The trees in Memorial Peace Park have been coloured orange – the same hue associated with the orange shirts of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
The event in Maple Ridge will be held on Sept. 29 in the downtown park, with partners including PLEA Community Services, the Katzie First Nation, the Fraser River Indigenous Society, and BC Spokes.
More than 4,000 people are expected to be part of the local event.
Katzie Chief Grace George said the movement toward reconciliation is striking.
"The last few years it's really picked up momentum," she said. "The support is nothing I've ever seen."
She spoke to the approximately 30 people who gathered to wrap the trees on Sept. 18, as did her husband Damien. They performed a song in the traditional way of the Katzie. The Katzie Chief of seven years spoke about a shift that sees more than First Nations people and organizations working on reconciliation.
"And we're invited to come, in a way that is respectful," she said.
She said her father was a residential school survivor.
"He was taken when he was six, until he was 11 years old," she said.
All of her siblings attended St. Mary's Residential School in Mission, and her son is the first generation from her family who did not attend.
George said Truth and Reconciliation Day must honour those who attended residential schools but didn't make it home.
Damien George voiced his appreciation for the people who came to the park for the wrapping event.
"My heart is really lifted when I see non-Indigenous people wearing orange shirts that say "Every Child Matters," he said.
He also spoke about the pain his family endured in the residential school system, and acknowledged that pain is the meaning behind Orange Shirt Day.
"We want to create that awareness of our big event on Sept. 29," said Roger Watts of Plea Community Services, which organizes the local event in partnership with other organizations, including the Katzie First Nation.
"Indigenous people have been through so much, yet they're still here," he said. "We want people to see that and hear that."
He said Sept. 29 will feature speakers, First Nations performers, and "a lot of learning situations."
It's one day on the calendar, but it has a big impact, he said.
"It's not just one day," he said, noting community partners collaborate on the event all year. "Getting together, talking about acts toward reconciliation, is the whole year 'round.
"The event itself is about collaboration, helping to support the indigenous community, and to create awareness about the residential school history – the negative history of Canada many of us didn't know about, or weren't taught in school."
The orange tree trunks they created are highly visible as drivers pass on 224th Street.
"It's just a way of getting people to start the conversation," said Stephen Quinlan, an adult counsellor of Alouette Addictions. "It does become quite striking, and it does start to welcome and call people to the event on the 29th."
He said Alouette Addictions has a history of involvement in local events for truth and reconciliation.
Volunteers are needed for a variety of roles, including venue setup, traffic management, and general assistance. Those interested can contact FDmanager@frisociety.ca
