Lheidli T’enneh flag now flies in Prince George’s County, Maryland

A collector living there is fascinated by all things PG, and reached out

At the Citizen newspaper office, we get all kinds of phone calls from people looking for details about events, offering news tips, hunting for old articles or photos and even making serious requests, like the woman who gave up her son in 1969 and wondered whether we could put out a call to help find him. We also get plenty of emailed press releases from people who think we're the newspaper in Prince George's County, Md., not a city in the middle of BC. Then there are the requests that come out of left field — the unusual ones where we do our best to help.

We rarely share those feel-good moments, but this time we're taking you through the whole process to tell a happy little story connecting two Prince Georges in two countries. One day, Michael Kast, graphic designer and layout artist at The Citizen, got a voicemail on his work phone. It was from George Hoskey, a history teacher from Prince George's County, Md., who was asking whether we could help him get a flag from the local First Nation because he collects flags.

As Kast listened to the message, he realized it wasn't a mistake. Hoskey was looking for a Lheidli T'enneh First Nation flag from Prince George, BC. Kast told managing editor Kennedy Gordon about Hoskey and said he'd like to make it happen.

After getting Gordon's approval, Kast got to work. "George likes to fly different flags," Kast said. "He's a teacher in Prince George's County, and when I talked to him on the phone he sounded really laid back.

He also really likes The Tragically Hip. He even asked them to play at his wedding and got a response saying, 'We're going to be out on tour, but we would if we could.' "So then I got hold of Jen Rubadeau (Lheidli T'enneh First Nation communications manager) to see if we could get a flag.

She got back to me and said, 'Yup, come pick up the flag.'" That's when the plan started to come together. Gordon directed Kast to me, and we decided to visit the Lheidli T'enneh First Nation office to receive the flag.

Kast would accept it, and I would take photos for the story because we wanted to share this little adventure with our readers. "I think this is just a cool little story," Kast said. "I'm just doing my part — nothing grand, nothing grandiose.

It's little gestures that build connections and friendships. "'Hey, man, you want a flag? We'll do our part to get that for you.'

We're the newspaper of record, and that's why George called us. He could have called anybody, but he called us, so I wanted to see if we could do this for him." Kast and I recently made our way to the Lheidli T'enneh First Nation office, which, coincidentally, used to be the Prince George Citizen office at 145 Brunswick St. If you're curious, it's unrecognizable.

A prominent wheelchair-accessible ramp leads to the entrance, and inside there's a large open space and a lounge area where people can gather in front of a big-screen TV. There are toys for children to play with, too. The ceilings are still open, with the giant ductwork exposed — the only feature I recognized from the building's former days.

Rubadeau and Chief Dolleen Logan greeted us and led us into a beautiful conference room, where we did a brief interview and took photos as Logan presented the flag to Kast. "When Jen told me about this, I said, 'Yes, absolutely, give him a flag,'" Logan said. "If he wants to recognize Lheidli T'enneh in another country, then yes, absolutely.

"I would actually like to invite him to see what we do up here so he can learn more about our history." I told Logan and Rubadeau that when I reached out to Hoskey for a chat, he said he had taught a unit with his history students about the struggles First Nations people have faced in recent years, including the Wet'suwet'en First Nation protests against Coastal GasLink. "So it's a real Prince George connection," Kast said.

"He's the kind of history teacher I would've liked to have when I was in school. He's the kind of teacher you learn from." After Kast received the flag and we returned to the office, I called Hoskey out of the blue.

He returned my call shortly after I left a voicemail, and I got to share the good news that we would be sending him the flag. But first, I wanted to know more about his connection to our city. That connection between our Prince George and his Prince George's County began with a simple mistake.

He searched for "rock station in PG" and ended up finding a radio station here instead of one back home. "So that's the station I listen to," Hoskey said. "And it's awesome!"

It was that simple for Hoskey to become connected to — and intrigued by — everything Prince George, BC, Canada, has to offer. "The Lheidli T'enneh flag will be flown on the front porch of my house," Hoskey said. He already has a City of Prince George flag, which he's been flying since receiving it a couple of weeks ago.

So who is the man who feels such a connection to a city he'd never even heard of until recently? "I am a high school history teacher," Hoskey said. "I've been a teacher for 21 years."

He's always been interested in people around the world and has had a longtime connection to Canada. In the late 1980s, he lived in Mohawk, N.Y., near the Akwesasne Mohawk Reservation. The territory spans Quebec, Ontario and New York, and Hoskey said a tragic incident in which a First Nations child was killed sparked a tremendous public outcry that has stayed with him ever since.

While listening to the Prince George radio station, he also learned about the Wet'suwet'en First Nation protests against Coastal GasLink. He followed both those protests and the campaign to save the Ancient Forest near McBride — the world's only inland temperate rainforest — from logging. The forest is now permanently protected as a provincial park.

He's also quietly supported other causes and protests around the world throughout his life. Hoskey had one final message for the Lheidli T'enneh First Nation. "Thank you so much, Chief Logan," Hoskey said.

"It is a great honour to fly your Nation's flag."