A large crowd gathered at the Canadian Rockies International Airport to witness the unveiling of the Reconciliation sculpture on Monday, which was also National Aboriginal Day.

Paul Reimer, artist blacksmith and Michael Hepher, visual artist, created the statue, which is placed beside the departures entrance. It features water, a canoe and six figures, all made of steel. Reimer described for the audience what the different features of the sculpture mean.

“We have here at the beginning of the sculpture calm, flowing water. This is the society as the Ktunaxa were existing before contact with the European cultures. Then we have this turbulent water, which is the contact of the two cultures colliding and creating the turbulence,” he said. “These people are carrying this canoe, they are portaging it around this difficult time. They are trying to negotiate the upheaval, the turmoil that has been created. At the beginning of navigating this difficult time, the burden is quite heavy and is carried mostly by the Ktunaxa people. In the centre of the sculpture the burden is getting lighter. The European culture is lending a hand, they don’t know quite what to do with the damage they’ve created and the burden is not quite as heavy. There is still some turbulent water and there’s still some difficult times but that is where we’re at right now and we’re trying to work together to find a way to solve these problems.

“At the end of the sculpture we have calm and peaceful waters and we have the white person and the Ktunaxa and they are going to launch this canoe together in peace and unity and travel together on this river in this valley to prosperity.”

Kathryn Teneese, Chair of the Ktunaxa Nation Council, said the sculpture will be a reminder of the continuing need for all to work together towards a mutually beneficial and respectful relationship.

“Reconciliation flows from recognition and understanding and it’s (National Aboriginal Day) not an event but rather part of an ongoing relationship,” she said. “I hope today’s event will help us move forward together in this ongoing relationship.”

Chief of the St. Mary’s Band, Cheryl Casimer, said the sculpture commemorates a new relationship between the Ktunaxa and its neighbours.

“This statue signifies our commitment to working together for a better future for all who live in this territory. Today we acknowledge our history and our past,” she said. “It’s like the end of the chapter in a book and now we turn the page to a new chapter, a blank page that we will fill and write together. Today we unveil what will be a legacy we will all be proud of, a legacy that will be seen by thousands that arrive or depart form this airport and they will know the people of this region are honourable visionaries.”

Cranbrook Mayor Scott Manjak thanked the sponsors of the sculpture, Teck, the Regional District of the East Kootenay, the Columbia Basin trust, BC Hydro, YVR Airport Services Ltd., Falkins Insurance Group and the Rotary Club of Cranbrook.

“Without your generous support we would not be here. Without hesitation you all made commitments to this project and embraced the vision behind the sculpture,” he said. “They are all leaders in the community. This shows that when we share a cause that transcends our individual needs we can truly build a relationship based on mutual trust and understanding.

“As symbolized in this sculpture we unveiled today, we know that reconciliation starts with recognition and can only be sustained by working together with the Ktunaxa Nation to build up our communities to the benefit of all its citizens. I believe that this day will be viewed by future generations as an important step in the journey to a better understanding between our two people, that today we took a collective step together to understand that there is more that brings us together than divides us.”

Kootenay Columbia MP Jim Abbott attended the unveiling and said he was glad to see the large crowd — more than 150 people — taking part in the event.

“We are all in it together. We are all in a journey to reconciliation, to a recognition of the past injustices and how we can work together so that we’re not always looking backward but we’re looking forwards, with some excitement I might add, to see where we go from here,” he said.

Kootenay East MLA Bill Bennett, newly appointed Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, could not attend and his constituency assistant Jennifer Osmar read his speech.

“It is not possible for me to understand the anguish and suffering of First People since the time of contact but I do understand the need to recognize what has happened in the past and I understand the need to work together towards reconciliation. Our nation will never be great until First People have the same opportunities as others and especially until we reconcile,” she read.

Reimer offered a heartfelt apology to Ktunaxa and other First Nations living in the area on behalf of the community.

“We want to offer our sincere apologies for the systematic destruction of your identity and your culture. Our ancestors did this and they often did it in the name of progress, they did it in the name of land and they did it in the name of God,” he said. “It is my goal that this sculpture will help the people in our community so when they see any person in our community, when they look at them, they will not see the colour of their skin, they will not see the culture of their background but they will see another human being.”