Over 750 individual lights were illuminated on the site of a former residential school in Cowessess First Nation, Sask. on Saturday to honour those buried in unmarked graves.
Three days after the revelation that 751 bodies were buried on the grounds of the Marieval Indian Residential School in unmarked graves, found after radar scanning of the school grounds and surrounding areas, elders built a lone tipi protecting a sacred fire to honour the dead.
The gravesite vigil, which began at 7:30 CST on Saturday night, started with a ceremonial smudge and prayer. A moment of silence was then observed as hundreds of lights donated by local businesses illuminated the unmarked graves.
"As soon as we heard they wanted to do the solar light vigil, I went to my owner and he promptly agreed to provide the lights, at no cost to me. He phoned the local Canadian Tire, they emptied their shelves within hours," Kevin Friesen, a Cowessess First Nation member who works in sales at Mann Northway GM, told CTV National News.
Mann Northway GM donated 800 solar lights for the vigil, where a light was placed at each flag to mark the spot where remains were found.
"It was good to see the group come together, young old the elders everybody working as a team," Friesen said.
Chief Cadmus Delorme has emphasized that the findings were not from a mass grave, but unmarked graves where headstones had been removed by representatives of the Catholic Church.
As efforts to scan the grounds continue, community members have many questions of just who exactly is buried there. However, at this stage of the investigation, officials say they are unable to identify the remains in the unmarked graves, which may belong to both adults and children who attended or worked at the residential school.
The discovery, which comes less than a month after the remains of 215 Indigenous children were found at the site of a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C., has sparked continued anguish amongst the Indigenous community, prompting calls for support and the release of all documents related to residential schools.
“Because Canada is finally learning what horrible experiences we went through in residential schools, my dream now is to see the government help us find ways to get our healing centres in place. To reteach us how to be parents, to reteach us how to deal with our mental anguish from suffering for so many years, to reteach us our healthy ways,” Carol Lavallee, a survivor of the Marieval Indian Residential School, told CTV National News.
“We have to heal now. Canada please acknowledge the atrocities you did to us.”
But the discovery has impacted all generations of the Cowessess First Nation, even those who were born long after the residential school system was shuttered.
"I have a lot of family members who went to residential schools and it’s just hard to take in when you have a lot of people and a lot of connections," 16-year-old Rylie Delorme, part of the Cowessess Community Youth Council, told CTV National News.
On Sunday, the community will have a feast with the spirits before they are finally able to go home to the spirit world.
"I'm super glad we found you because like I said, this is not something to be swept under the carpet. You guys were real people, you all had you hearts, you all had families," Delorme said at the vigil, speaking to the unmarked graves.
On Saturday, the Catholic religious order that operated residential schools in Saskatchewan and British Columbia said it will disclose all historical documents in its possession related to the schools where the unmarked graves were found.
"We remain deeply sorry for our involvement in residential schools and the harms they brought to Indigenous peoples and communities," the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate said in a statement.
Jonathan Lerat, who helped to organize Saturday’s vigil in Cowessess, says that although the last three days have been difficult, locating the unmarked graves is a step forward.
“It’s a painful heartwarming. It’s a happy day for me when we finally know about the unmarked graves and the loves ones that are buried there,” he said.
- With files from The Canadian Press and CTV Regina
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
A vehicle crashed through the front window of a dental clinic in downtown Vancouver Thursday afternoon.
A new ranking has placed two popular Vancouver bars among the 50 best on the continent.
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mayor Olivia Chow says residents can expect to see cleaner sidewalks across Toronto as the city works to install new and improved sidewalk litter bins.
Toronto police say they are searching for three suspects after a man was shot and killed inside an Etobicoke townhouse during what investigators have described as a violent home invasion.
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
A Calgary man who worked as a senior financial advisor has been charged with fraud and theft after police say he misappropriated nearly $5 million from his clients.
Calgary police say speed is considered a factor in a motorcycle crash that left a man clinging to life.
The supervisor of a 20-year-old man who died after he was electrocuted while trimming hedges in Manotick in May 2023 has been charged with criminal negligence causing death. Meanwhile, the company owner has pleaded guilty to a charge laid by the Ministry of Labour.
A new data by OpenTable reveals the top 100 restaurants for brunch on Mother’s Day and Ottawa has five of them.
Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe issued some social media posts this week about his U.K. tourism mission that raised questions because of a lack of specific details. Here is what he was talking about.
A mother and daughter are speaking out after a Quebec man was sentenced to house arrest for years of domestic abuse. They were both physically assaulted by the mother's ex-partner and say the offender got off with another light sentence.
The trial of a West Island baseball coach accused of sexually abusing a minor will proceed after the case was almost thrown out due to unreasonable delays.
Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and his long-time girlfriend Caitlin Fitzgerald are engaged after Fitzgerald posted on her Instagram page a pic of the two in the Dominican along with a diamond ring.
One person was rescued from a burning building in Edmonton on Thursday.
Two men, including one already in custody, have been charged with second-degree murder in a 2022 death.
Dozens of inmates were transported from a northern Alberta correctional centre earlier this week because of a wildfire.
The New Brunswick RCMP say a wellbeing check that led to the rescue of three women from alleged human trafficking in Moncton earlier this month was the result of someone following their gut.
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
Nova Scotia RCMP is looking for a Halifax man wanted on charges of assault and uttering threats.
Former Manitoba premier Heather Stefanson is resigning her legislature seat and leaving political life.
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
Manitoba RCMP have arrested a suspect in relation to a 2021 double homicide in a remote northern community.
