 Welcome everyone, my name is Joelle Johnston, Tenoia Psiiam, Tenoia Psiiait, Joann Haqfinch-Walewin, Joelle Queen-Snaa, Tanaachunclaa, Aslahan Okomeo. I'd just like to welcome everyone here today. It gives me good feelings, my heart to see you all in the audience. My name is Joelle Johnston. I come from the village of Aslahan, just over in the Squamish Nation. And I'm very excited to be here with you today. It is my honour and pleasure to be the emcee for the duration of this event. We ask that you please mute your electronic devices at this time until the ceremony has concluded. I would like to start by respectfully acknowledging that we are on the unceded Musqueam, Slewetuth and Squamish Nation territories, the ancestral and traditional territories that we are gathered on here today. I'd like to extend a warm welcome to our special guests from our host nations, Chief Jen Thomas of the Slewetuth Nation, Halakdyn, Aaron Nelsen-Moody, Austin Harry from the Squamish Nation. Oh, sorry. And Master Carvers, Demsi Bob, Stan Bevan and Lionel Grant, to Tamahu, Tamara, Derek, Lardy, Lady Gould, LaMose Gould, Lardy, Hinemi Ha Ta, Lardy, Ta Ning Mo, Clay, Brydie London, Chancellor Carleen Thomas, to Board Chair Dawn Avison, to emcee, ECU intern, President Trish Kelly and MLA Joan Philip, to all the ECU students, staff and faculty who join us, and of course to Brenda Crabbtree, who worked so hard to bring this to out and polled to the ECU, and to Keiola Morwood, Sydney Pickering and Zoe Lake-Hawk of the Aboriginal Gathering Place who supported Brenda in this work and have been central to bringing us all here today. Thank you for being a part of this momentous occasion. I would also like to thank our generous contributors, the Government of British Columbia at the First Peoples Cultural Council, Native Northwest, the Native Growth Foundation and our media partner, the Georgia Strait, as well as Vita Fu-Beaster and Tim Van Beeson, Chief Janice George and Buddy Joseph, who are in attendance here today. And many other generous donors who contributed to the campaign. We are here for the unveiling of the Pacific Song of the Ancestor's Tonepole, created by Master Carver's Dempsey Bob Stan Bevan, landlino grant, in collaboration with a number of artists and carvers in their respective communities. This is a very special moment and you'll hear this poll is the works of many years. Many communities and many individuals, including Brenda Crabbtree, who was with us here today. In the Aboriginal Gathering Place at Emily Carr who are hosting this event. Before we get our first look at the Tonepole and its new home, we have some honoured guests in attendance who will be providing for remarks. First, I'd like to call upon a couple of cultural witnesses. Cultural witnesses are very important as it continues the oral tradition that we have within Indigenous communities. So I'd like to call upon MLA Joan Philip. If I could please call Shiloh Mitchell to witness this event, could you please stand up? Great, thank you. Each of you is asked to bear witness to this ceremony so that you may share your experience, reflection and connection to what has transpired at the end of this ceremony. I would now like to call upon Slewa Tuth Elder, Carline Thomas, Chancellor of Emily Carr University at Arts and Design to speak. Hau si, emni si, aia. Ait tanishkwaloan ku'tzi, ku'ts nala i hui i. What I said to you, my respected ones, the feelings I have are really good. I feel really happy to see you and to be with you here today. And as our host said, I am the Chancellor here at Emily Carr University and just thanking you again for joining us today. As you'll hear from other esteemed guests this afternoon, there are many reasons for the Pacific Song of the Ancestor's Totem Pole is special. For a lifelong educator like me, one of the primary reasons is what it represents, an investment in our students. All of us at Emily Carr share something in common. We believe in serving students. We believe that empowering their education, wellness, and success is a key part of building a better world. As you'll hear, that goal animated the career of Brenda Crabtree, who worked tirelessly on this and many other projects and led Aboriginal programs at Emily Carr University for more than 20 years. That goal was also on the minds of our master carvers, Demsi Bob and Stan Bevan, who brought student carvers on board to help create the Smig, Nificent Totem Pole. In fact, the Pacific Song of the Ancestor's was first conceived as a way of honouring the work at the Aboriginal Gathering Place and Emily Carr University has done to connect with Indigenous students in Northern BC in partnership with Coast Mountain College and the Frida Dising School of Northwest Coast Art. For students, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous, this work of art represents decades of connection, building and outreach in service of a broader, more inclusive community. All the people who worked on this project and all of us who work here commit to this work because