(CFJC Today/File photo).

By Aaron Schulze

TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION

Quesnel to dedicate amphitheater park as a healing and gathering place

Oct 11, 2021 | 5:00 PM

QUESNEL — Quesnel City Council unanimously dedicated the amphitheater park on St. Laurent Avenue adjacent to City Hall as a healing and gathering place and permanent commemoration for the victims of residential schools.

The City says the park will be redesigned in collaboration with the leadership, elders, and community members of the Lhtako Dene, Nazko, ?Esdilagh, and Lhoosk’uz Dene First Nations.

” Council is committed to undertaking reconciliation initiatives with all of the First Nations that have traditional territory and historical ties to Quesnel,” Mayor Bob Simpson says. “This particular project has very special meaning to Council as we try to do our part to educate the public about the negative impacts of residential schools and create a permanent learning, healing and gathering space for all our community members.”

?Esdilagh First Nation Troy Baptiste says a gathering and healing spot is a good start for Indigenous architectural symbolism, although more needs to be done to represent the bands whose traditional territory encompasses Quesnel.

According to Chief Liliane Squinas, some Lhoosk’uz Dene Nation members were the last students that attended the St. Joseph’s Mission Residential School prior to its closing. She adds the project is a step towards acknowledgment that colonialism and forced removal of children did damage.

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The City hopes the design will be completed early in 2022 and funding can be obtained to convert the park to a commemorative place by the 2022 National Day of Truth and Reconciliation.