Mount Currie gives to help tsunami victims

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The Burnaby Red Cross received a special donation for the Indian Ocean tsunami victims on Dec. 29, 2004, when Lily Whonnock, an Elder from the Mount Currie reserve, and Bill Chu of Canadians For Reconciliation (CFR), presented them with a cheque for $2,200. These funds were a gift from the Mount Currie Indian Band, who graciously donated monies earmarked to help them rebuild their own homes after severe flood damage.

The donation's original source came from a banquet held in Vancouver's Chinatown on Oct. 23, 2004, organized to raise money and awareness for the Aboriginal peoples hit hardest by forest fires and flooding in B.C.

The event was organized by CFR, which seeks to develop a strong, forgiving and peaceful relationship between Aboriginal peoples and the Chinese/Canadian community. Nearly 600 people attended the banquet, which was endorsed by numerous Aboriginal, Chinese, community and religious groups, and raised in excess of $6,500.

Bill Chu is the founder of CFR, an organization that is an offshoot of CCIA (Chinese Christians in Action). Both groups have participated in fundraising initiatives and cultural exchanges in the past, including visits to Aboriginal communities and attendance at Elders' conferences. Chu said the banquet was "really a historic event, in the sense that the Canadian Chinese community and the Aboriginal communities came together publicly on such a scale."

Of the funds raised at the banquet, $2,200 was set aside for the Mount Currie reserve near Pemberton, an area particularly devastated when flooded by the Lillooet River in the fall of 2003. This money was added to a $1,000 donation made earlier by the CFR.

In late December, Chu was preparing to make the trip to the reserve and present the cheque in person when he got a surprising phone call from longtime friend and community Elder, Rosalyn Sam.

On Dec. 28, only two days after learning about the tsunami, the Mount Currie Band decided to donate their funds to the Red Cross to help victims throughout Southeast Asia.

Chu made the trip to the Burnaby Red Cross the following day.

"It wasn't easy to do, actually," he said, "because we knew how badly the Mount Currie people needed help." The flood waters caused serious damage to homes and other buildings as well as crops and livestock.

Bill Chu said they had already prepared a list of individuals who needed the most financial assistance, including one resident who has been without a home for more than a year and is unable to rebuild without the necessary funds.

"Some people might wonder why they've done this," said Chu. "But I think it's simply that they decided someone else needed the money more. The Chinese community has been trying to help out on various occasions and now the Mount Currie people have decided to help the Asian people.

"I hope it serves to change some misconceptions people see about First Nations in the mainstream media," Chu added. "They are an extremely generous, giving and compassionate people."

At the moment, there are no firm plans to help replace the funds redirected by the reserve. But with Chinese New Year's celebrations fast approaching, and Chinatown's annual parade to be held this year on Feb. 13, Chu is quick to mention that this year's celebration will mark the fourth consecutive year that First Nations people and Chinese Canadians have walked together in the Parade for Reconciliation.

He suggests that there may be an opportunity to highlight the selfless gift of the Mount Currie people and draw awareness to the ongoing plight of the band.

For more information about the Chinese New Year parade, please call (604) 682-8998 or (604) 682-8998.