visit the stqeeye.ca/land website.

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