Quotes:
“The human and natural communities must come together as one community.”
“Father Charles lived his truth every day – his belief that human and natural communities must come together as one community.”
“His legacy is an enduring one – not only the life in the Tsolum River, but in the hearts and minds of those he has touched, instilling a deep reverence for all life, and teaching us to be a more benign presence on the planet.”
“I am Father Charles Brandt, a hermit, but I think of myself as Charles…most people call me Charles”
2020 Lifetime Achievement Nature Inspiration Award – Father Charles Brandt – Transcript
Moderator: Father Charles Brandt was an exceptional teacher, spiritual mentor and environmentalist. He devoted his life to protecting and preserving natural habitats and inspires generations of volunteers to work together to protect and preserve forests and rivers. While Father Brandt sadly passed away recently at the age of 97, his legacy of breathing life into the Tsolum River will inspire us for generations to come.
Charles: When I first came out, I was about the only person here. This would have been, you know, 50 years ago.
Moderator: Father Charles moved to the Tsolum area near Courtenay on Vancouver Island in 1965 and established a hermitage near Headquarters Creek, a tributary of the Tsolum River.
Charles: I want to give it as much protection as possible. I want it to last forever. The covenant protects it, almost absolutely, against any kind of encroachment.
Moderator: Father Charles worked on a Pink Salmon study with Robert Bamson and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans during the period when the Mt. Washington copper mine at the head of the watershed began leaching toxic copper into the Tsolum River. Poisoning caused the decline of the salmon stocks in the river bed was not identified as the source of the decline until 1984, almost 20 years after the mine was abandoned. Father Charles became a founding member of the Tsolum River Task Force in 1997. The group petitioned the government and established working committees to conduct research on flows, habitat, acid-rock drainage and agriculture in the watershed to try to restore the river. In 2009, after 27 years of lobbying by the Tsolum River Task Force and Restoration Society, the government of B.C. invested $4.5 million to cover and restore the mine site. Because of the dedication of Father Charles and his team, thousands of salmon return each year to the Tsolum River. Father Charles lived his truth every day – his belief that human and natural communities must come together as one community. His legacy is an enduring one – not only the life in the Tsolum River, but in the hearts and minds of those he has touched, instilling a deep reverence for all life, and teaching us to be a more benign presence on the planet.
Charles: I am Father Charles Brandt, a hermit, but I think of myself as Charles…most people call me Charles.