Why would a shipyard raise a totem pole at its entrance? Well, if you’re on a Quest, a journey to become the best (safest, cleanest, most profitable and best place to work) shipyard in the world, a lighthouse might help you keep moving in the right direction. The totem pole is Vigor Alaska’s lighthouse.

The Vigor Totem Pole is all about community. And inclusiveness. Nature and heritage. Love.

The totem pole brought together Vigor Industrial senior leaders, including CEO Frank Foti, Vigor Alaska leaders, and leaders from both the native community and the town of Ketchikan. Plus, the raising brought hundreds of people from Ketchikan and neighboring islands.

In other words, it was a real hootenanny!

But…let’s begin at the beginning.

For those of us who were fortunate enough to be at the shipyard on August 1, 2015, when the totem pole was raised, and later that evening, when it was celebrated, it was a spine-tingling, even life-changing experience.

THE BEGINNING

The pole was conceived by Norm Skan, Ship Superintendent and a member of the Tlingit, pronounced ‘Klink-it’ tribe, and Mike Pearson, GM of the shipyard.

Norm Skan, project champion, noted that the vision behind the totem pole was twofold. “First—as part of Vigor’s commitment to diversity—we felt there was a need to build a relationship with the natives from the Pacific Northwest where our shipyards and iron work facilities are located”.

“Second, we wanted to honor the resilience it took for our Vigor workers and their families to live and thrive in the Pacific Northwest.”

The totem pole is also aligned with the Whole Human Model GM Mike Pearson has brought to the shipyard. The Model looks at all human beings as brilliant, so Visitors, Vendors, Customers and Employees all deserve an exceptional and memorable experience. Seeing a totem pole as they drive into the yard helps create that experience. Plus, the shipyard truly lives the Vigor Value of ‘LOVE”, which is represented by the Eagle and Raven figures on the Totem Pole. Pearson and Safety Director Russ Page credit the yard’s deep caring and personal commitment to each other for the yard’s exceptional safety record. For the employees of Vigor Alaska, safety really comes down to one word: Love. It’s about deep caring for your fellow employees. And, a willingness to make ‘it’ safe, even if it slows down the work or irritates someone.

Norm says the genesis for the totem pole project lies in Mike Pearson’s exploratory work with employees across all facilities on what a Vigor facility should look and feel like. From that work emerged two important statements:

There is room for art, color and green spaces to bring people together and enhance the Vigor culture.

We respect and honor the legacy and spirit of Native Americans who fished these waters and hunted the lands before our facilities were even a thought, much less built.

“This is symbolic of a greater American story happening in Ketchikan and Vigor,” Mike says. “This is a story of The Quest, a journey to becoming the best shipyard in the world. And the only way that happens is for us to honor the community of Ketchikan and our native brothers and sisters. They must be the lifeblood of the economic revitalization of our town’s economy and be the driving force that makes our shipyard a place where their great, great, great grandchildren would be proud to work. It’s also a story of a new beginning and a healing with the Native American people of Ketchikan, who have often been left out of what happens in the shipyard.” He goes on to say, “Really, to me the Totem Pole honors our community and the natural beauty around us. The power and brilliance of the human being. Our island’s native heritage and art. The Eagles that soar over us, every day, the whales and orca that cruise the channel, a stone’s throw from the shipyard and the bears that are everywhere, especially during salmon season”.

THE RAISING

The weather in Ketchikan can be…miserable. Cold, rainy and windy, even in the summer time. But the day of the totem pole raising dawned unexpectedly partly sunny, and it stayed that way the whole day (there’s that Goethe thing!). Tradition dictates that the totem pole be carried in from its storage place in the shipyard’s assembly hall and raised, all by hand. No forklifts or cranes allowed.

The totem pole is 12 feet tall and weighs over 750 pounds. It was carved from native cedar. It’s carried in the traditional way, using four 4”x4” lengths of wood, placed carefully under the totem pole, 2-3 people on each side. It’s close to a thousand pounds to carry, well over a hundred yards.

Then there’s the question of how to move the pole from horizontal to vertical, and how to rotate it so the carving side faces outward, toward the street.

And, this is a shipyard. The employees have lots of ‘MacGyver’ in them. They are amazing problem solvers. And take-charge leaders.

