Beloved Lheidli t'enneh elder Edie Frederick recently passed away, which has the community both mourning the tragic loss, but also remembering everything she's done for the community. Photo courtesy Exploration Place

By Tommy Osborne

Edie Frederick

Beloved Lheidli T’enneh elder Edie Frederick passes away, community remembers her legacy

Sep 17, 2024 | 4:43 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – Lheidli T’enneh and Prince George are mourning the loss of two beloved Lheidli T’enneh elders, as Edie Frederick and her mother Josie Paul recently passed away. Edie was a key community leader in perserving the Dakelh language and Lheidli T’enneh culture, and the legacy she left behind will leave an incredible impact on generations to come.

“She was so fierce, and she was the voice of our people. And she would speak, even if her voice trembled, she just was a fierce leader. And it’s extremely, extremely devastating to our community on so many levels, not only because Edie was a matriarch within our nation, within her family, but she also held our language and she was teaching it,” said Kym Gouchie, a local musician, cultural ambassador, and friend of Edie.

Edie’s impact is felt in just about every area of Prince George and the surrounding area, as the work she has done spans many organizations, and in some cases her contributions are literally on the walls, such as helping promote the Dakelh language and furthering education. Among other organizations, she’s worked with UNBC, CNC, Carrier Sekani Family Services, Exploration Place, and more.

“She was really an inspiration and a leader in creating this gallery that I’m standing in right now, Hodul’eh-a, a place of learning, and she helped us with that name. She was such a force when it came to language revitalization and such a leader in her community,” Exploration Place’s Executive Director Alyssa Leier said.

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“The work she has done, whether it be the 37th Annual Elders gathering, or the 2015 Canada Winter games, having that cultural presence, that’s very significant,” said Carrier Sekani Family Services Executive Director of Housing, Capital, and Infrastructure Jason Morgan-Gottschall.

When speaking about Edie, words like “passionate,” “driven,” “fierce,” and “dedicated,” were among the first words that came to mind. This perhaps was most exemplified by Gouchie’s unwavering attitude in the face of adversity, and continuing her mission to preserve and teach the Dakelh language whenever she could.

“She’s always managed to power through, even when she had broken her ankle and her leg in a car accident a few years back, she still was working from her hospital bed, digitizing some language files and such,” Gouchie said.

“I’ve had the chance to work with Eddie in numerous capacities, and her influence and her dedication to language and cultural revitalization will definitely be felt for the years to come,” Morgan-Gottschall.

Among a wide list of many possible choices, Edie’s crowning achievement is arguably her work with the Lheidli Dakelh Dictionary. Edie was a large contributor in helping with the translations, alongside providing recordings of the spoken language alongside the words.

“Language holds so much of culture. And if the language dies, so does a part of culture, so her legacy really is helping to preserve and save the Lheidli T’enneh language and therefore culture, which we’re so appreciative of,” Leier said.

Beyond her profound community impact, many also remember her as a fantastic friend.

“When I think of Edie and that glow that she would have when she was listening to her favorite song, or seeing her dance around or even drumming and singing, that’s how I want to remember Edie and that really vibrant, happy, joyful state,” Gouchie said.

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