Knowledge and wisdom of Elders to be shared

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Elizabeth Alfred is well-known in the Native community as Jall. She is a 61-year-old Heltsiuk with an exceptional sense of humor and a hearty laugh. This is one busy woman.

Along with being president of the Vancouver Elder's Society, arranging Elder food banks, attending meetings, and giving talks at local high schools, she also sits on the Senior's Advisory Council to the Ministry of Health. And that's not to mention that she's mother of ten blood children, several foster children, grandmother of 25, and great-grandmother of three.

Jall grew up speaking and living the Kwakuitl way of life with her grandparents in Prince Rupert.

"I had a very traditional upbringing living with my grandparents," she said. "I was taught very early - even though they didn't sit me down and teach me - certain things like respect. And all of us kids knew - we were never told you have to respect that Elder, we just did. I was never told to go and help that lady bring or that man bring wood up to his house or water or anything - I just went.

"Where I grew up nobody was poor because we all shared everything in the village. That was before the outside world came in. There were no poor people on the reserve because we all took care of each other," she said. "That's not there any more," she said, sadly.

Jall is presently trying to establish a drop-in centre.

"It's time to bring the elders and the youth together. I think that's the answer. I can't do anything about the leaders today, but I can make better leaders for tomorrow. We have to teach them when they're young. Teach them respect, the sharing and giving.

"I deal with people who are culturally lost-parents who don't know how to be parents because their parents didn't know how to be parents. Because the few of us that were brought up by our grandparents and never entered residential schools, we know what family is about. But when they took kids away from their parents and put them in residential schools, they had no parents, so there was no example of what family life should be like or the responsibilities that you have in the village, pulling together as a community.

"That's missing today. In urban community, human resources will take your children away and they say they're changing, but it's not.

"You see, we have extended families - we are all family - my cousins are my brother and sisters. My mother's cousins are my aunts and uncles. Even my nephews call me Granny. I've got so many people calling me Mom and Auntie and Granny that

I don't know which is who - if there is a bloodline or not," she said with a laugh.

Most of her grandchildren live up north, three live in Vancouver. One grandson comes to stay with her for weekends and they plan Nintendo.

"I didn't know anything about Nintendo, so he taught me and then we would play together. And now I'm hooked," she laughs. "I' ve got my own games now - they call me the Nintendo Granny."

People seem to come to Jall for just about everything.

"You name it, they're in here. Sometimes I get some coming in here once a week and they talk for an hour and then thank me before they leave and I haven't said a word.

They just want to talk to an Elder. It's the idea that an Elder knows better, knows more.

"My grandmother always said, when she used to tell us stories - and if I wasn't looking right at her, she would stop because it's not written and I had to watch her mouth and hear every word and I had to tell it exactly how she told it to me and how she was told, that's what the Elders did.

"My grandparent's always told me that whatever knowledge and wisdom you pick up is not really yours, it's for you to give back to the people - the younger people. So that's what I try to do.

I have Elders say to me 'I don't know anything, I can't help anyone.' Just being there for someone is enough - a smile, a hug, just show that you care, that somebody cares."