New street banners are going up in Maple Ridge just in time for Canada Day celebrations on Saturday.
Six new designs will be on display throughout downtown with the theme of Canada 150: Exploring our Nature.
The six designs were chosen from a selection of more than 120 created by local students.
Two designs are Katzie and Kwantlen historical pictographs that feature a special artifact called the Skytte Bowl which has been renamed as Qelemteleq.
The Qelemteleq was found in the mid-part of the last century near Webster’s Corners in Maple Ridge by a homesteader who was digging a foundation for his house.
He donated the piece to the Museum of Vancouver and now the piece is selected to be part of a special Canada 150 display in Ottawa.
Members of the Katzie and Kwantlen First Nations travelled with the artifact to make sure it arrived safely in its new temporary home.
The Katzie and Kwantlen banners along with the historical information were created by the Seyem’ Qwantlen Business Group company called Pictographic Creative.
Designer Peter Arkell also worked with the City of Maple Ridge to help fine-tune all the winning designs for the banners.
Student designs were shortlisted by the schools and a selection committee including representatives from the City and School District 42 picked the winners.
The winners are Laura Bowman from Harry Hooge elementary who created a turtle design because she discovered that in some First Nations culture it is believed the turtle shell is the foundation that the land was built on. Paul Kwon from Harry Hooge elementary who created a maple leaf landscape with animals found on Golden Ears Mountain in Maple Ridge. Evynn Hewitt from Blue Mountain elementary who came up with a tree design because she loves the trees in Canada. Bobbi Symmes from Glenwood elementary who came up with a salamander design.
Students and teachers from four different schools in the district worked with artists-in-residence Robi Smith and Kat Wahamaa to create artwork for the banners in their classrooms.
The four winning students will be recognized during the protocol ceremony on July 1 between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. in Memorial Peace Park.
This project is one of a number of activities planned to commemorate Canada’s 150th anniversary.
The banners will be up until the beginning of December.