Terrace city council has voted unanimously to give the new hospital now nearing completion a name in Sm’algyax, the language spoken by the Tsimshian people.
The motion made by Councillor Dave Gordon and seconded by Councillor Inder Dhillon grew out of an exchange of letters between Kitselas First Nation Chief Councillor Glenn Bennett and Northern Health Authority chair Colleen Nyce as to how the structure will be named.
Northern Health affixed the name of the current hospital, Mills Memorial Hospital, to the side of the new one at the end of Februar, but then shrouded the letters, saying a name had yet to be chosen.
Gordon said that while the community has done a good job of commemorating the achievements of people who have made contributions over the decades, “there’s an element of the building of Terrace that seems to be missing and that’s the contribution of the Indigenous people in our area.”
There was no debate about the substance of Gordon’s motion but Councillor Brian Downie did say he wasn’t clear on Northern Health’s terms of reference regarding incorporating an Indigenous name.
“I’m certainly not opposed to whatever naming they come up with,” he said referencing an advisory committee struck by Northern Health, “but one of the concerns I have is Dr. Mills spent decades as one of the few medical personnel in the region, benefiting everybody, so we shouldn’t forget that.”
“It may be my age, but I think we have to have a little bit of history considered in here,” Downie added.
The current hospital building takes its name from Dr. Stanley Mills who arrived in Terrace in the late 1920s. Together with his wife Edith, who was a nurse, the couple provided care to area residents for decades.
The couple retired in Terrace and both lost their lives in a fire at their residence in 1961.
Gordon responded by saying he sits on the Northern Health community advisory committee as an arts representative and the committee is now working on how various portions of the building should be named.
“There’s some very strong voices at the table speaking to your concern for the history and I would think that that will be well represented through the naming of other aspects of the new hospital,” he said.
The advisory committee is made up of representatives from the Kitsumkalum and Kitselas First Nations, the city, the regional hospital district and members of the community. It meets behind closed doors and its minutes are not published.
Terrace mayor Sean Bujtas is the city’s representative on the advisory committee but said he has yet to sit in on any meetings during which a name has been discussed.
Bujtas said he understands the final decision on any name rests with the provincial government.
“In my perfect world, it would have a Sm’algyax name and then say Terrace Regional Hospital right behind it. But that really is not up to me,” he said.
The letter from Kitselas First Nation Chief Councillor Glenn Bennett to Northern Health chair Colleen Nyce said that while Kitselas does have a representative on the advisory committee, he wanted to ensure Kitselas is well represented when it comes to choosing a name.
“As you know,” Bennett told Nyce, “the hospital is in Kitselas territory, and as such, I am hopeful we can work together to find an appropriate Tsimshian name for it as an important sign of reconciliation and hope.”
In her response, Nyce said the Kitsumkalum First Nation has also contacted Northern Health about a name for the building.
She invited Bennett to a meeting to be held soon during which the topic of naming the building will be on the agenda.
Nyce also thanked Bennett for his “desire to have a process that avoids this becoming a source of conflict.”
Councillors Gordon and Dhillon were joined by Councillors Downie, Sarah Zimmerman and James Cordeiro in wanting a name change. Councillor Chris Apps excused himself from the council chambers because he works for the Kitselas First Nation.