Shortly before leaving in June for my summer trip to northern B.C., I received word that a young woman (originally from Gitsegukla but living in Vancouver) had unexpectedly passed away at the young age of 31.  She was related to the Hyzim family from Gitanyow. The memorial service and feast wouldn’t be until mid to late July, which meant I would be able to attend. Although I had never been to a feast before, a few people advised me to bring a bowl with a lid, a jar with a lid, a spoon, a bag, and an extra bag or something to carry everything in; more on that later.

On the day of the memorial service and feast, I arrived at 1:40 p.m. at the school gym. It was already hot outside. Around 2:20 p.m. the service began. At the front of the gym was a stage with a small praise band for music. Most of the family entered following the coffin of the young woman. There was singing, sharing of stories, and prayer, followed by more singing. Then everyone left for the graveyard. 

I followed but stayed near the back. Even though I had never met the young woman or knew much about her family, it was hard to be there, to hear their cries, the sobs and family members saying goodbye as they lowered her coffin into the ground.

At four p.m., an announcement was made that the feast would begin at six. Unsure where else to go, I returned to the gym and found people rearranging it for the feast. As a former D.C.E, I am experienced in setting up tables and chairs in churches, so I put those skills to use while waiting.

Six o’clock arrived, and people slowly started to come in. One of the three elders running the feast sat me at the ‘fish table’. The fish table is reserved for those who do not belong to any of the local clans. After an hour, there was a song to start the feast, and several members of the deceased young woman's family began to serve soup. 

Scanning the room, I noticed I was one of two non-First Nations people in attendance. The other non-First Nations person, who sat next to me, lived in the area and had children who had married First Nations people.

When my soup bowl was filled, I was told it would remain full as long as they were passing out soup. So I ate it very slowly. I began to talk with those around me and found out the person across from me was the young woman’s fiance from Vancouver. He shared stories of his work as a commercial roofer and how he and his girlfriend would give candy to their visiting brother’s kids to fill them with sugar before sending them home.

After the soup had been served, next came gifts for which I had brought a small bag for. I was given a loaf of bread, several cans of soda, apples, bananas, fry bread (yum!), candy, dish towel, coffee mug, and more. These items, donated to the feast from the community, were all handed out from table to table. My bag was too small to carry everything so the young man I had been talking to went and got a box for me!

 

After everyone received these items, next came larger gifts for different individuals at each clan/table group. I’m not sure how it was decided, but people were given various items such as an acoustic guitar, toaster oven, blankets, computer speakers, and more. Most of the items were new, some were gently used. (You might have noticed this is longer than usual, but there is a point to this lengthy newsletter/blog.)

The feast was very long and slow. There wasn’t an urgency to get through things, and everyone was very patient. Once the food and gifts were all handed out, next came a collecting of money. I was expecting a small box or bowl to be passed around. Instead, each person who wanted to contribute came forward, then their name(s) and the amount was announced.

So, I went up with a twenty dollar bill as did most people. When I got to the front of the line, my friend Calvin (the announcer who is from Gitanyow) smiled at me and said, “Nathan Schmidt, LAMP VBS, $20.” This went on for awhile until a group gathered around a person with a notebook and calculator. Some money was put into envelopes while other bills were put into different boxes. The final amount was announced for the total collection. Although I don’t remember the amount, it was a lot.

After the expenses were paid, the rest of the money was redistributed to those who attended the feast. First, each head of a clan was given a larger amount of money. Next, certain individuals and two other people went to each table to hand out the money. When they came to me, I said, “Please keep it.”

The person handing out the money looked at me and replied with a stern voice, “No, you must take it.” Thankfully, the other person helping gave a smile to me as if to say, we understand that you are not used to our customs. I was given a twenty dollar bill!

After all the money was distributed, next came speeches spoken mainly in Gitxsanimx. Some of the elders gave their speech in English after they spoke in Gitxsanimx. This was the longest part of the night, and many people were slowly leaving. (It’s been a long time since I’ve sat that still for that long.)  By now it was around midnight, and the gym was very warm from the evening heat. I was the only one left at the ‘fish table’! (If you are still reading, here is where things get even more interesting. Many wonderful things happened this summer, which I will share more about later; however, this is a major highlight!)

I decided I would start to quietly pack up. As I moved my box off the floor, Calvin came up to me and whispered in my ear, “Don’t go yet. I would like you to close us in prayer.” Like a deer in headlights, I responded, “Yes, I can do that.” Nervous, I began to think of what to say.

After the last speech was given, Calvin said, “Thank-you to those that stayed to hear the speeches. They are important, and many people have left before hearing them all. I would like to invite my friend, Nathan Schmidt, to close us in prayer. He works with LAMP and brings people into the villages to teach VBS.” Then Calvin whispered to me to say a little more about LAMP.

So I explained what LAMP is and that I don’t get to fly a plane. I shared about how we are bringing in teams to teach children and youth about Jesus and how much God loves them. I thanked them for sharing their culture with me and the teams that came this summer and how much we appreciate learning more about their customs. Then I prayed.

Now I normally close my prayers with “and all God’s children say...” and then the kids say ‘amen’ with me. So I decided I would do the same with the adults, not knowing what response I would get.  At the end of my prayer, I said “and all God’s people said…” and EVERYONE in the gym said “AMEN!” with me!

I went back to the place where I was staying in B.C., overcome by what had happened and humbled that God was working through me. What an amazing night! God is good! Amen.