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It turns out that 2,000 pounds of salmon wasn’t enough.

Hundreds of people visited Celebrate BC—the largest wild salmon barbecue in B.C.—at Town Centre Park on August 4, selling out salmon in mere hours due to popular demand. The event was co-hosted by the Kwikwetlem First Nation and the S.U.C.C.E.S.S Foundation, a Vancouver-based charity.

As part of serving as the largest salmon barbecue in the province, Celebrate BC featured live music from many local artists and was headlined by a performance from Juno-award winner George Leach. Celebrate BC also included a show from Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week, a zipline, and multiple food truck vendors.

There were multiple local and national politicians at the event too, including Coquitlam-Burke Mountain MLA Jodie Wickens, Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart, and Coquitlam-Port Coquitlam MP Ron McKinnon, among many others.

The festival has been months in the making, with the Nation agreeing to serve as hosts back in November.

Along with hosting duties, the Nation used Celebrate BC as an educational opportunity, spotlighting members and advocates. And telling a wider audience about its history and relationship with salmon.

In hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓, Kwikwetlem means ‘Red Fish up the River,’ a nod to the thousands of salmon that once flourished in the Coquitlam Watershed before the damning of the Coquitlam River in 1904.

After that, salmon runs were reduced to almost total extinction. (The Nation also had a booth that highlighted its new hatchery, kʷikʷəƛ̓əm t́ák̓ʷ, and recent release of 9,000 Coho smolts to the watershed in June.)

The event kicked off at 11:00 a.m., with Chief and Council and Elder Stephen Armstrong speaking to the importance of salmon to the Nation. The gathering of the yəxˇʷəleʔ - ‘young bald eagle’—the Nation’s drumming group that formed in the spring—also performed in front of dozens of people.

As part of the opening ceremony, Rodney Lee and Craig Orr were honoured for their years spent advocating for salmon and fish habitat in the Coquitlam Watershed on behalf of the Nation. Both Lee and Orr were blanketed by members, a formal recognition of their service.

The ceremony set the tone for the rest of the event, which continued late into the evening.

Scroll through the images below to check out highlights from Celebrate BC.

The gathering of the yəxˇʷəleʔ lead the Nation onto the stage to kick off the opening ceremony. 

The gathering of the yəxˇʷəleʔ started practicing earlier this year and have already performed at two notable events, including Celebrate BC and the City of Burnaby's National Indigenous Peoples Day event in June. 

Elder Stephen Armstrong and the Nation's elected officials each gave speeches to the crowd, outlining Kwikwetlem's historic ties to salmon and the importance of the species.

Multiple times throughout the festival, Joe Kambeitz shared how he helped get yellow fish placed on residential storm drains to prevent people from contaminating local water systems.

Craig Orr, left, and Rodney Lee, right, have spent years working for the Nation, helping Kwikwetlem restore salmon and waterways within its traditional territory. To honour their work, both Orr and Lee were officially blanketed. 

Celebrate BC drew out local politicians from across the Tri-Cities. 

Celebrate BC wasn't all about dancing and music. The event featured booths (including this one from the Nation) aimed at educating locals about salmon. 

 Attendance picked up throughout the afternoon, with hundreds of people stopping by Town Centre Park to take in the festivities.