A touching memorial in Rama First Nation is a way for the community to share the grief being felt from coast to coast, says the community's Chief.
Ted Williams said the discovery of the bodies of 215 Indigenous children in Kamloops, B.C., on the grounds of one of Canada’s largest residential schools, is a "national tragedy."
More than 100 pairs of shoes now line the bleachers at the John Snake Memorial Grounds in Rama First Nation, east of Orillia. Since Sunday, local residents have been stopping by to pay their respects and to leave a pair of shoes in honour of the children who were buried in unmarked graves.
Williams says the support of the community has been "fabulous."
“I’m proud that the community members have taken the initiative to put that memorial together,” Williams told OrilliaMatters.
“We share a lot of grief with our sister communities across the nation, and other First Nations, so the memorial assists us in doing what we can to honour and remember those 215 precious lost souls.”
Williams says it’s been gratifying to see community members from Rama First Nation and beyond educate themselves after learning about the horror and dark legacy of residential schools in the news.
“People are doing their reading and looking at historical documents. People have demonstrated that they are willing to learn and try to understand,” Williams said.
“People can do their part by educating themselves by learning about the history that has unfolded as it relates to the First Nations and Indigenous population. In order for us to heal and to grow, we need to understand each other," said Williams.
Williams said Rama First Nation has received welcome support from Orillia Mayor Steve Clarke and other local officials during this time of grieving.
“It’s a national tragedy that this had occurred. Unfortunately, we know there is more, it’s unfathomable that these types of acts had occurred,” he said.
“Justice needs to take place here, and there is a lot of support for that.”
Jeff Monague, a former Chief of the Beausoleil First Nation on Christian Island, former Treaty Research Director with the Anishnabek (Union of Ontario Indians), and veteran of the Canadian Forces, says the memorial in Rama First Nation is an important part of healing.
“It’s a good thing for everybody. There is a huge amount of grief within our Indigenous community,” Monague said.
“This is something new to the Canadian public, but for us, it’s not really news; we’ve always known.”
Monague is hopeful that through the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action that the federal government will investigate other institutions where Indigenous children may be buried.
“They have only implemented eight of the 94 Calls to Action," lamented Monague. "If they were serious about looking after this situation they could do more within a very short time."
Monague is hoping this tragedy spurs citizens to demand more.
“I call upon the Canadian taxpayers who paid for the TRC to have those Calls to Action implemented immediately. There needs to be action now because over the next few years you are going to find more of this. We need to have that work seen through and have those young people re-patriated.”
Monague says the recent discovery of the 215 deceased Indigenous children in Kamloops hits home for him.
“This makes me think of my mother who was taken (to a residential school) when she was six years old. You have to think of any six-year-old that you know, and would you consider it to be a good thing if they were taken away from their family?” he asked.
“That’s what people had to deal with, and those kids did cry out for their mothers. It makes you think about the amount of loneliness that those children must have felt for years," said Monague.
In honour of the 215 Indigenous children found in Kamloops, Monague hosted a Sacred Fire at Springwater Provincial Park in Midhurst from Monday through Wednesday morning.
“These are young children like all kids who had dreams and aspirations and they never got to the chance to live out those dreams,” Monague explained.
“I myself was feeling grief about this, and I saw that the community on social media was feeling the same way, so I felt that we needed to do something to assist our people through this process," said the local elder.
Monague says the Sacred Fire was well attended by people of all races, ages, and walks of life who wanted to talk, pray, and be educated.
“I invited the non-Native community because I could see that our grief extended beyond the Indigenous community. I thought this would be a good way to get everybody to come together in order to address and acknowledge what took place,” he said.
“It was a very positive experience that brought a lot of people together. A lot of people shared their stories about what they knew or didn’t know, and it was good to see.”
