Each year since 2001 there’s been a Pulling Together canoe journey, and each year people from the Sunshine Coast participate. Pulling Together started all those years ago being about police and First Nations travelling together in canoes for what turned out to be both a physical and cultural journey together.
Designed to break down barriers and promote reconciliation, these journeys have grown over the years. What started out being a group of three to five canoes and perhaps about 100 people, Pulling Together now puts over 400 people on the water at times.
Now the crews consist of up to 20 canoes and the people involved are a cross section of the community. The Sunshine Coast is sending three canoes this year with a crew of 12 people per canoe and a ground support crew of another 10 or so. In those canoes there will be youth from School District No. 46, RCMP members, people from across the Sunshine Coast and people from the shíshálh Nation.
Every year participants return from these journeys with a different perspective about each other. They will all tell you that these journeys are hard work, lots of good food, laughter, sleep deprivation and a cultural experience that will provide poignant memories for a lifetime. These journeys can be life altering for some people.
This year’s journey is taking place from July 2 to 11. The canoes will gather on Harrison Lake and over eight days of paddling will travel down the Harrison River to the Fraser. Taken by the powerful flow of the Fraser, the canoes will pass through Chilliwack, Abbotsford, Fort Langley, Langley, Surrey, New Westminster and Delta, and ultimately end in White Rock at the Semiahmoo First Nation. The canoes will pass through the territory of the Stó:lo: the People of the River, including the Sts’Ailes, Aitchelitz, Leq’a:mel, Matsqui, Skway, Squiala, Sumas, Kwantlen, Kwaw-kwaw-Apilt, Scowlitz, Skwah, Qayqayt, Kwikwetlem, Katzie, and Musqueam. Each night is hosted by a different First Nation in order to live and experience the culture of that particular community. The Sunshine Coast canoes are filled for this year’s journey and the training and preparations have begun. The Sunshine Coast canoe family is the largest family to participate in these journeys and as such their travel and involvement is the most expensive. To that end, watch for bake sales at the Trail Bay Mall. You can help the youth of your community with this once in a lifetime experience simply by buying a cookie or two.
For more information about Pulling Together, see www.pullingtogether.ca or contact Ed Hill ([email protected])
If you would like to sponsor or donate towards the costs for a youth to participate, please contact Kerry Mahlman ([email protected])
