In Memoriam

Knowing Kaadeiyaxhanakh had collapsed Friday, never to be revived ... I joined the Kiksadi herring camp on the beach at the Halibut Point Recreation Area yesterday with a heavy heart. Kaadeiyaxhanakh was Martin Strand Senior’s and my son, so named by the Kiksadi Clay House, who adopted him, myself and daughters because Martin Strand Senior was Kaagwaantaan. Kiksadi culture bearer Tom Gamble stopped his herring lesson. Schools of herring swirled around, and Tom began a prayer for the family. Just then a killer whale with huge flukes of black and white breeched and dove seven times for gulps of fresh herring. The campfire at our feet as we held hands sent tunnels of smoke skyward, invoking a spirit reaching to the heavens. Kaadeiyaxhanakh died Friday. He was 55 years old with a wife and daughter and son.

Marcia Strand

April 1, 2022