Charity Site

Fade in: Charity Site

Lisa sitting in front of window overlooking a park in the evening. There is a map of Christian Island propped just to her right.

(Dr. Lisa Merritt, Archaeological Services Inc.)

As I mentioned I started with Laurie in fall off 96’, yeah 96’, fall of 96’ and he couldn’t find anyone to go up to the island. He was going to do it I think but he couldn’t manage with his eyes, he had a I guess a grant from Ministry of Culture and Human Resources Canada or something? So after working with him for 3 months he said “I think I have a great opportunity for you. Do you want to go up to Christian Island? Catalogue some artifacts; work with some band members, to gather a collection, a display in the library?” And I said “ oh okay sure” so he armed me with all the artifacts and I went up there with some books on what Huron archaeology was and that was November 1996, and our, my mission was to catalogue ceramics and put up a display for the excavations that had taken place in 91’ I think.

I mean everyone was sort of, you know plotting along doing computer data entry and by the middle of my stay there it was January and it was just a really cold, cold winter and after immersing myself in with the Charity Site data and reading the stories of the Jesuits and the written material I would envision that story as I walked to and from the village in the morning to just the winds because it was this big flat open island and unprotected the crazy winds, cold blistering, freezing. And I had a three minute walk and I was fed beautifully and I wasn’t enduring famine. But it felt really personal to me that story because of that me, I had that daily trek into the village.

Fade Out: End credits.

Special Thanks: Lisa Merritt

Filming: Eliza Brandy

Editing: Brooke Gosden