Ronald J. Paquin, Migizi Doodem Mookodaasowinini [Eagle Clan Carver], or Ron as he is known most often, is a respected master artist in a wide range of Anishinaabe material culture traditions. An enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Paquin regularly hosts community events with his wife Molly.
The pair offer opportunities for tribal communities across Michigan to learn to build wiigwaas jiimaan [birch bark canoes] using locally sourced, sustainably harvested materials that he gathers with his apprentices in the Eastern Upper Peninsula.
In April, they hosted a celebratory build in St. Ignace where they live. Apprentices Josh Homminga and Adam Avery were their co-hosts. They invited the local community, with special attention to people who have been Ron Paquin’s apprentices through the Michigan Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program. The event was at St. Ignace Tribal Community Center Enji Mawaanjii’ding, which translates to “A Place Where We Gather.”
Gather we did, with enough room for a few dozen people, a canoe in progress, and a generous potluck buffet.
The event began with a welcome blessing in Anishinaabemowin offered by tribal elder Cecil Pavlat, Sr.
“When you are doing [traditional crafts] and you understand that your ancestors did it the same way, there is a connection. Blood memory is activated. It just feels good. Any traditional craft, we want to perpetuate and teach those things,” he says, reflecting on the importance of cultural practices as a form of connecting past and present.
For Caden Colegrove, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe Cultural Activities Coordinator for the Straits Area, it was more than just a gathering.
“We Anishinaabeg have an oral tradition, we learn our histories and ways of interacting with the world by listening to our parents, grandparents, aunties, and uncles tell us stories and then as we grow, we pass them on in the same way. Having these large community events allows us to carry this quintessential tradition forward,” she says. “It’s not all about tradition for the sake of tradition, though. Strong medicine builds in places where people gather.”
RONALD J PAQUIN, IN HIS BOOKLET RON’S HONEST CANOE“Canoes are the most fascinating thing our ancestors ever made. They were innovative transportation and also used as shelter . . . Canoes got them to their hunting and gathering grounds, to their fishing grounds, and to their seasonal living areas.”
The role of canoes goes deeper than transportation; it is a connection to tradition, to lineage, and to the lifeways practiced within Anishinaabe communities across borders for generations.
In 2010, Paquin was commissioned by Cecil Pavlat, Sr., to build a canoe to transport the remains of six indigenous ancestors from the Smithsonian back to Batchewana First Nation, a community in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
In Cecil’s words, “Who else would we choose?” A 22’ foot canoe was constructed by the duo and blacksmith Bill Morrison. Multiple busloads of community members came from Batchewana to assist in building the vessel that would carry their ancestors home, across the St. Mary’s River as they had done for centuries.
“Crossing that river in a birch bark canoe was nothing short of amazing and spiritual and moving and emotional . . . It was awesome to do it in the way we did,” recalls Pavlat.
“We told the border patrol but we did not ask. They were invited to observe but they knew what we were doing was beyond any laws or any borders. They understood the importance. You don’t have to be Native American to understand the respectful practice of taking care of your ancestors.”
Paquin’s ethic of community canoe building echoes Pavlat’s sentiments about the importance of caretaking ancestors who have walked on: “[To] Be their voice. Be their legs. Do what we need to do to take care of them.” By creating moments for the sharing of skills and stories, Paquin caretakes his community in the present and for the future.