we believe in you, because we see your talents, your drive, your thoughtfulness. We see your seriousness and your heart. You deserve a learning culture that matches your promise, a learning culture that matches your range and your passion. All of us here today in our own ways and our own communities are committed to contributing to such a culture. That is the larger project I see reflected in this work of art. It's the larger project that drives us to carve, to create, to read, to teach, to write, to talk and to listen. It is a project of recognizing and honouring our differences as well as what we have in common. It's a project of building and strengthening interconnection and of fostering communication and collaboration. It's a project we devote ourselves to as a way of investing in you, our students. I hope you see yourselves reflected in this vision of the future as we see this vision reflected in you. Thank you so much for your time, for taking the time to be here today. Next, I'd like to... We've had some changes here. So what I'll do right now is send you my elected chief's regrets, chief Dan Thomas of the Slewa Tepnation had an emergency come up. So she's asked me to step into her place. And so I'll just continue what I started earlier. O siam nit siiaia. Ait tenush kwa luwen. Kut sii kut snale i hui i. Anta ansahalot. Anta mana sentalia i kwa slahot siam. So what I said was my respected ones, the feelings I have inside are really good to see you and to be here with you today. I introduced myself to you with my ancestral name. I carry the name ansahalot. I shared a little bit of my family tree with you. We do that for a number of reasons, but the most important is that it informs you, the audience that I know who I am and I know where I come from. My parents are Deanna George and the late hereditary chief Ernie George or Iggy, as his friends called him. My grandparents are both sets of my grandparents have passed on. My paternal grandparents are the late hereditary chief John L. George and Lillian or Dolly, as her friends called her. My maternal grandparents are the late Stan Joseph from the Squamish Nation and Caroline Thomas Ni Joseph Ni Trimble. She comes from the Snenemo, the Nanaimo people on Vancouver Island and Ginkola, the Niskup people up in the Nass Valley. And just raising my hands here, it's a gesture of welcome here in Coast Salish territory. Hi, SEPCA, thank you all of you. Amit Sepwitwil, I'm welcoming you here to the homelands and waters of the Musqueam, the Squamish and the South of people. So welcome. Thank you, Caroline Thomas. I would like to call upon Halakden, Aaron Nelson-Moodie and Austin Harry from the Squamish Nation. Asya, m'n si'ai. We'd like to welcome you to our friends and relatives who are here for the great work we're celebrating. So pleased to see our dear leader, Caroline, come up here, speak as a leader of our communities, a leader for our families. We're sort of makers, we're more comfortable sitting in a room by ourselves making stuff than we are standing up on stage. But we wanted our ancestors who are gathered here, who are wondering what's happening today. We wanted them to know that you're here and welcome in our territories, that you're friends and family from a variety of places, but we want to introduce you to our ancestors in a way that they'll hear from the afterlife. So we'll be sharing a few songs with you. But we mostly want to know, or want you to know that you're so welcome here. And it's such a beautiful day to celebrate this beautiful work and the beautiful work that's been done physically, but also the beautiful work of these people who've shared so much of their culture with the young ones. If you speak to any of these people, they're rushing from one place to another this week, helping community. They're spread thin. So they've also made time to prepare the next generation to do this work in such a beautiful and generous way. So we'd just like to honour them today. I'll see them. Thank you, Holactyn Splash in Austin. And now Chancellor Thomas and Brenda Cabci will unveil the Pacific Song of the Ancestor's Totem Pole. Carvers of the Pacific Song of the Ancestor's will now carry out the Carver's Dance. Our first song is the Wolf's Song. It's our first song. The second one was the Tarmigan Song. In the Tarmigan Song, the women would sing this song and use their handkerchiefs. And they used to scare the Tarmigan up the hill and they would set a snare like in the circle. And the Tarmigan would dance up and be snare. That's how the talcans come. This last song, we want to balance it with a raven song. It was our humane crest of my nation, so. And this song is my grandfather's brother's song. Anyways, when he was young, he had lots of growth, but the people were talking about it. So he made up this song and said, leave me alone. God, give me this. I want to work hard on earth to be happy, so leave me alone. I'm married, brothers and sisters. I'm my wife, too, for their support. And for the university, too, she believe in our