The Burnaby Village Museum is made up of homes and buildings from the city’s past with staff looking like they stepped out of the 1920s, inviting people to explore Burnaby’s history.
But in recent years, the museum has looked farther back with a program that works with local First Nations, building relationships and sharing their stories, culture and history.
Many people don’t know the First Nations history in the area and some aspects can be surprising, like how many archeological sites there are in the city.
There’s even one very close to the museum itself, according to Carleen Thomas, one of the First Nation educators at the site.
“It’s a great conversation starter for educational programs, for the students,” she says. “We try to help them picture what was there – the animals that were there, the First Nations that were there, and how we were maybe trading with the pioneers that were there.
“It’s a great beginning, to open people’s minds,” Thomas adds.
Thomas, who belongs to the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, is also the Nation’s relationship and protocol coordinator.
While some people know Burnaby is part of the unceded Coast Salish territories, they don’t always know the specific First Nations that lived here. The museum has been working with First Nations such as the Tsleil-Waututh, Musqueam, Kwantlen, Squamish and Kwikwetlem Nations, to research their history in the area and share local First Nations stories and culture with visitors to the museum.
“When I do presentations for them, it’s about Burrard Inlet and Burnaby, because it’s within our traditional territory,” she says. “The name (Tsleil-Waututh) in our language means people of the inlet, which refers directly to the Burrard Inlet, Indian River and Indian Arm – so I think it is very much a part of who we are, the whole area.”
The educators use traditional and personal storytelling, singing and dancing to teach students about the local First Nations. They also teach students words from the Halqeméylem and Skwxwú7mesh languages.
T’uy’tanat-Cease Wyss, who is of Squamish, Sto:lo, metis, Hawaiian and Swiss heritage, is also an educator and presenter at the museum.
Wyss became connected with the museum through her work as a guide with Takaya Tours, a First Nations eco-tourism venture. Takaya Tours is owned and operated by the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, and specializes in teaching the traditions of Coast Salish culture.
Now she also works as an educator at the museum, specializing in Indigenous plant knowledge.
“I introduce people to the forest and talk about it being an ancient place,” she explains. “So I refer to rocks and grandfathers and plants as grandmothers, so in a natural setting you’re in your grandparents’ home.
“It helps people to connect through understanding the respect that Indigenous people have for their natural world, and how we view plants – that whether we use them for food, medicine or utilitarian purposes, it doesn’t matter, they’re all equally the same regarding how we care for them and we don’t gather without asking permission, and we never take more than we need,” she adds.
Like many of the museum staff, Wyss is glad that First Nations are now represented at the museum. She is passionate about sharing her stories and songs.
“I really feel that the cultural handshake it creates is deep and meaningful and very uplifting,” she says. “And it’s a great addition to the Burnaby Village Museum exhibitions here.”
Sanya Peshakov, the museum programs coordinator, agrees that including First Nations at Burnaby’s primary historical attraction was important.
“Before at the Burnaby Village Museum, we just didn’t talk about First Nation history in Burnaby, and we really wanted to change that,” she says. “So our first step was really reaching out and talking to local First Nations – Musqueam, Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, Kwantlen and Kwikwetlem, for example. And it was really a focus on relationship building, because we were really starting at the museum from nothing.”
The museum is still focused on relationship building, Peshakov says, adding it is the most important thing to keep in mind. The intention is to make sure local First Nations representation at the museum is done in the best way, rather than focusing on an end result.
Consulting with First Nations and maintaining those relationships is an essential part of the process, helping the museum be respectful of the cultures and follow local First Nations protocols.
The museum also has research agreements with the Musqueam, Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and Kwantlen nations and has been working on a large research project with them.
Peshakov hopes locals will begin to see how much First Nations history and culture are a part of where they live.
“I think people now are recognizing how important Indigenous history is to the bigger story, and it helps us understand how we got to where we are today,” she says. “A lot of this information will be, I think, a surprise to people in Burnaby when they find out just how rich this history is here. It’s exciting to think that we’re going to be sharing this.”
First Nations presentations and activities take place in the village’s multi-purpose room. There is a large floor map of Indigenous Burnaby, which is used for teaching. Visitors can also explore a puppet theatre, wooden puzzles and more.
The First Nations Stories and Education programs are funded by the Ministry of Canadian Heritage and the City of Burnaby, as part of Canada 150 and Burnaby 125 celebrations.
For more information, go to www.tinyurl.com/BbyVillageFirstNations2017.
CHECK IT OUT
Every Saturday from noon to 4 p.m., members of the local Coast Salish community will be on hand at Burnaby Village Museum to share their knowledge and stories. Here’s an overview of upcoming presentations:
July 22: Wayne Point,Indigenous archeology
Wayne Point is a member of the Musqueam First Nation and works for the nation as an archeology technician and field worker. He is also learning to make tools used by his ancestors.
July 29: Rickard Fillardeau and Helen Carr, beading and wool weaving
Kwantlen Elder Rickard Fillardeau, or Uncle, will be sharing his weaving skills, which he learned from his mother-in-law Josephine Kelly. She helped start the Salish Weavers. He has been weaving for more than 46 years and teaching weaving at schools for 16 years.
Kwantlen Elder Helen Carr, who prefers to be called Auntie, has been teaching beading alongside Rickard Fillardeau for years. She teaches beading as part of the Aboriginal curriculum in Langley schools. She speaks Halqeméylem when mentioning colours and numbers.
August 5: T’uy’tanat-Cease Wyss, Aboriginal nedicinal plant tours
T’uy’tanat-Cease Wyss is an Indigenous plant educator and interdisciplinary artist of Skwxwú7mesh, Sto:lo, Metis, Hawaiian and Swiss heritage. She is also a guide with Takaya Tours, a First-Nations eco-tourism venture owned and operated by the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, which shares the traditions of the Coast Salish culture.
August 12: Wayne Point, Indigenous archeology
August 19: T’uy’tanat-Cease Wyss, aboriginal medicinal plant tours
August 26: Rickard Fillardeau and Helen Carr, beading and wool weaving
September 2: T’uy’tanat-Cease Wyss, aboriginal medicinal plants
