The 2019 Coast Salish Speaker Series is a collaborative project between the public libraries of Lopez, Orcas and San Juan Islands and the San Juan Islands National Monument, funded in part by a San Juan County Lodging Tax grant. The project is a series of educational programs featuring speakers from the Coast Salish native tribes. It is a collaborative effort to connect the current residents of and visitors to the San Juan Islands with the Native history of this region. Each program is free and open to the public. The speaker list and dates are below, and will continue to be updated as more speakers are scheduled:
Thursday, August 22nd at 6:30pm at the Lopez Center
Althea Wilson: Revitalizing Cultural Knowledge and Honoring Sacred Waters
Althea Wilson is a documentary filmmaker from the Lummi nation. She will be screening her film “Revitalizing Cultural Knowledge and Honoring Sacred Waters,” which documents the oral history of the Lummi people who fished and lived at the mouth of the Nooksack River. The film focuses primarily on life in the Lummi fishing villages on the banks of the Nooksack River between 1925 and 1967, after the Relocation Act. The film’s intent is to contribute to the preservation of knowledge and to share the story of the Nooksack River, and its continued significance to the Lummi People, who still fish and hold sacred the land at the river mouth. Much attention has been paid to the significance of the Salish Sea to Coast Salish tribes, says Ms. Wilson, but less is known and acknowledged about what a spiritual, cultural, and life-sustaining resource the Nooksack River was. The video was initiated as Althea Wilson’s capstone project for her Bachelor of Science in Native Environmental Studies at the Northwest Indian College in 2017.
Althea Wilson’s presentation schedule is:
August 22nd on Lopez Island at 6:30pm at the Lopez Center
August 23rd on Orcas Island at 6pm at the Orcas Island Library
August 24th on San Juan Island at 7pm at the San Juan Island Library
Past Presentations:
Thursday, June 20th at 6:30pm at the Lopez Center
X’welwelat’se (William John) : Coast Salish Concepts of Time & Space
X’welwelat’se (William John) leads an ongoing series of courses in Bellingham, at the local business Bruna Press + Archives, titled Cultural Orientation to Coast Salish Concepts of Time + Space. William is a Lummi Elder, storyteller, and retired teacher from Ferndale High School and Northwest Indian College, where he taught Lummi language classes.
Thursday, May 16th, 6pm at the Lopez Center
Swil Kanim (Lummi)
Swil Kanim, US Army Veteran, classically trained violinist, native storyteller and actor, is a member of the Lummi Nation. Swil Kanim travels extensively throughout the United States, performing his original composition music and native storytelling. Swil Kanim considers himself and his music to be the product of a well supported public school music program. Music and the performance of music helped him to process the traumas associated with his early placement into the foster care system. Swil Kanim’s compositions incorporate classical influences as well as musical interpretations of his journey from depression and despair to spiritual and emotional freedom. The music and stories that emerge from his experiences have been transforming people’s lives for decades.
Swil Kanim’s presentation schedule is:
May 16th on Lopez Island at 6pm at the Lopez Center
May 17th on San Juan Island at 7pm at the San Juan Island Library
May 18th on Orcas Island at 6pm at the Orcas Island Library
Thursday, March 28th, 6:30pm at the Lopez Center
Paul ‘Che oke ten’ Wagner (Saanich)
Saanich activist, storyteller and musician, Paul ‘Che oke ten’ Wagner will present a multi-disciplinary performance, taking audience members on a musical journey into the ancient times of the first peoples of this land. Che oke ten is a member of the Wsaanich (Saanich) Tribe of southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia. He is an award-winning performer who shares traditional songs and stories of the Coast Salish peoples. He enjoys sharing the warmth, humor, and wisdom of these beautiful stories (or “teachings,” in the tradition of this land) in an engaging and interactive way. He interweaves his story-telling performances with ‘Spirit-gifted’ melodies on the Native American flute along with traditional tribal drum songs. When possible he loves to round things out with a jovial Coast Salish dance or two. Che oke ten’s debut Native flute CD “Journey of the Spirit” has been honored with the Best Native American Album of 2009 by JPF (Just Plain Folks Music Organization). Che oke ten has shared the stage and collaborated with many prominent artists such as the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Eyvind Kang, Gina Sala, Bill Frisell, Andre Feriante, and Kitaro. His CDs are widely used by practitioners of meditation, massage and tai chi. Nature is where his music comes from– the deep silence and spirit that lives in the ancient waters and forests of the Salish Sea. Che oke ten’s music has this same breath and soul inside each note and each silence, allowing us to better understand and realize the ancient Coast Salish belief that we are a part of the Nature which Spirit placed on the lands and waters. We are helped to remember that we have come to this place, Mother Earth, to heal and to bring reciprocal relationships with all things around us. Letting this ancient wisdom enter the intelligence of our hearts will place us inside of the circle of life, to create long-lasting innate harmony and peace around and within us. In addition to his performing and recording work, Che oke ten makes frame drums and Native American flutes. He teaches workshops on drum making and flute playing. He also makes Coast Salish form wood carvings, and is a videographer and photographer.