Accessibility factored in to First Nations monument site

Had it not been for the Haudenosaunee who guided Laura Secord along the last leg of her fateful journey to Decew House, where she warned British commanders of an impending U.S. attack, we might be waving an American flag, says Joey Hewitt.

The Thorold resident, who has mobility limitations, attended a sod-turning event at Decew House Heritage Park Thursday, where inclusiveness and a spirit of reconciliation were celebrated as integral parts of a “Barrier Buster” Canada 150 collaborative project.

With help from many contributing partners, The Friends of Laura Secord are constructing a historic First Nations Peace Monument at the Thorold park and ensuring accessibility for people with mobility and other physical as well as mental limitations.

“We appreciate the Friends of Laura Secord helping us,” said Hewitt, who was invited, as a member of the joint accessibility advisory committee which encompasses Thorold and five other Niagara municipalities, by Caroline McCormick, president of Friends of Laura Secord.

“I think it’s going to be a prime example of a site that’s not only promoting some of the crucial history of Canada and the area of Thorold but it’s also a showcase to people with accessibility issues,” Hewitt said.

The site will provide a Braille section on the monument for visibly-impaired visitors, a special 1.6-metre-wide pathway for wheelchairs and scooters, and the opportunity to experience peaceful and scenic attributes of the site.

Volunteer Bob Watson said every joint in the pathway is being milled to within about two millimetres, making it smooth and barrier-free for wheelchairs and walkers.

“We are very grateful to the Rick Hansen Access for All initiative, which provided support for the pathways of the project,” said McCormick. “It’s supported by the Government of Canada. We want to make sure that this site recognizes that people with mobility issues can see Canadian history.”

Laura Secord’s story resonates with Canadians, McCormick said, because the heroine “represents a wide spectrum of ordinary people, female and male, nativeborn and immigrant, whose daily struggles and contributions to the building of the nation went largely unnoticed, but who rose to the challenges of their circumstances with exceptional courage and heroism.”

A pivotal part of Secord’s epic journey is that she encountered First Nations warriors near current-day Morningstar Mill. After her warning, British and First Nations forces mounted an offensive that resulted in a defeat of the American invaders in the Battle of Beaverdams, arguably changing the course of Canadian history.

The Peace Monument’s intent is to generate a deeper understanding of the vital role First Nations people played, and the importance of reconciliation.

“It’s highly symbolic of the resident First Nations and the early settlers who galvanized their forces in defence of this country, and that’s why we are working so hard to make this happen,” McCormick said.

Representing the Six Nations community, Tim Johnson acts as senior adviser to the Friends of Laura Secord for the project. As the former assistant director of museum programs at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, he met First Nations activist and architect Douglas Cardinal, who was instrumental in designing that famous building. Knowing his work first-hand, Johnson enlisted him to design Thorold’s Peace Monument, pro bono.

“It’s been an honour to have him involved,” Johnson said of the world-renowned Siksika Blackfoot architect. “With this new era of reconciliation that Canada has embraced and seeing municipalities and organizations like the Friends of Laura Secord get behind projects like this is very encouraging. Having brought Douglas Cardinal into the picture really makes this effort substantial in terms of its artistic quality and the tremendous reputation he brings to this work. He’s one of the most innovative architects around, so to have him here in Thorold is huge.”

Cardinal designed a distinctive circular monument made of solid limestone, with the circle symbolizing welcoming, inclusion and the protective aspect of many Native cultures. The protective curved walls are abstract symbols of Haudenosaunee longhouses that open to the east and west, with a central hearth. The fire, a translucent sphere, also represents the sun. The glowing orb that symbolizes the fire will emit rays of light in all directions reminiscent of the campfires of the Haudenosaunee and First Nations allies and energy of the sun.

The Peace Monument will be unveiled Oct. 7, on the anniversary of the Royal Proclamation of 1763 issued by King George III, which set out the core elements of the relationship between First Nations and the Crown and established the recognition of First Nations rights in Canada.