art, believe in our culture. Art is important because art is what makes us human, makes us people. Art is what makes us civilized. And our art is who we are. It's in here. We say this day is one more time for our ancestors. I did it for my mother. Thank you. Hoitaka Oseem, Dempsey Bob, for sharing those beautiful words and songs with us. I'd like to invite Tama Ho, Tama Wray up to the stage. Te Rani, watawhitao te Rani, kakea mai, kote tapu, kote manau, kote mauri o na hātua. Ihau ama i no i o matua kore, ahakata kina, kiruna ki e nei tauna, i o mahera, iuna ki te nei papa, e papatata kinoa, fati ruku noa, fati rani, iuna whakae, ke kia tūki te Rani, iuhi aite mauri haumi e, iuhi e. Toast, kōtau te iwi o Maskqfiam, S ו domest, SLAV dooth. Te mihi maihoatua, nga i yā mahtā, nā ma slopes ki te aafina i wataite tātana topana teina o ratoa Te aera Kathiu i te pikaero i tai pri aute repair i烓aniu i tāta, e tūnei iru nei doctors tō fenua i te rani nei. Tēnē te mihinui me toa mātau maimai aroha i nātīpuna e whakārā nei hinu i te pau nei. Tēnē tātau whakau hui hui mainei i te ahā i te whakārā nei i te pau i ngā mahi anātohuna e e toru nei e enoho nei i te taha o tēnē rana tira wahinei ana nei te kaupapa i whakārā kē hei ahā hei paina mo tātau te iwi. Nōrera e hikama tēnē te mihinui maio hake maia mātau o tō i Māori aotearoa a hako anā iwi huua kai wainanui i mātau i tēnē rā. Tēnē te hāramai nei ki te tāwafi i te kaupapa tō mātau rana tira nei tōa whakāiro, tōhuna whakāiro o rotoa o Aotearoa, Lionel Ground. Tēnē te hāramai nei te tautoko i aakuta. Ladies and gentlemen, kia ora, greetings. These are our people made up of many tribes from Aotearoa who have come over here to support i aatohuna whakāiro, Lionel Ground, to witness the unveiling of this magnificent totem pole carved by our brothers and sisters from the Northwest Terrace BC in 1991, the former general manager of tō i Māori aotearoa, Māori arts New Zealand, Gary Nicholas had the opportunity to connect with Dempsey Bob. Ever since then we've had the connection with the indigenous peoples right up in the northwest coast of America and Canada. It goes beyond that, beyond our whakāiro art form, beyond what you see on the wood. We share our art forms because what are we doing? We're uplifting ourselves as indigenous artists separated by water of the Pacific Ocean. Our ancestors were able to traverse that mighty ocean of the Pacific and find their way back home. Stories have come through from the northwest connecting us. Some of our ancestors crash landed on your lands. They nursed them back to health. They brought up their well-being. They even fixed their canoes. But why go back to our islands when we could share our culture, our language and definitely our arts? This is why tō i Māori aotearoa is here today. This is why the representatives are here today. Because of what we call te aho mūtunakore, the thread that binds us through our arts, through our culture, through our language is why we are here. To uplift our people in institutions such as Emily Carr. We had the privilege in 2014 to meet Brenda Kerabtri who bought with her a whole lot of resources, a whole lot of people with her to connect through our arts. And this is why we are here today. Looking out at our future partnerships, how we can do that. But at the same time remembering who our people are. We have to take our tribes with us. We have to take our nations with us in order for us to move forward. And how we do that back in Aotearoa in New Zealand is through the well-being of our arts. Whether it be through wood, visual arts, clay, stone, bone, our traditional wakaform which we've shared with your cultures since 2009. The exchanges that happen between our artists to keep our connections alive. That which happened thousands of years ago and we're still doing it today. We are only following in the footsteps of our ancestors. And so we are honoured to be here amongst you. Ehikama, the three nations that reside here on these lands. Musqueam, Squamish, Sleavertooth. Of all had the pleasure of meeting you on our byways. On the highways that our ancestors were using to travel up and down the North West Coast. And we share this with you, our tohuna, our master kaava, Lionel Grant. Who has come over to express his knowledge and wisdom in amongst great friends that we've established from so long ago. So, from the organisational view of toi Māori, we look forward to continuing this relationship with the Emily Carr University. Noreta, hūrino tō tātou no whare, te nā koutou, te nā koutou, te nā nā tātou kato. Hōchka, Ōsiam. Thank you so much for your beautiful words and your songs. I'm going to interview another song. That's the song for her. The family Emily Carr University Arts and Design would like to recognise our Māori guests for honouring us with their gifts of creativity and presence. We will be blanketing them to show them our love and care and respect. Confident my name. Hōchka, Ōsiam. