Ch'askin: A Legend of the Sechelt People (Legends of the Sechelt Nation)

Ch'askin is the great thunderbird whose appearance heralds rumbling thunder, a darkening sky and flashes of lightning -- as well as good luck for the people of the Sechelt Nation.

This compelling book recounts how this enormous and awe-inspiring bird -- who looks like a golden eagle except much, much larger -- aided and protected the members of the Sechelt villages for many years in many ways. From helping Chief Spelmu'lh, the father of the Sechelt Nation, build both the first longhouse and the many villages of his people, to delivering goats and grizzly bears for the hungry people to eat and creating islands from pebbles for the tired Sechelt hunters to rest, the story of Ch'askin is a story of protection, friendship and respect for fellow living beings.

The Sechelt Nation, a division of the Coast Salish family of First Nations, originally occupied the southern portion of what is now known as the Sunshine Coast of BC. At the time of contact with Europeans, the shishalh (Sechelt people) were a populous and peaceful people occupying some 80 scattered village sites. Estimates of original population range from 5,000 to 20,000, but by the time of the first official census in 1881, the Sechelt population had plunged to 167, mainly due to introduced diseases. In this century, the band staged a remarkable comeback. Today the Sechelt are one of Canada's most progressive First Nations groups, running a number of successful businesses. In 1986 the passage of Bill C-93 made the Sechelt Indian Band the first in Canada to achieve self-government. The band now numbers more than 1,000 members, about half of whom live on band lands.

Jamie Jeffries, who illustrated Ch'askin, was born in Sechelt, British Columbia, and has lived there all his life. He grew up in an artistic family; his mother, Corinne Jeffries, weaves Native baskets, and it was his cousin, Arnold Jones, who first taught him the art of carving wood twenty years ago. His career as a carver has continued since then, and he has worked on many carvings and totems in the Sechelt area, including those that stand in front of the Sechelt Community Hall. In the past ten years, he has also become an accomplished engraver of silver and gold.