Thessalon First Nation man creates board game
Thessalon First Nation man creates board game
Thessalon First Nation man creates board game
By Kelly Anne Smith
September 2, 2023
Summary
Elders roll first in the new game Teepees and Wigwams.
Thessalon First Nation inventor Des Barry created the new game along with a junior version, which only has 25 squares, looking like a bingo card.
"About 2007, I played pool on a team called Bearclaws with legendary First Nation players like Stan Tourangeau and First Nation snooker legend Jimmy Bear. These guys are legends in the game."
"The bigfoot: if you land on him you, have to go back five spots. And then the trickster; he is one of my paintings I do - he's in our culture, too. He is a shadowy figure. He is a shape-shifter. He plays pranks on you too if you disrespect him. If you see a snake crawling over there and it happens to be one of these tricksters, if you go step on that snake, he is going to pull a prank on you. So, if you step on that trickster on the board game, he'll send you back to start, back to 50, or back to 25," he explains.
The development, manufacturing and distribution of the game could be a huge success for the community, explains Barry.
"Many youths would benefit by working in the Tee Pees and Wigwams warehouses. They would learn laser wood burning, 3D printing, and vinyl printing. It will grow into online games and virtual reality game designing."
"I hope that what I do and have done somehow the youth and young parents around me see that they too can push themselves to achieve the biggest goals in life! When I moved back home, there was nobody at my level so I took up artwork - painting. The passion that I had playing pool was now directed towards my artwork! Today, I am sober. I am an artist. I am a pro pool player, a First Nation apparel designer, and a colouring book and board game designer."
Reference
Smith, K.A., (2023, 2 September). Thessalon First Nation man creates board game. North Bay Nugget. https://www.nugget.ca/news/local-news/thessalon-first-nation-man-creates-board-game