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. I'd now like to call upon Virginia Bob, Linda Bob, LeVetta McNeill, who will carry out the Northern Protocol. Thank you so much. The family here at Emily Carr University would like to recognise Virginia, Linda and LeVetta for honouring us with their Northern Protocol. We will be blanketing you to show you our love, thanks and care. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. It is now my pleasure to introduce Brenda Crabtree. Brenda retired earlier this year after 23 years with the Aboriginal Gathering Place. As director of the Aboriginal Programs at ECU and Special Advisor to the President on Indigenous Initiatives, along with Dempsey, Brenda has been the driving force behind bringing the Pacific Song of the Ancestors to Emily Carr. Brenda belongs to the Spuzum Band and has both Incla, Pamuk and Stolo ancestry. Welcome, Brenda. Thank you. I'm even more emotional now than I was when I walked in the door this morning and these are really tough acts to follow. It's no secret that I've had the best job at Emily Carr for the last 23 years. As I'm looking out in the crowd, so many of you were part of making that happen for me. I just came to Emily Carr with no real experience in the Emily Carr community and my family supported me. Here I am just with these amazing community and family connections and for that I thank you. Part of the job included community outreach with Indigenous communities throughout BC and Emily Carr has had a long-standing collaborative exchange with Frida Deasing, School of Northwest Coast Art and Terrace, named after Frida, Dempsey's carving teacher and mentor. Frida attended our Vancouver School of Art and Dempsey wanted to honour Frida with this totem pole. The pole began its journey in Terrace. It started with a phone call with Dempsey as so many projects do, telling me there was a large red cedar log that would be great for a totem pole for Emily Carr. And so it began. The log was delivered and prepped in Stan's carving studio and it was decided that it was imperative to have a Maori component to the pole and that imperative component of course was Lionel Grant. It's an honour and a privilege to have these precious connections to our Maori family and our Northern family bound by the waters of the Pacific Ocean. It's a testimony to the importance of connection, reconnection and collaboration for Indigenous artists. The project focused on engaging Indigenous artists in promotion and perpetuation of intergenerational cultural knowledge and traditional and contemporary art forms. The totem pole embraces the transfer of cultural and artistic knowledge to current and future generations. I want you to hear more about the totem pole story and the design elements from the carvers so I'm gifting my extra four minutes of the speech to Dempsey Bob and I will appreciate this after. Lastly, as we approach National Truth and Reconciliation Day and honour the children and survivors of residential school, I want to send health, healing and love to those of you who are on the path of truth and reconciliation and I dearly thank you for supporting me. Thank you. Thank you Brenda. I'd like to call upon the Talatan-Tinglet Master Carver, Dempsey Bob. Dempsey, along with Stan Bevan and Ken Gnill is co-founder of the Frida Deasing School of Northwest Coast Art and Terrace BC. Welcome Dempsey. It's emotional. I just want to thank Brenda. I want to thank Emily Carr. I want to thank my family, my sisters, my nephew Stan Bevan. I was lucky that I was fortunate that I had my grandparents and they told me the stories and my mother because they were only the only ones that believed that I could do it, that I could do it as an artist. I'd also like to thank the Maori, our Maori brothers and sisters because I know the art road, the art path is a struggle. It's always a struggle. It's good, but it's bad too sometimes. But when it's good, it's really good. I think that's why we do it. But I was lucky to have people like Brenda in our lives too to support the artists. We can't do it alone. And my wife Margaret and my daughter and my son, my grandkids, especially my sisters and my nephews, supported our dance group, supported me always when I needed help. I did it all by myself. I was lucky I was born into a family of artists too because my grandmother was an artist. My grandmother's father was a carver from Huna, Alaska. He was clinket. My grandmother's clinket. My great-grandmother was a weaver. Also on my grandfather's side, my father was Johnny Sincourt's carlick. His family were song composers and storytellers. They were also healers. So that knowledge was there. And I was lucky I listened. I only wish I listened more. I had the privilege of working with Lionel Grant. I called him the Michelangelo of the Marys and somebody was bugging me that kept saying to me, like, who are you? Who are you? And I said, I'm Dempsey Bob. I said, what do you do? You're a carver. I'm a carver, I told him. And the guy knew Lionel really well and finally what I said, I told him, I'm the Lionel Grant of Canada. Then he quit bugging me. He took