Squamish art adorns new West Vancouver fire truck

A new fire truck featuring Indigenous art is about to hit the streets of West Vancouver, B.C. 

The project came from a desire within the West Vancouver Fire Department to demonstrate its commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.

Asst. Chief Jeremy Calder says the West Vancouver Police Department and North Vancouver RCMP have a vehicle that features First Nations art, and the fire department wanted to emulate that. 

The department met with Squamish artist Xwalacktun, whom they commissioned to create the piece that would be featured on the new truck. 

"We shared words that we hoped the images would represent things like family, community protection, collaboration, strength and resilience," Calder told CBC's The Early Edition host Stephen Quinn.  

Xwalacktun has created all sorts of art for various entities in B.C., including carved doors for B.C. Hydro, a set of doors each at the University of Victoria and the Gordon Smith Gallery in North Vancouver, B.C., and two sets of carved doors at the West Vancouver School Board office. 

Xwalacktun says his work for the fire department was inspired by the idea of the Lions Gate Bridge literally bridging communities and cultures together. 

The design features a canoe with paddles up, representing peace and respect between cultures. 

He says the pair of eyes are a reminder that we're always being watched. 

"It has a wolf design to represent family," Xwalacktun said. "We're all family."

Calder says the work on the new truck is "so powerful and just perfectly captured the intent and meaning of this collaboration."

Shared ceremonies

The truck is expected to hit the streets later this month. But before it can officially join the fleet, it will go through a private ceremony combining both Squamish traditions and a fire department ritual. 

"The traditional push in ceremony includes transferring of water from the old truck to the new, washing the truck and pushing it into the hall by hand, as was done in the past when the fire apparatus were drawn by horses," Calder said. 

Following that, a brushing ceremony will be held to cleanse the truck, using cedar boughs.

"This removes any negative energy and also symbolizes the washing of the truck and bringing life to the vehicle," Calder said. 

From there, the truck will be pushed into the firehall by hand, signifying that it's ready for service. Then, those in attendance will be invited to speak about what the ceremony means for them. 

"We used to hear some of our chiefs and our elders say, you know, we were invisible in our own land," Xwalacktun said, adding that this initiative demonstrates the non-Indigenous community acknowledging the existence of the Squamish Nation. 

Calder described the truck and the ceremonies as a step toward reconciliation. 

"Our hope is that the message is clear when you see this artwork on the truck that we acknowledge and respect our Indigenous community and we're committed to reconciliation, equity, diversity and inclusion. We've already found that the artwork sparks conversations of learning about these topics and as well as exploring ways that we can further work collaboratively together."

Xwalacktun will be attending the ceremony together with his seven-year-old son. 

"It'll be an awesome day for me to see all this happening," he said.