Remembering the Courage, Faith, and Sacrifice That Built Our Home

More Than a Celebration: Remembering the Journey That Shaped a Nation

Every year on August 7, the people of Metlakatla gather to celebrate Founders’ Day. To an outsider, it may look like a community festival filled with parades, games, dancing, fireworks, and laughter. And while it certainly is all of those things, for those of us who call Metlakatla home, Founders’ Day represents something far deeper.

It is the story of our survival.

It is the story of our identity.

It is the story of our people.

In 1887, 826 Tsimshian men, women, and children climbed into large cedar canoes and embarked on a remarkable 70-mile journey from Metlakatla, British Columbia, to the shores of Annette Island in Southeast Alaska. They left behind homes they had built, familiar waters, and generations of history. They came seeking something many people take for granted today—freedom.

That journey required extraordinary courage. The waters they crossed were unpredictable, the future uncertain, and the sacrifices immense. Yet they believed that preserving their community and securing a future for their children was worth every hardship.

When they landed on these shores on August 7, 1887, they weren’t simply arriving at a new destination.

They were building a future.

Today, that future is our home.

A Legacy of Sovereignty

The decision made by our ancestors shaped Alaska forever.

Their settlement led to the establishment of the Annette Islands Reserve, which remains the first and only federal Indian reservation in Alaska. Generations later, when Alaska Native communities were deciding whether to participate in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), the people of Metlakatla made another defining choice.

They chose to remain a reservation.

That decision reflected the same spirit our ancestors carried across the water in 1887—the belief that our people should determine our own future and remain stewards of our lands, waters, and traditions.

Founders’ Day reminds us that sovereignty was never simply given.

It was earned through sacrifice.

Remembering Every Generation

One of my favorite parts of Founders’ Day is watching entire families walk together in the parade.

Grandparents.

Parents.

Children.

Great-grandchildren.

Many carry family signs or wear beautiful formline regalia representing clans such as Killer Whale, Raven, Eagle, and Wolf. These aren’t simply decorations. They are visible reminders that every family carries a story stretching back to those original canoes.

As each generation walks together, history comes alive.

We are not merely remembering our ancestors.

We are continuing their journey.

Celebrating the Culture That Endures

History is rarely simple.

William Duncan played an important role in helping establish New Metlakatla, yet his leadership also came with restrictions that discouraged many traditional Tsimshian cultural practices, including dancing, regalia, and the public use of our language.

Today, Founders’ Day tells another chapter of that story.

Traditional songs echo through the longhouse.

Beautiful handcrafted regalia is worn with pride.

Sm’álgyax, the language of our ancestors, is spoken and sung once again.

Artists, dancers, carvers, singers, and knowledge keepers continue the work of ensuring that our culture not only survives but thrives.

Our ancestors endured.

Our culture endures.

More Than Games

Founders’ Day has always been a celebration of community.

The races.

The tug-of-war.

The egg toss.

The laughter.

The friendly competition between families and friends.

These moments may seem simple, but they remind us that healthy communities are built through relationships. Every smile, every handshake, every shared meal strengthens the bonds that have held our community together for nearly 140 years.

The evening dances and fireworks bring the day to a joyful close, but the greatest celebration isn’t found in the sky above us.

It’s found in the people standing beside us.

Carrying the Story Forward

As I grow older, Founders’ Day means more to me with each passing year.

It reminds me that I am only one chapter in a much larger story.

Our ancestors crossed dangerous waters so future generations would have a place to belong. They built homes, schools, churches, businesses, and families from the ground up. They left us more than buildings and land.

They left us a responsibility.

To preserve our history.

To protect our language.

To honor our Elders.

To teach our children.

To ensure that future generations understand the sacrifices that made their lives possible.

That responsibility is one of the reasons I have become so passionate about helping establish the Metlakatla Heritage Foundation. Preserving our stories, photographs, historic buildings, oral histories, and traditions is about more than remembering the past. It is about ensuring that our grandchildren—and their grandchildren—will always know who they are and where they come from.

A Day That Lives in Our Hearts

For many communities, Founders’ Day celebrates the beginning of a town.

For the people of Metlakatla, it celebrates something much greater.

It celebrates faith.

It celebrates resilience.

It celebrates family.

It celebrates sovereignty.

Above all, it celebrates the enduring spirit of the Tsimshian people.

Every August 7, we remember the canoes that crossed the water.

And every August 7, we recommit ourselves to carrying that remarkable legacy forward.

Because Founders’ Day isn’t simply about where we’ve been.

It’s about who we are—and who we will become.