off. But that's the only way I could get rid of him. I feel really good today because we finally got to pull up and it's a beautiful day and I want to thank everybody for coming and witnessing this. Our traditional way is that we always have witness to witness our deeds, what we've done. And today is a special day because when we raise our totem poles, it's the first time that people see us standing like a tree. And our traditional way is when it falls, we give it back to Mother Nature and we say our great-great-grandchildren will carve that. That's what we believe. We just borrowed it and it was a privilege to work with Lionel because his knowledge and skill, his skill level, it's amazing. And I had the privilege of working with the Māris and they challenged us. And what they did too, they were spying on us but we were spying on them too. What they did was they took it in and they sort of twisted it on us but we did the same to them too but we didn't tell them. Out of this great relationship though came this pole and our sharing because what we believe if you share it, you make it stronger and that's what we did with our brothers and sisters. We tried to help each other to be better artists. And what the Māori people gave to us was the goodness. The goodness in our culture. Respect because that's what it means to be taught that. It's the love and respect for your people and I honour them. I love them. They're our brothers and sisters. We have very similar histories with you know who out of this relationship team some very good art from the challenge of working together. I've been down there 12 times now I'm trying to quit. It's getting further, further and further. But I'd like to recognise Derek Laredelli and Rose and Tom O for the hard work because artists need support. And why art is important is because art is what makes us human. Art is what makes us civilised. That's why art is important. And artists have always been like the contents of societies. They recorded truths and that's where a true artist is. I've been just lucky. I've been lucky that I met them. Shared these times. Many good times with them. I could talk all afternoon. I think my formance is up. She's looking at me. I just want to thank everyone for coming and sharing this occasion with us. Thank you very much. Maidu, go to Shish. Thank you Demsi. Next I'd like to call upon Hamilton, Tinglit and Tishman, Master Carver, Stan Bevan. As I mentioned, Stan is the co-founder of the Frida-Dising School of Northwest Coast Art and Terrace BC, along with Demsi and fellow artist Ken McNeill. Welcome, Stan. Simgiget, sygymnach, Bill Wilson. I'd like to start by thanking the Squamish, the Musqueam and Slavotooth. My journey or my invitation started 42 years ago. I was invited by my uncle, my mentor, to work with him on a totem pole that he was working on in Alaska. And that was my first experience and I went on to carve many poles after since then and leading up to this pole, it was a first pole that I was invited to actually carve with Demsi as an artist myself. And it was an honour to work with Demsi and to create this with Demsi and then a really big honour to be able to work with Lionel Grant. Lionel is as important as my uncle in New Zealand. As I heard Demsi say, he's the Demsi bob of New Zealand. So it was a big honour to be part of this pole and I really thank the University for allowing this to happen. I'd like to recognise some of our assistants and printers that helped us with this pole. Starting with my cousin, Brian, he's been working with me on totem poles for over a decade and I'd like him to stand just to get him to and also Darryl Moore. Darryl Moore is a student of the Freedy Deeson School but also has many teachers and one of his teachers is Ken McNeill. And another big part of completing the pole was bringing David Nunn. He's a Demsi bob's son so I'd like to recognise David as a big part of helping this pole. When we complete poles we always have a female helping with the finishing and the finishing is the painting. So this pole we were honoured to have a master, my weaver help us with the hair. She did all the hair and placed it in for us so I'd like to honour Tangi and can please stand up. This pole represents a lot of things. It represents the journeys to New Zealand, the journeys to British Columbia and the connections through the university of Emily Carr and the Freedy Deeson School and Brenda Crowdry in the middle pivoting all these bringing all these artists together and cultures together. So I believe it's it's this journey but I'd like to also think more importantly that it's a part of Brenda's legacy for the university and the artists of BC. So thank you very much Brenda. It was a great experience and I love sharing being able to work with MC and Lionel. It was a very learning experience and I wish many more experiences to come so thank you everyone for being here and enjoy your day. Thank you Stan. And now I'd like to call Maori and Pakahi Master Carver Lionel Grant. Lionel has recognised our most artists