Within our family’s understanding, this period of mourning extends for four years. During this time, images and recordings of our loved one are put away as we tend to our grief, seek our own healing, and allow the spirit to move without disturbance. There is more to this practice than we will speak to here, and some teachings are not meant for this moment or this space. What is important to know is that this four-year period marks a sacred threshold—one that allows mourning to run its course, and one that, when complete, signals the closing of that season and the honoring of life in a new way.

We are taught that repeatedly seeing, hearing, or revisiting images of our loved ones during this time can prolong mourning in ways that may cause concern in the spiritual realm. Such disturbance may make it difficult for the spirit to rest, to travel onward, and to find peace. These teachings are not new; they are inherited wisdom, carried forward from our first ancestors, practiced through countless generations, and held with care to this day.

Before John’s passing, our family engaged in many conversations with him about how he wished to be remembered and how his work might continue. These were not casual discussions. They were thoughtful, intentional, and deeply aligned with the life he lived. John was a man committed to healing—not only his own, but the healing of others. Through decades of cultural work and Western modalities, he extended invitations to survivors, to families, and to communities to tend to their wounds with honesty, courage, and compassion. Until his final days, he remained a student of his own humanity, honoring the complexity of what it means to live, to heal, and to be accountable to one’s spirit.

As a family, we came to understand that part of John’s legacy lives in those invitations—to healing, to reflection, to intergenerational care. It is for this reason, and only after much consideration, that we have chosen to allow certain images and videos of John to remain accessible through the channels and organizations where he intentionally shared his voice, his teachings, and his story.

We wish to be especially clear with our Coast Salish relatives and friends: this decision is not made lightly, nor does it stand outside our teachings. Rather, it reflects an evolution within them—an honoring of both ancestral protocol and the living legacy of survivor healing, including the healing of Indian Residential School survivors, their families, and those yet to come.

These words are offered not only from us, but with us—alongside the echoed wisdom of generations who have mourned, who have loved, who have learned how to hold grief without letting it consume the spirit. May this explanation be received in that same spirit of care, respect, and continuity.

With gratitude and humility,
John’s family