Willie Nahanee (Kwel-a-anexw)
Biography
Willie Nahanee was born November 15, 1941 in Vancouver, and grew up on Mission Reserve No. 1. For ten years, he was sent with his siblings, to St. Paul’s Indian Residential School in North Vancouver. During this challenging period, he became an active and accomplished boxer with St. Paul’s Athletic Club, later renamed Totem Athletic Club. This sport became a passion that followed him into adulthood. He is a member of the Squamish Nation and a long-time aboriginal cultural educator. His ancestral name is Kwel-a-nexw.
Boxing for a Future
“How I got into it? It was just part of a school program. All the boys had to go into the gym. There were some that couldn’t go because of maybe a medical problem, but most of them went. I started in 1949; I was seven years old, turning eight that year. I ended up in the ring with my brother who was probably six and a half, going on seven. And that was one of our first fights. I boxed for a number of years and I even won on Boxing Day two years in a row!
My current role, which I’ve had now for 19 years, is on Grouse Mountain. I’m a First Nations cultural presenter and educator. I use the word “educator,” even though I don’t have a certificate. But I do have the opportunity to provide a better understanding of First Nations culture, in particular, the Squamish. And that’s what I share: song, dance, stories, and our teachings. I believe these are very important things in life. That the old people wanted to hand on to us as young people.”