and many disciplines he practices. He is the artist behind the middle third of the Pacific Song of the Ancestors, Paul. Please welcome Lionel. I was starting a carving. I don't know what it's going to turn out like I'm just jamming. I know there's been a lot of thank-yous and I'll just totoko all those people that have thanked all the people that need to be thanked and if I start I'm going to miss somebody else so I'm not going to thank anybody from this point on. But I will thank my whanau to express our tikanga the mana of our Maori people and bestow it upon this occasion. I was almost in tears a couple of times with what these people have been saying and they're my whanau and I know them. But anyway we got a saying at home that you don't make carvings with your mouth. You make them with the toki you make them with the fao. And so kō te fao te kōrero kō te kōrero te fao kō te te te oki te kōrero kō te kōrero te toki The chisel and the ads speak volumes for you in what you do. So I pray that what I've done here not only augments what has already been laid down but also does my culture proud and that's all I can ask. But if I was to translate what that chisel of mine has said it might talk about that ancient murm of our ancestry that it transcends place, time and physicality. And that chisel might also talk about our culture our teachers Dempsey teacher Frida, I met her up in Finland. Had the honour of meeting her. My tutor John Tayapa who's a relation of Derek's so every chisel blow that went on to this rāko here is a reminder of our teachers of our mentors of our contemporary artists that have worked alongside us and inspired us and another thing that that chisel might be talking about is the joy of working with friends working with other capable artists and just a little aside that the ads that I used on this carving was given to me way back when it was being developed or an iteration of it because it broke it and I had to make another one to make it to make it to make but it's worked like you wouldn't believe and that that toki, that axe has spread its way around the Pacific over into Hawaii now it's down in Aotearoa and all the young carvers are picking up that same ads that same style of ads and using it now shied away from using that style of ads when I was training and now we're using that ads that Dempsey gave us so it's not only this camaraderie and the wood we carve but it's in the tools that we carry and Stan gave me a chisel last time I was up here that thing has been thrashed for the last year that I've had it it's a special little hahi that's made in Japan so that she a joy of working with real artists on a real project for a real purpose is amazing and then maybe that chisel again he'd be talking about things like creating a an artwork in an environment that teaches art that practices art that celebrates art an art school so on many many many levels that chisel has had been talking about these things as it's been creating that poke and Tamahau expressed a beautiful whakatauki that came out some years ago it's a proverb and it goes and it just says that you know where there's artistic excellence when you do your very very best when you're hard to what you're doing it'll command respect it'll command the gaze of those who look at it and so on that note I'm not going to drag it on too much longer and I'm kiora tatau thank you Thank you Lionel I'd now like to call upon Keiula Morwed manager of the Aboriginal programs at ECU Sydney Pickering Aboriginal Programs Coordinator who will present gifts to the artists and to Brenda the family would like to recognize Dempsey Bob, Stan Bevan and Lionel Grant as well as Brenda Crabb Tree for the generosity artistry they've shown in creating this work their blankets recognize the love and care that the family has for them in their respect as well Osiem Hoichika Thank you all. I will now call upon Miss Joan Phillip MLA for Vancouver at Mount Pleasant to speak Right East Greece Dameshan that name comes from my Koselish relatives at the at Cilewa Tooth and I just want to thank my Koselish relatives for the opportunity and honor for witnessing this work on our territory of the Osquim, Squamish and Cilewa Tooth I particularly want to thank my my dear relative when she was talking about her her grandpa her grandpa and my grandfather Chief Dan George were brothers and I used to watch grandpa Dan George carve canoes on the waterfront so it was just really touching this event this event is so significant in many ways I want to mention that I already knew Stan Bevan I had the honor and opportunity of unveiling one of his poles that he carved for new Bechuan in China because Bechuan old Bechuan was destroyed by an earthquake so the pole was commissioned and I helped unveil it so seeing another one of your poles is so beautiful the thing that makes this so significant though is we have an indigenous relative across the water sharing that vision art is so important and it's such a beautiful visual depiction of who we are because really I pray and