Friends, family and neighbours gathered inside the Brockville Wesleyan Church Friday afternoon for a celebration of life honouring 49-year-old Louwanda “Wanda” Elliott and her two daughters, 17-year-old Mackayla and 15-year-old Nikita. The service was streamed online and brought together a grieving community still struggling to process what many described as an unimaginable loss after the three women were found dead inside their Cartier Court apartment last week. Inside the church, loved ones remembered Wanda as loving and protective. Mackayla was described as creative, fierce and independent, while Nikita was remembered as strong, artistic and feisty. Speaking through his brother-in-law during the service, the girls’ father and Wanda’s husband shared an emotional eulogy. “I lost my partner, lover, protector, best friend. I lost two large parts of my entire world, Wanda, Mackayla, Nikita, my world, our world. They will forever be loved, missed, pined for, for all eternity.” Outside the church, mourners embraced and quietly supported one another during the service, while hundreds watched online. There is a growing tribute of flowers at the Women’s Memorial on Blockhouse Island, left in their memory. Police say the three victims were found dead inside their apartment last Thursday in what investigators have described as a case of intimate partner violence. A 17-year-old who cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and assaulting a police officer.
