Musqueam People
taχʷtəna:t - Wendy Grant-John
taχʷtəna:t - Wendy Grant-John with c̓əmqʷa:t - Larissa Grant, 2015. Courtesy of Brittany Willacy.
I am the daughter of θəliχʷəltən - Willard Sparrow and the granddaughter of sxənəm - Ed Sparrow Sr. I am a proud Musqueam woman who has lived here most of my life.
I have worked in various capacities in my community. I was the elected Chief and now I am an elected council member. It is an honour and a responsibility to serve the people of my community. I am deeply committed to our history and culture. In particular, I am passionate about Musqueam weaving. I am of a generation that has seen our beautiful hand-woven blankets come back into our cultural ceremonies and become symbols of Musqueam’s creativity within our community and beyond.
Over the years, I’ve watched our community grow from a place without running water, electricity, or indoor plumbing to one with amenities that other areas would be envious of. We have a beautiful cultural centre, a new community centre, a day care, great soccer fields, a community longhouse, and beautiful trails, just to name a few. These remarkable changes are due to the commitment of our leaders and our community’s vision. They show that we are a strong and thriving community.
taχʷtəna:t - Wendy Grant- John, 2015. Photo courtesy Musqueam Indian Band.
I believe our people embody the idea of stewardship of the land, the water, and the people. This is shown through the way Musqueam manages decision-making about our community and our land. Our teachings remind us that we do not own the land; instead, our responsibility is to care for the land and the water. We are asked to care for it in a way that will make it better, to be true stewards of the land.
Stewardship, in this sense, is bigger than ownership. We must think about the past, the present, and the future at the same time. There were originally dozens of wild-salmon-bearing creeks in the Lower Mainland. Only a few remain. Two are in our community: Musqueam Creek and Cutthroat Creek. Both have been actively restored and are being taken care of by our community. Fifteen years ago, salmon were not returning to these creeks; now a small population returns annually. That is a true reflection of our dedication and ability to take care of our resources for future generations.
(L-R) Johnna Sparrow, c̓əmqʷa:t - Larissa Grant, and taχʷtəna:t - Wendy Grant-John in front of MOA, 2015. Photo courtesy Ed John.