Community loses respected Elder

Page 5

When Dan McLean passed away on April 9 at the age of 89, his passing left a void in the lives of the many people.

Described by some as a trailblazer and a progressive thinker who was dedicated to making things better for his people, McLean was also remembered as being a man that was full of humor, who never failed to make those around him feel good.

McLean was an honorary lifetime member of the Aboriginal Multi-Media Society (AMMSA) board of directors, publishers of Alberta Sweetgrass, but that was just one accomplishment on a

long list of contributions he made to the Aboriginal community over the years.

Chester Cunningham, founder of Native Counselling Services of Alberta, and another member of the AMMSA board, said he first met McLean in the mid-1960s.

"He was on the band council with Sturgeon Lake. And I always felt that Dan was the most progressive leader up there," Cunningham said. "It seemed when you went to meetings, it was Dan who was putting forth the ideas. And he really cared about his people, and realized that his people were going to have to move ahead to survive."

And when oil companies came to the reserve wanting to drill, McLean was very much involved in negotiations, Cunningham explained.

"Dan was at the forefront of all of the discussions. And he could see ahead. He was the visionary, really I guess, seeing what could happen."

When Cunningham created Native Counselling in 1970, McLean was one of the first people he put on the organization's board.

"And he always came with new ideas. He was a bit more than a board member. He also went out and did a lot of public relations. But he was a real Elder," Cunningham said. "He was always, right up to the end, he was always concerned about the plight of his people."

McLean was also one of the founding members of the Native Federation of Alberta in the late 1960s.

"It was sort of the organization that kind of spearheaded all the programs for Aboriginal people in Alberta," Cunningham explained. "We were always trying to get one organization to provide services for all organizations. When the federal government refused to fund the Native Federation, we kind of split off.

"And also they were involved in recruiting both Harold (Cardinal) and Stan Daniels to run for their respective organizations, because we felt that the organizations needed to move forward to a political group rather than just more of a social thing. And as a result, Native Counselling got going, Native Outreach, Canative Housing . . . the communication network. And they all more of less got their jump-start as a result of the Native Federation of Alberta. But Dan was always involved, and was really level headed with all of his decisions, and you could tell any of the decisions he made were well thought out. And he listened to people," he said.

"He was just one fellow you could talk to, and he shared information. I know whenever I stopped in, I was welcome at his place. And I used to do it quite a bit, when I needed some advice, or maybe a pat on the back or something, or wanted to discuss something, Dan was always available."

Jim Badger, former grand chief of the Lesser Slave Lake Indian Regional Council got to know McLean through the council.

"When it was first formed, I think he was one of the key runners in the 1974 start up of the Lesser Slave Lake Indian Regional Council. And he was very instrumental," Badger said. Badger described McLean as a trailblazer, both in his work with the council, and with his work in the early days of Native Counselling Services of Alberta.

McLean's daughter Annette recalled her father's strong interest in politics.

"He just loved it . . . he had such a passion for it. And he believed in trying to retain or reclaim our treaty rights," she said. "The one thing that I always got out of him was our treaty rights, and how they're disappearing. In all areas, health, and you name it. We're just losing them. And he really believed in education. Thatwe need that education to help us. And he always taught that, 'don't ever let anybody put you down.' That you can do whatever you want," she recalled.

"Another thing that he did was that he was a trapper. He was like a scientist, an environmentalist."

He was also very much a people person.

"He just loved meeting people. And learning about their political situation or struggles," Annette said. "He had a lot of friends . . . a lot of people really expressed how much they really loved my dad."

At one point, Annette took a break from her career as a teacher in order to do some writing with her father.

"I was trying to record his life, because he had so much. But because I was his daughter, it was a difficult task. Because you know, sometimes I had to ask some really personal things." she said. "Back then, when I was doing the interviews, he'd be honest. He'd be telling me his feelings. And so I managed to record some. But then when the funeral happened, I felt it wasn't enough; because there's so much. And he was so good for details. He could remember dates. And he could tell the same story, and add details to it," she recalled.

Her father had gone to residential school, and that experience had an impact on him, she explained.

"He wasn't bitter from those years, but he learned from them. And it seemed like he was on a journey of healing all of the time. He was like a walking icon to me."

Dan McLean is survived by his wife, Eliza, son Arnold and daughter-in-law Ernestine, son Paul, daughters Christine, Martha, Rosie, Beverly, Ann, Ruby and Shirley, daughter Carol and son-in-law Lawrence, daughter Doris and son-in-law Robert, daughter Sharon and son-in-law Clarence, daughter Annette and son-in-law Billy Joe, as well as 62 grandchildren, 14 great grandchildren, and three great, great grandchildren.