ZAP AEST NTE EB eR ipa teen peut By JEFF NAGEL THE NISGA'A leader who helped build a customized school System in the Nass Valley has died. Alvin McKay, the president of the Nisga’a Tribal Council from 1988 to 1991, died early Dec. 1 at the age of 68. He’d suffered’ stroke and had undergone heart bypass surgery earlier this year. Had he lived a few weeks longer, McKay likely Would have seen his people’s treaty passed by the feder- al Parliament and take effect — fulfilling a lifelong dream. wo ~~ McKay. was: the tribal council president’al the crucial time leading up to the 1990 decision of the provincial government under then-premier Bill Vander Zalm to ent- er talks with the Nisga’a, paving the way for negotiation of the treaty,” oo To the Nisga’a, McKay will be remembered most as their great educator — the man who fought to create a School system ‘under Nisga’a control that would foster Nisga’a language and culture. He worked to establish Nisga’a Elementary Sccond- ary School, providing instruction up to Grade 12, rather than the Grade | to 8 Indian day schools that previously existed. He lead the effort-to establish the Nisga’a School District in’ 1975, becoming its superintendent from 1981 to 1997, 7 “He was the basis for it all,” says Colin Peal, a 27- year-old Nisga’a who finished school nine years ago and works as a cook at Zydeco Jo’s in Terrace. “We'd never have had a school up there if it wasn’t for him.” “He was one of the original group of people that fought for a high school and then a school district,” ad- ded tribal council secretary-treasurer Edmond Wright. Running their own school district was an important eurly step on the eventual path to self-government. Suc- cess of the customized school board and the Nisga’a Valicy Health Board, where McKay also played a key role, are cited as evidence the Nisga’a are ready to take on treaty governance. McKay brought extensive administrative expertise that has guided other treaty work since, negotiation skills, and political common sense. At McKay’s urging, the Nisga’a created a guaranteed scat on their school board to assure representation for the tiny minority of non-natives living in the Nass. He was one of the few native people to graduate from high school in 195! when most didn’t go past Grade 8. McKay earned a Masters of Education degree from the University of British Columbia before returning to teach in his home village of Lakalzap (Greenville). He and others battled to get electrical service to the Nass at a time when huge. transmission tines snaked their way through the valley to service a nearby mine, “They fought like hell to get B.C. Hydro in here,” Wright says. “People take it for granted nowadays.” Rod Robinson, a former executive director of the trib- al council, has strong memories of McKay from the day in 1939 when the two eight-year-old boys were sent to residential school in Alert Bay. They found discipline in their schooling and together took up boxing, soccer and The _ Century Plaza J lotel & Spa ‘DOWNTOWN VANCOUVER BC_ * Aoy’s Sleak & Seafood Restaurant © tadoor Ozonated Poo! and Steam Rooms e #1 Rated Luxury European CALL. YOUR TRAVEL | 2 AGENT 1015 Burrard St. Vancouver, BC V6Z1Y5 Tel: 687-0575 Fax: 682-5790 Guaranteed QUALITY DRYCLEANING ‘Clothing Repairse *Fast Service 4736 Lakelse Ave. 635-2820 LOOK YOUR BEST. This New Year PLAY FOR A 10 - IT’S FREE! See us for details. Nisga’a leader Alvin McKay Called the ‘great educator’ eT Alvin McKay basketball in high school. McKay would go on to become elected chief council- lor at Lakalzap, a post he still held when: he died, He was also a hereditary chief of the frog tribe, holding the name Daaxheek. The names and the duties that go with chieftainships are immortal, even-if the individuals who hold the titles are not. That, says Robinson; is why McKay would have his mourners focus on the future and the work yet to be done, rather than the past. “So when he goes, and when I go tomorrow, stop momentarily and mourn, and then keep on walking.” “He and [share the same thinking on this,” Robinson said. “We work for the Nisga’a Nation. We devoted all our lives so that the future generations will not have to go through the anguish and slress that we’ve had to go through.” “So when he goes, and when | go tomorrow, stop mo- mentarily and mourn, and then keep on walking.” The funeral for Alvin McKay was held Dec. 4 in New Aiyansh. It was followed by a large feast. 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