The pole raising was an emotional, and in some ways, potentially dangerous undertaking. The pole was heavy and awkward. Ropes, with many helping hands, helped guide the pole into place. When Troy Tacker (on-loan Operations Manager at Vigor Seward) bolted the totem pole into place using his handy electric drill, a collective sigh of relief was soon replaced with smiles, cheers and outright joy.

Vigor executives and community leaders, native speakers and dignitaries from Southeast Alaska spoke eloquently of the collective positive impact the totem pole had already brought to the community. Carver Jon Rowan was honored for his amazing work.

MEANING AND IMPACT

For someone who’s not from the town, it can be hard to understand how important the totem pole was to the community of Ketchikan.

The pole has multiple levels of ‘meaning’. First, there’s the meaning of the pole itself—the way it was carved and who carved it (by hand, by a native artist), then there’s the native meaning of the four figures carved into the pole (see below). Plus, a bench at the base of the pole has individual panels, symbolic of the heritage of each of Vigor Industrial’s locations throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Then there’s the meaning to residents of Ketchikan. Many natives and long-time residents of Ketchikan were moved by the pole raising and by the celebration afterward. They saw the totem pole as a symbol of healing and of coming together. This is, after all, an island, with a small population. Connecting and support in each other (especially during Ketchikan’s long, cold, rainy winters) is important. For many, the totem pole has strengthened that connection.

The native meaning of the totem pole

The totem pole bridges the divide between native and immigrant, industry and art, reality and aspiration, the past and the future.

And just inside the entrance to the shipyard, where the totem pole now greets employees, visitors and passers-by, those historic divisions are slowly but surely disappearing.

The pole’s four figures—Raven, Strongman, Eagle and Aunty—are indicative of the transformation happening at Vigor and in the Ketchikan community.

The Raven and Eagle, considered “love birds,” represent the two main Tlingit clans. And, Love, one of the four Vigor values (along with Truth, Responsibility and Evolution) is everywhere in the yard. It informs HOW the yard works. Safety is more than a word, it’s a way of being. Before Vigor acquired the shipyard, the workers put in crazy long hours, with little time for their families. Today, the shipyard works four 10-hour days, giving employees and their families a long weekend together. LOVE truly is a value that this shipyard lives by.

Dukt’ootl, the Strongman, is shown tearing a sea lion in two. Tlingit lore tells how the sea lion had murdered Dukt’ootl’s uncle, and how he trained to gain the strength to avenge his uncle’s death. By accomplishing this feat, the strongman has set things right again, bringing peace and stability to the community.

In the Ketchikan community, Vigor Alaska is changing the dynamic, busting the status quo, by helping to prepare young members of the Ketchikan Indian Community for family-wage careers as shipbuilders. The strongman’s presence on the pole reflects Vigor’s commitments to both RESPONSIBILITY and EVOLUTION.

The Aunty, which traditionally represents elder Tlingit women who guided the younger women of the tribe, represents Vigor’s determination to bring feminine wisdom and energy to the workplace. Although still a minority out on the deck plates, women are counted among the yard’s best welders, and the company strives to support women in realizing their potential. Putting Aunty at the foundation of the totem pole reminds us of the truth: that we’re not there yet—that we still have a long way to go before women and their contributions are fully realized at Vigor, in Ketchikan and in the larger world community.

When a totem pole is raised, this town celebrates. No, it CELEBRATES! Neighboring tribes and dignitaries arrive, the tables groan under food of every kind, and native dancing goes long into the night. Gifts are given (Vigor leaders received beautifully carved wooden canoe paddles, embellished with native designs), a feast is served. It’s a really big deal. It’s big because it takes vision and hard work on behalf of the carver, because it takes a large group of men and women to carry and raise it by hand, and because it’s a constant, visual reminder, over the course of generations, of what a community stands for.

TODAY

The totem pole was raised on August 1, 2015. That date is significant in Ketchikan, because it’s also the date of the town’s annual Blueberry Festival. So now, Ketchikan has TWO reasons to celebrate on August 1st.

The totem pole continues to stand ‘guard’ at the entrance to the Vigor shipyard on Tongass Avenue. It is a noble reminder that we are all sacred—humans, animals and the land and sky, and that the roots of the Ketchikan community run deep.