The City of Regina, province of Saskatchewan and federal government have teamed together to fund Dewdney Avenue's revitalization.
The Weber family is being forced to travel to Toronto due to a lack of pediatric gastroenterologists (GIs) in the province. The family’s situation was highlighted by Saskatchewan’s official opposition.
Work to twin Highways 6 and 39 from Regina to near Milestone will continue this year, with the province expecting construction to resume as early as May.
Around 10 police cruisers are on scene at the corner of College and Ahrens streets near the Kitchener Via Rail station.
The Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS) has arrested seven people in connection to a two-month drug tracking investigation.
The Guelph Police Service has a new remotely piloted aircraft system, also known as a drone, to assist in investigations.
A private Christian school at the centre of a civil lawsuit and several criminal cases might soon be taken over by an affiliated group, according to a letter obtained by CTV News.
A Crown prosecutor says the former RCMP officer who shot and killed his lover should be sentenced to life in prison.
The City of Saskatoon will build its own organics processing facility in hopes of ending a rocky beginning for the citywide organics program.
A years-long fraud investigation by the Ontario Provincial Police’s anti-rackets branch has resulted in fraud and other charges for the former head of BioNorth Technology Group, Frank Benincasa
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
A crowd of former Wescast employees and supporters rallied outside Wescast Industries in Wingham, Ont. on Thursday, requesting the severance pay they're owed.
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier Doug Ford visited Alliston on Thursday to unveil a $15 billion investment in an electric vehicle battery facility.
A popular summer festival on the Barrie waterfront is returning for its 52nd year, with one of the most impressive lineup yet.
Canada’s Building Trades Unions is demanding the federal government intervene as it alleges local workers are being “sidelined” by foreign employees.
Windsor police are asking for the public's help identifying a suspect after a car theft on Tecumseh Road.
An annual festival celebrating walkable communities and neighbourhoods hits the streets this weekend and next at a time when the conversation about walkability and public safety are top of mind for many.
A hiker was airlifted to hospital in critical condition Tuesday after he fell approximately 60 metres into a canyon on Vancouver Island.
An agreement between the B.C. government and the First Nations that manage Joffre Lakes Provincial Park will see the popular tourist spot closed for part of the year to protect its "natural and cultural values."
Mounties on Vancouver Island have confirmed that two bodies recovered by United States authorities earlier this week are those of a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia.
An emaciated dachshund is now recovering thanks to a Good Samaritan who found the pup near a biking trail in Kelowna, according to the BC SPCA.
Search and rescue crews have been called in after a vehicle belonging to a missing senior was located near a rural intersection outside of Kelowna Tuesday.
Major crime detectives in British Columbia are investigating a suspected homicide after a body was found in a remote area southeast Kelowna over the weekend.
It’s not even May 1 and the fire risk for southern Alberta is already alarming.
Whoop-Up Days is still four months away, but applications to be in this year’s parade are now open.
Lethbridge has added 28 physicians over the past year, according to a quarterly report published by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta.
Some members of the Garden River First Nation are demanding answers regarding the disbursement of the Robinson-Huron Treaty settlement funds.
The Ontario Provincial Police, in partnership with the Treaty Three Police Service, have charged a suspect with murder following a homicide in a remote northwestern Ontario community.
A 15-year-old in Sault Ste. Marie has been charged following an incident on Bay Street on Tuesday.
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.
Uber Technologies Inc. says it has brought its ridesharing platform to Newfoundland and Labrador.
Newfoundlander Christian Sparkes has shot several films around his home province, but with his new psychological thriller 'The King Tide' he saw an opportunity to wander into one unique town that had eluded him over the years.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Federal Conservatives and New Democrats are demanding assurances from Ottawa that local jobs will be protected at new electric-vehicle plants.
Canada is targeting Iran's defence minister as part of a new round of sanctions imposed after the country's retaliatory attack on Israel earlier this month.
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.
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Researchers are working to better understand if some Canadian military veterans may be suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death.
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
Colombia has restricted the import of beef and beef products coming from U.S. states where dairy cows have tested positive for avian influenza as of April 15, according the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
China launched a three-member crew to its orbiting space station on Thursday as part of its ambitious program that aims to put astronauts on the moon by 2030.
A lawyer representing the estate of Tupac Shakur has sent a cease-and-desist letter to Drake after he used an AI-generated likeness of the late rapper's voice in a diss track.
New York's highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction, reversing a landmark ruling of the #MeToo era in determining the trial judge improperly allowed women to testify about allegations against the ex-movie mogul that weren't part of the case.
In the last year, Tim Hortons has treated cottaging Canadians to a boat drivethru, revived its beloved Dutchie doughnut and launched flatbread pizzas. But perhaps its biggest surprise will come this summer.
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Ford’s electric vehicle unit reported that losses soared in the first quarter to US $1.3 billion, or US$132,000 for each of the 10,000 vehicles it sold in the first three months of the year.
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
A Polish pilot proposed to his flight attendant girlfriend during a flight from Warsaw to Krakow, and she said yes.
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
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.
Wrexham AFC, co-owned by Canadian actor and Vancouver native Ryan Reynolds, is set to play Major League Soccer's Vancouver Whitecaps on July 27 at BC Place Stadium.
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Ford’s electric vehicle unit reported that losses soared in the first quarter to US $1.3 billion, or US$132,000 for each of the 10,000 vehicles it sold in the first three months of the year.
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
A made-in-China electric vehicle will hit North American dealers this summer offering power and efficiency similar to the Tesla Model Y, the world's best-selling EV, but for about US$8,000 less.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
