Nuu-chah-nulth women gathered at Nanoose Bay Pentecostal Camp for three days of fun, friendship and the chance to reconnect and learn from one another.
The event started May 17 and women were promised the opportunity to learn about traditional healing, partake in self-care and indulge in plenty of laughter.
The theme for 2016 was SuWaqsa?i, which translates to ‘be yourself’.
The days were packed with activities and guest speakers. The women took turns volunteering for set-up and clean-up of the daily meals, and in the evening they retired to nearby cabins on the shores of Nanoose Bay.
Resource people were brought in to speak to the women about food, personal health and healing. They came from First Nations Health Authority, the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council and the local community.
Others were brought in to provide personal care services like hairstyling, manicures and massage. Others were brought in to teach women crafts like applique and cedar weaving.
The NTC nurses set up an area where they provided health screening, which included measuring blood sugar levels and blood pressure.
One presentation, delivered by Nitanis Dejarlais, revolved around her desire to learn to live off the land much the way our ancestors did, and to teach her children what she’s learned. A severe storm in 2006 caused her family to be housebound without electricity. Fortunately, there was a store nearby that ran on a generator and she was able to find food to buy.
“I felt insecure and I wanted to learn about Indigenous diets and eat like our ancestors did,” she told the women.
Prior to contact with Europeans, Nuu-chah-nulth-aht did not eat wheat, dairy, sugar, processed food, beef, chicken or pork. So her family began eating elk, moose, deer, fish and shellfish. “It changed our palates,” she said.
They moved to an isolated cabin and spent their summers harvesting berries and fish, which they would dry and can.
“It felt good knowing we had the skills to survive,” said Dejarlais.
The family of 10 have since moved back to the city, but they continue to build on their knowledge of edible/medicinal plants. They share their knowledge freely with anyone wishing to learn.
The Quu?asa team thanked Myra Mack, Doreen Little, Geraldine Edgar, Betty Thomas, Marie Samuel, Vyna Brown, Janice Johnson, Nitanis Dejarlais and the many others who delivered presentations and services at the 2016 NTC Quu?asa Women’s Gathering.
The event wrapped up on May 19 with women leaving feeling refreshed and happy.
Nanoose Bay
