Terrace, BC – At 66, Una-Ann has begun her second year in the First Nations Fine Arts Program (FNFA) at the Freda Diesing School of Northwest Coast Art at Coast Mountain College (CMTN). Her story is one of creativity, courage, and community, showing that it's never too late to follow your dreams or to become a student again.
Una-Ann with her mask at the 2025 Freda Diesing School of Northwest Coast Art Honouring Our Ancestors Exhibit.
Originally from Prince Rupert, Una-Ann is a proud Tahltan and Tlingit woman. Before her retirement in 2019, she spent 25 years as an Indigenous support worker in the Langley School District. During her time in education, she supported Indigenous students at the largest high school in Langley, always centring her work around building relationships and caring. For many people, retirement means time to relax and slow down after a full career, but for Una-Ann it was an opportunity to pursue another direction in learning.
While Una-Ann has long been known as an artist, she is self-taught. She's painted, created regalia, and designed West Coast-inspired fashion. You could say art runs in her family. She's collaborated on projects with her brother, a jeweller, and several of her cousins are also artists. Despite her already numerous artistic accomplishments, she felt the pull to deepen her skills and understanding. “I thought, I want to come to school and learn proper formline,” she explains. “When you’re living at home, you’re always busy. You never really get to focus on one thing. So that’s what I found here—I can just focus on the art.”
Una-Ann chats with a guest at the 2025 First Nations Fine Arts Student Holiday Card Sale.
Coming to the Freda Diesing School in Terrace felt a bit like coming home. Una-Ann graduated from Caledonia Secondary School in 1977 and has spent time living in Stewart and Dease Lake, so coming back to Terrace felt like coming full circle. She's really enjoying being back in her traditional territory and close to her people after so many years in the BC Lower Mainland.
Una-Ann has embraced the full college experience here at CMTN, where she is living in student housing for the first time in her life. Her roommates are in their teens and early twenties. “Here I am, 66, a senior, and I’ve got three roommates who are 18, 19, and 21,” she says with a smile. “But, we all just seem to get along. We respect each other’s space, and it just works!”
The intergenerational dynamic extends into the classroom, too. Despite her decades of experience in creating art, Una-Ann has found a supportive and enriching environment where everyone learns from each other. “You don’t feel intimidated here,” she says. “If I ask someone what they think of my work, they critique it in a way that’s helpful, not discouraging. It really is like a family.”
A particularly powerful example of that connection came through a donated fur coat. Because of her previous experience in fashion, a cousin asked Una-Ann if she could make a cape with wolf-fur trim for regalia. Una-Ann said she’d be happy to, but that she didn’t have access to any wolf fur. A little later, Una-Ann mentioned the project to Nakkita, the FNFA program coordinator, who told her the school had a wolf-fur coat that had been donated for use on masks and regalia. It was a perfect source of wolf fur. “So, I made three headbands from it and used some in other regalia,” Una-Ann explains. “And I shared it with other students, including one who made a wolf mask. It’s beautiful how things come full circle,” Una-Ann says. “That coat could have ended up in a thrift store, but instead, it became part of our art and our culture.”
The three wolf-fur headbands Una-Ann made using fur from the coat, modelled by fellow Tahltan students in the FNFA program.
Much of Una-Ann’s work reflects her deep roots and cultural knowledge. In the Freda Diesing students’ spring 2025 show at the Terrace Art Gallery, she exhibited a painting that combines a realist depiction of a landmark rock formation located in Tahltan territory with formline salmon. This painting comes from a place of deep personal connection for Una-Ann. The rock is an important fishing and cultural spot for the Tahltan Nation. It’s where Una-Ann’s grandmother used to fish, cooking and canning enough salmon right there by the river to supply her family (she had 16 children) through the winter months. “It’s a place of great meaning,” Una-Ann says. “Kelly, our program officer, also told me she got married there. So, it’s special to many of us.”
Una-Ann's painting "By The River" on display at the Terrace Art Gallery for the 2025 Freda Diesing Student Art Exhibit.
For Una-Ann, the journey into formal art education is not just about personal growth, but also about giving back. She frequently facilitates workshops for youth and educators, teaching regalia making, button blanket creation, and even satin scarf workshops using stencils of her own designs. “I love doing workshops. I give people the tools, the guidance, and then they create something they can wear. And they feel proud of that.”
One of her most meaningful contributions is an art installation called Project of Heart, created in partnership with the BC Teachers’ Federation. Using a donated canoe and over 6,000 hand-painted tiles from students across the province, the piece honours residential school survivors and those who did not return. “Each tile was a message or a memorial. I laid them out and would walk by, pick one up that spoke to me, and glue it on,” she says. The installation has travelled the province, raising awareness and educating through art.
When asked what advice she would give others who are considering a return to education or art later in life, Una-Ann's message is clear: don’t wait. “People say, 'Oh, I’m too old,' but you’re never too old! If you have a passion, go for it. Don’t let fear stop you.”
Una-Ann speaks from experience. She recalls receiving an invitation to join the Pulling Together canoe journey, paddling down the Fraser River. Despite being afraid of the water and never having been in a canoe, she joined. Someone gave her some brief instructions on how to paddle, and as she was about to climb in, told her the canoe she was getting into had flipped the day before. “But I did it,” she laughs. Getting to Langley and seeing that her coworkers were excited and cheering her on, gave her the strength to continue the journey. Eventually they even paddled from Ambleside to Gibsons. “When we reached Gibsons, I felt so empowered. I thought, yes, I can do this.”
Her life is filled with stories like this, moments where stepping out of her comfort zone opened new doors. She joined the Indigenous women's acapella group M'Girl during the 2010 Olympics, performing with them across the Lower Mainland, and she also represented Canada in a climate change film shot in Iceland, because she had her regalia and said yes to the opportunity. “Sometimes fear just stops you from doing things,” she says. “But if you take the risk, you experience life.”
Now, in her second year, Una-Ann is focussed on carving and continuing her work with youth. “I want to go north and put on more workshops. I want to give our youth something to look forward to. That’s how we keep culture alive. That’s how we ensure continuity.”
Whether it’s facilitating workshops, collaborating with family on jewelry, or mentoring the next generation of Indigenous artists, Una-Ann is building a legacy of learning, collaboration, and sharing. Her message is one we should all embrace: learning should be lifelong, and it’s never too late to begin something new.
Una-Ann receives an award at the 2025 Honouring Our Ancestors Exhibit.
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Media contact:
Heather Bastin
Executive Director, External Relations
hbastin@coastmountaincollege.ca