I hope that when you see that pole you'll be inspired to learn about who we are because I know everything about our colonizer but this time of reconciliation is so wonderful because now you have an opportunity to learn who we are and lifting us up in this way sharing with everyone our art it lifts us all up when you lift us up you lift all of us up it's going because it's going to take all of us to reconcile what has happened to us and to make it right so I just want to thank the M. E. Carr University for allowing me to come here and witness this event and share with you what I'm going to take to my constituents so thank you Miss Phillip I will now call upon M. E. Carr University Board Chair Don Avison King's Council to speak Well good afternoon all Delighted to have this opportunity to be here with you this afternoon and I have to tell you I expected this to be an extraordinary day it's more than that for me I was sitting over there having an uncharacteristic emotional moment I think for those that know me well that doesn't happen that often but I was sitting there thinking there are moments in your lifetime where there are some events that become seared into memory that you don't forget until you draw your last breath this will be one such day for me and I'm honoured to be in the presence of those who have led this project and to be in the presence as well of those who have assisted in bringing this day to fruition it is an extraordinary thing and it comes two days before the national day of truth and reconciliation in this country I wish we had the opportunity and I think in part with the availability of technology we'll have the opportunity to share what happened here today with other people beyond the events that are unfolding right now I was also sitting there thinking I wish I had been here today with my grandchildren so they would have had the opportunity to see what took place here today if you see me with a couple of very small ones running around talking about the pull over the course of the coming days having Jack here today would have been a bad idea because he can't get by more than one or two minutes without asking questions and that's what I want him to do and so I look forward to that opportunity probably someday soon to explain to him as best I can the significance of what happened here today Brenda you've heard so much already today in relation to the contributions that you have made to help us come forward but I think that expression of love for you from this institution and from those here present is about so much more than that it's about the extraordinary contributions that you have made to Emily Carr over the course of your career here and that's a relationship that I think will continue for a very very long time the pull represents the work of many over a long period of time first talked about through the carving of the pull to the raising of the pull and it's unveiling here today it's a symbol of the spirit of collaborative intergenerational indigenous material practice that animates the mission of the Aboriginal gathering place here at Emily Carr an expression of the ongoing work between the Aboriginal gathering place and indigenous artists and communities throughout the province and indeed internationally and I can't express enough how honoured we are to have those of you that have travelled such great distances to be part of this today I will remember that always the story of Emily Carr over the course of the last century has been one of creative innovation and I think this is a profoundly significant threshold point in our history 2025 will be the 100th anniversary of the evolution from the Vancouver School of Art through to Emily Carr and I think this day will be remembered always as a critical point as we look to the past and look to the future I was going to talk a little bit about some of the history of Emily Carr and artists of the past I don't think this is the day for that we'll have opportunities as we enter upon that 100th anniversary of the institution I want to focus entirely on the significance of the event that's happened here today I will remember it always I think part of our obligation is to speak of these things and I will I thank all of you for the opportunity to be in your presence I'm honoured by it and on behalf of Emily Carr we thank you so deeply for the contributions that you have made in this extraordinary event today Thank you Chair Aveson I'd now like to call upon Emily Carr's university intern President and Vice Chancellor Trish Kelly to speak Thank you Joel and hello everyone As Joel said I'm Trish Kelly the Interim President and Vice Chancellor Emily Carr and it's a profound honour to stand before you today happy this chance to speak with you around this once-in-a-lifetime occasion around this installation of this exquisite and beautiful outstanding work the Pacific Song of the Ancestors Totempole As you've heard from Julie and our guests this incredible work of art wouldn't exist without the dedication of the people first and