Survivors share knowledge at site of Sask. residential school
People from 13 First Nations were represented at a gathering of residential school survivors at the site of the St. Michael's Residential School south of Duck Lake.
FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron came to gain knowledge and direction from residential school survivors.
“As elected leaders we must take direction on this from them. It’s them who will drive this process as they are the experts,” said Cameron.
Cameron said he would echo their calls for action to the federal minister of Indigenous Affairs Marc Miller at a meeting in Saskatoon on Aug. 5.
One of the recommendations to come out of the gathering was to build a cultural teaching centre and healing lodge at the site.
Cameron said he will ask that the government intervene to stop churches and government from destroying records left over from the residential school era.
Beardy’s Okemasis First Nation has hired a representative to study material at the Glenbow Museum in Calgary to gain more insight into the school. They are considering funding options for a ground penetrating radar survey in the area.
The idea for the five-day retreat and ceremony was born out of the Every Child Matters campaign and in respect for the 215 human remains discovered at a residential school site near Kamploops, B.C.
A small memorial of shoes and teddy bears were placed at the St. Michael's site. From Aug. 2-6 the memorial will be surrounded by tipis and campsites for the retreat participants.
“We want to create that awareness and education about who we are as a nation and where we’re going,” said Delano Mike, a member of the Beardy’s Okemasis First Nation leadership team and event organizer.
“We’re all affected as a nation. Whether it’s directly as a survivor or indirectly meaning that if you did not attend a residential school you are affected through intergenerational trauma. So that’s why we have an open dialogue,” said Mike.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.