The remaining buildings of a former boarding school on an island off the west coast of Vancouver Island have been demolished.
Survivors of the Christie Indian Residential School were invited to witness the demolition on Meares Island, off the coast of Tofino.
“Planning has been going on for quite some time,” Greg Louis, former elected general councilor for the Ahousaht Nation, told Global News.
“I can say that it's been in the universe for years. That's how I feel about it. It's probably been since we were all young men. That one day it was going to happen, one day it was going to happen, and it was just a matter of if and when the time was right.”
According to National Center for Truth and ReconciliationChristie Indian Boarding School opened in 1900 and operated under the Order of St. Benedict and the Mission of Mary Immaculate until 1969. The federal government then took over management of the school and Meares Island School closed in June 1971. In October 1971, Christie's student residence opened in Tofino.
In September 1974, the Council of West Coast Indian Chiefs took over and operated the school solely as a student residence until it closed in 1983.
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“As I walked from the dock this morning, thinking about when I was a little boy, when I came here, when I was six years old, and I had memories of walking down this road and the hills, and just a lot of emotions,” Louis said during Thursday's demolition.
Felix Harry attended the school from 1965 to 1972.
“I think it's better, you know, for it to be torn down and for the spirits to go on their journey now and all that,” he said.
“You know, this way we understand where you know where everyone will heal properly, allowing the spirits to continue to live without having to stay in such a place.”
Louis said they want people to look at the demolition as a new chapter for the former students, their families and their journey to healing.
“Well, this is a new chapter,” he said. “This is a new chapter, a new page in our healing and joining forces to show the world that we are still here.
“We are not going anywhere, we are resilient people. We are strong, we are warriors.”
The National Boarding Schools Crisis Line has been set up to provide support to former pupils. The 24-hour crisis line can be accessed by calling 1-866-925-4419.
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