Museum Crash Course: Cultural Connections- CANCELLED

Join us for exclusive access to experts, collections and objects designed to give you a hands on experience and a deeper understanding.

Cultural Connections

Immerse yourself in Indigenous ways of knowing with Indigenous cultural liaison Leslie McGarry as your guide. On the first day Leslie will take you through an introduction to the diversity of cultures in British Columbia. On the second day you will dig into pre- and post contact history. On the third and final day you will look at where Indigenous people are today. 

About your instructor

Leslie McGarry is a member of the Kwagiulth First Nation, one of several bands within the Kwakwaka’ wakw Territory, located on the northeast part of Vancouver Island. Leslie represents the 5th generation of her family to work in the field of Cultural Awareness, a legacy that began with her great-great grandfather, George Hunt, who worked with anthropologist Franz Boaz to record the cultural heritage and practices of the Kwakwaka’ wakw People. Leslie is also a great-granddaughter of the late Chief Mungo Martin and the eldest granddaughter of the late Chief Henry Hunt, both of whom were internationally renowned artists as well as Master Carvers for the Royal BC Museum's totem pole restoration project. The Royal BC Museum is also home to a replica of a cedar Big House belonging to Chief Jonathan Hunt, Leslie's paternal great-grandfather. Leslie's grandmother, the late Helen Hunt was a founding member of the Board of Directors for the Victoria Native Friendship Centre, where Leslie was employed for twenty-six years. With this inspirational legacy as a guiding force, and working with many community partners, Leslie provides opportunities to enhance and/or develop awareness and appreciation for the cultural diversity within Canada’s Aboriginal Peoples. In her capacity as a First Nation Cultural Liaison, Leslie relays information that reflects a First Nations perspective from pre-contact to post-contact history with cultural authenticity and integrity.