The Tsq̓éscen̓ First Nation welcomed powwow dancers from across Western Canada to its Healing For Our Children Traditional Powwow.
Held at the TFN Gymnasium the powwow attracted around 200 people throughout the weekend and two dozen dancers of all ages. Its Host Drum was Wild River and the powwow was organized by several community members, including lead-organiser Mercedez Daniels-Boyce a member of Wild River.
"We're trying to focus on our children. That's the main focus of our powwow, to honour and share with the children and encourage them and support them in this powwow way of life," Daniels-Boyce explained. "With that, it brings a lot of healing to us because not long ago it was illegal for us to wear our regalias, to speak our language and with that comes healing.
"My parents were residential school survivors so they didn't get to experience powwows, so it's something I'm bringing my children to. We all travel, we all sing, we all dance and drum. It's just something that brings me healing as well as other people like elders in the community. "
The event was drug and alcohol free with several vendors set up in the gymnasiums selling food and powwow-related merchandise. Throughout the powwow on Sept. 20, 21 and 22 they also held several specials with different age categories for the various forms of dance with prizes for the winners. There was also an orange special to recognize Orange Shirt Day.
"We're dancing for the children because every child matters," Daniels-Boyce noted.
One of the dancers who participated in the powwow was grass dancer Rowan Saul from the St'át'imc Nation in Lillooet, though he lives in Langley currently. He noted this summer he had to make himself a new pink regalia after outgrowing his old one and accidentally dropping one of its bells on a field.
"If that happens in our tradition we have to give it away, so I might just give it to my little brother or someone else who would actually take care of it," Saul said. "Now I'm looking to make a new one out of horse hair, it's the best thing you could get."
Saul explained his family and friends have been encouraging him to dance more and he feels that if he surrounds himself with good people he'll continue to be successful in both grass dancing and life. He remarked he was happy to attend the TFN's powwow and make new friends.
One of his fellow younger dancers was Drucilla Archie, a Tsq̓éscen̓ teenager and student at Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School. Drucilla said she's been dancing for about a decade now and specializes in jingle, traditional and old-style fancy dancing, her favourite.
"I just like being able to show off my footwork and all my regalia and beadwork and whatnot," Drucilla said, noting she was happy to see so many people come out to this powwow.
It was a sentiment echoed by Tsq̓éscen̓ elder Mike Archie, who noted many of the participants and the drummers came from a long way to take part. A traditional men's dancer himself, Archie said he appreciated them coming to the community to help his people sing and dance.
"It's good to see them come in, our old friends. We sit, dance, sing and catch up and trade stories and the language comes back and revives those things," Archie remarked. "For myself I enjoy the beat of the drum, dancing and celebrating my sobriety. It's a way for me to continue healing in my life."
Archie said he's been dancing for close to two decades and does his best to visit as many powwows as possible during the summer. As a grandfather and father, he said he's always happy to see children participating in powwows and dancing with their elders.
"It's priceless. Our children are showing us what true happiness is, listening to the drums, dancing and just being around their relatives and friends. It's excellent I think."
Daniels-Boyce said that leading up to this powwow she had the opportunity to do several workshops in the community including one on beadwork, regalia making and fan making to help people get into powwow dancing. She noted the workshops were very successful and gave several Tsq̓éscen̓ community members a chance to get regalia they wouldn't have otherwise been able to acquire.
She noted the TFN has also begun hosting regular powwow practices once a month to give children and adults a safe environment to come and practice dancing or simply be around the drumming and singing. Getting to share each dance and where it originates from has been enjoyable for Daniels-Boyce, who noted she is hoping to make powwow culture a larger part of the Tsq̓éscen̓ community.
"There are not a lot of people who actually powwow in my community," Daniels-Boyce remarked, noting she takes to the powwow trail every summer. She reiterated she believes that the powwow can provide healing and happiness for those who need it in her community.
"They say sometimes you just need a smile, or a wave or a hug but well sometimes you just need to feel that beat, to hear that song, to watch that dance," Daniels-Boyce said.
Saul agrees with Daniels-Boyce that the best way to get people to embrace powwow culture is to encourage them, especially young kids.
"All you can do is encourage them. You can't just force them out there with a regalia, they're not going to learn anything from it. They've got to have that heart just to dance out there," Saul said.
Archie said that while he is happy to take part in powwows and see them become more common in the community, they are ultimately borrowed from other Indigenous cultures. Powwows have their origins in the Great Plains Nations and have widely been adopted across North America by different nations and tribes. Archie is hopeful that interest in powwows will also inspire a resurgence in the Tsq̓éscen̓ First Nation's own local customs and celebrations.
"Our own ceremonies, our own dances and our own songs are in our communities and they're starting to wake up. So this powwow helps us wake it up because we have our own winter dances," Archie said. "Everything helps us heal."
