Walk for Reconciliation

How shall we demonstrate our solidarity with our First Nations brothers and sisters? 

This was the question that a small group of people from several Langley, BC area churches asked themselves over nine years ago. This was the beginning of the “Walk in the Spirit of Reconciliation'' that has been held in late May every year since 2016.  With collaboration and support from seven different churches including Willoughby Christian Reformed Church, the walk provides space for solidarity, lament and learning. It takes place on the beautiful land between Fort Langley, BC and Mission, BC, the unceded ancestral territory of the Stó:lō peoples, specifically the Katzie, Kwantlen, Leq’amel, Matsqui, Semiahmoo and Whonnock First Nations.  We recognize that the Stó:lō people have called this place home since time immemorial and we hope that our walk honours them, their land, their river, their ancestors and their children.  

Collaborating together as Langley area churches has united us around a common hope for justice and reconciliation with Indigenous brothers and sisters. We have learned from each other, formed deep bonds over the years and made wonderful connections with local Indigenous people.  Working together and walking together by growing our hearts in awareness and understanding year by year. 

A Kwantlen First Nations storyteller, folded us into an evening of a good beginning together. 

The walk is held over three days and follows the route from the Kwantlen First Nation in Fort Langley, BC to St. Mary’s Residential School in Mission, BC, a route that many, many children travelled when forced from their homes to attend St. Mary’s across the Fraser River.  Walkers can choose to walk any of the routes on these days or they can choose to walk on their own in their own community or another place or space they find themselves in, as their own show of solidarity.  

This year’s walk, May 24-26, began on Friday evening, with a gathering at the United Church of Fort Langley, where we paused to frame our hearts and minds with thoughtful reflection on why we walk.  Walkers were invited to share why they walked. Responses included: ‘to learn’, ‘to lament’ or ‘I walk for __’.  Wearing purple ‘Walk’ t-shirts, participants walked from the church to the longhouse on the Kwantlen First Nation, about 2 km. It’s difficult to convey the sense of peace that one experiences in the longhouse.  Welcomed in by drumming and song, enjoying bannock tacos and gathering around a wood fire to listen to Tony Dandurand, a Kwantlen First Nations storyteller, folded us into an evening of a good beginning together. 

Saturday’s walk of 10km took walkers from the dike in Fort Langley to the Mount Lehman United Church where we met with Muriel Victor, a Stó:lō Traditional Wellness Mentor and an expert on native plants and how they were used by the First Peoples of this area.  As we walked together to a nearby park, Muriel stopped and explained the medicinal use of several Indigenous plants and then shared her tea with us, at the end of the path.  Walkers were fed with knowledge, awareness and delicious tea. 

This walk provides space to reflect on and lament the traumatic harm done by residential schools and settler history, we do not end there.

Sunday’s walk began at Heritage Park in Mission BC, a kilometer from St. Mary’s Residential School.  Here we were met by Naxaxalhts (Sonny McHalsie). Sonny, a local Indigenous historian, shared about the history of the school and government laws that meant all children had to attend Indian Residential School. Although the school is now used for other purposes, the stories of the children who once lived in that place echo through the halls.  He also shared how the Stó:lō people were deeply affected by the changes that settlers brought to the area. Once again, our hearts cracked open for all the brokenness.  Gathering in what was formerly the chapel, we shared bannock and jam and then settled in to listen and participate in “It’s Not Just A Rock” – a play written by Gracie Kelly, from Soowahlie First Nation. The narrative took us into a deeper understanding of the beautiful folklore and ways of her people.  Once again, we were filled with learning, stories and yes, also laughter. 

Although the “Walk in the Spirit of Reconciliation” provides space to reflect on and lament the traumatic harm done by residential schools and settler history, we do not end there. We walk forward … into tomorrow.  How will the walk shape us moving forward and how shall we then live? How do we speak into current harms and injustices?  How do we live and walk in solidarity with our First Nations brothers and sisters?  This is why we walk, rain or shine, with many or few … year after year.