“Information on the missing will be sought and given on the missing women,” said Leon.įollowing the sacred fire, there will be a candlelight vigil for Bell on what would have been her 33rd birthday. Leon said the fire will be lit close to the trailer court where Bell lived in Malakwa off Cunningham Frontage Road by the race track and the mailboxes. Jody Leon, a missing women advocate and member of the Splatsin First Nation, said the “sacred fire will be lit to bring answers and prayers for the missing women.” Police are calling Genereaux's death suspicious, but no charges have been filed. The remains of Traci Genereaux were found at a farm on Salmon River Road, but no sign of the other women has been seen since they went missing. Starting at 1 p.m., the fire will burn for five hours in honour Nicole Bell, Caitlin Potts, Deanna Wertz and Ashley Simpson who have all gone missing from the North Okanagan-Shuswap area. Organizers reminded those in attendance to physically distance at least two metres from one another, and pointed out hand sanitizer was available.Nicole Bell, Deanna Wertz, Ashley Simpson and Caitlin Potts have all gone missing from the North Okanagan-Shuswap area.Ī sacred fire will be lit in Malakwa today in honour of the women who have gone missing from the region in the past two years. The majority of those attending Saturday’s ceremony wore masks. The orders also make an exception for “funeral, wedding, baptism or similar religious ceremony may take place at a place of worship provided that no more than 10 persons, other than the officiant and a photographer or videographer, attend the ceremony.” More than 50 people gathered for Saturday’s closing ceremony.Ĭurrent COVID-19 health orders from the province dictate “all indoor or outdoor gatherings on public property or private property are prohibited.” “All the government needs to do is stand up for our people.” Tyler Clarke ![]() “Come and sit with us,” he said in a message directed toward what he referred to as “mainstream society.”įirekeeper Timothy Bone said the four days gave him strength, and that he’d like to see greater action taken from government moving forward. Underlying the speeches was a call to action, with Gerrard noting that while the sacred fire’s four days were “beautiful,” he would have liked to have seen more area leadership show up to support the cause throughout the week. “If you need to cry, cry - it’s all part of healing.” The residential school system itself was a form of incarceration, Dakota knowledge keeper Frank Tacan said during his sometimes emotional leading of the ceremony. Speaker Doug Gerrard, who helped lead part of the ceremony, said both of his parents attended a residential school from the ages of six to 16 - “The lost generation.”Ī spiritual care provider at Brandon Correctional Centre, Gerrard attributed the residential school system with the disproportionate rate at which Indigenous people are incarcerated. People throw flowers into the Assiniboine River at the Riverbank Discovery Centre grounds Saturday night as part of a ceremony marking the close of a four-day and four-night sacred fire lit for those lost in the residential school system.Īlthough much of the closing ceremony was understandably centred on the tragedies associated with the residential school system, the speakers’ overall tone was one of optimism looking forward and appreciation for the children able to attend the ceremony. “All nations came together to support each other,” Ask Auntie co-ordinator Florence Halcrow said at midday Saturday while joining a few others by tending to the fire prior to that evening’s closing ceremony. The fire at the Riverbank Discovery Centre grounds was tended to throughout the four days, with approximately 20 to 30 people spending time maintaining the fire in shifts. This article was published (473 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.Īfter four days and four nights, a sacred fire lit in memory of the 215 children whose remains were discovered at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School property has ended.
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