foremost our esteemed guest Master Carver's Dempsey Bob Stan Bevan and Leno Grant and of course Brenda Crabtree who's nearly 25 years with the university placed her right at the centre at the heart of the institution but also whose career is defined the way we think about community outreach and partnership with Indigenous communities organisations and individuals throughout the province and internationally Brenda you're a hard act to follow and we love you so much These individuals were supported by many many others staff here at Emily Carr and I specifically want to give a shout out to Cula Moorwood and Sydney Pickering for all the work that they've done also the work of Leila and Zoe in the exhibition I want to really express gratitude to the presidents here in the audience Jillian Sudal and also Ron Burnett for all the work and energy they've brought into reconciliation at the institution artists from Terrace in New Zealand the government of BC our partners at Post Mountain College and the Frida Deesling School and the list goes on and I'm looking at so many people here in the audience today who had such a vital role in this work and bringing this to Emily Carr The partnerships forged by many others were sentful to this beautiful work arriving here today It is this emphasis on relationships and partnerships that I've been thinking a lot about Leila in relation to the future of Emily Carr and in particular to how we can be better stewards for reconciliation For Emily Carr as for other post-secondary institutions reconciliation is a mandate It is something that we are required to engage with Caring for our relationships with indigenous colleagues and communities including our host nations is expected but too often as settlers and newcomers on this land we show up in a transactional or needy way to demonstrate we are fulfilling that mandate and of course that's not meaningful reconciliation that's not where meaningful reconciliation happens Meaningful reconciliation happens by showing up as a way of being and by doing so without worrying about what Emily Carr gets from that Meaningful reconciliation begins by asking what can we offer How can we provide a resource or a service without angling or looking for something in return This poll is amazing not only for its artistry It's amazing because it shows years of investment in relationships with the Frida dieseling school with Frida dieseling herself as an alumna of the university and it brings to life the relationships between the AGP and indigenous communities across the province and across the Pacific and it's an embodiment of what can happen when we look at relationships not as acts of reciprocity but as opportunities to uplift and support to empower self determination and to throw this university's resources and assets into the work of being of service not because it's a mandate not because of what we receive but because what is created is a gift for future generations Thank you so much everyone Thank you President Kelly Finally I'd like to call upon our witnesses Joan Phillip if you could please speak about what you saw today I just want to thank Emily Carr University for bringing us all together here today I've witnessed this is the first time I've been in the building and the moment you walk in the doors you know where you are you know you're in Coast Salish territory so I was just so pleased to be invited to this event again the artist Lim Lim I did a little carving when I was younger the carving was about this by this but to see that it's just spectacular so I hold my hands up to you Lim Lim Thank you Miss Phillip I'd like to call upon our last witness Shiloh Mitchell Kia ora tatou I would just like to acknowledge the wonderful artwork that has been created by these master carvers and that my whanunga line all over there wonderful to see you as always and for our whanunga from Aotearoa Kia ora whanau and for everyone here to bear witness to such a masterful piece of artwork and that it stands proudly here in the Emily Carr University Kia ora and I'd like to thank everyone for being here to participate in this rare event it's been my privilege to be here with you today and to learn with you about the incredible story of this remarkable work of art Thank you to our community members from near and far for your contributions and collaborations and thank you to our host nations for your generosity and support I will now be undertaking a brief break for official photography while we do so we'd be grateful if everyone would join us on level 2 to enjoy some light refreshments and take some time to walk through the exhibition titled Pacific Song of the Ancestors which accompanies this ceremony Pacific Song of the Ancestors is curated by the ECU's very own Zoe Lakehawk with the assistance of Leila Berg Please take care to use the stairs stairwell D or use the elevator to access level 2 In 15 minutes we will be welcoming you back to this level to view the total pool Thank you so much for joining us here today We'll see you in a few minutes