'Every Child Matters': Residential school survivor attends St. Thomas, Ont. walk
As hundreds gathered for National Indigenous Peoples Day (NIPD) in downtown St. Thomas, Ont., Florence Henshaw stood quietly in the crowd.
"When I was eight years old I was taken from my mother and put in a residential school," says Henshaw. "I wasn't allowed to see her, and then after that I went into a foster home."
In the late 1960s Henshaw attended the Kamloops Residential School in Kamloops, BC.
That is the same school where the remains of 215 children were recently found.
"It's very true and I'm glad it's out now," says Henshaw, who now lives in St. Thomas. "It gives everybody peace and understanding."
This year marks the 25th anniversary of NIPD. This time the date is recognized with a heavy heart, as tributes pour in for the childen lost in residential schools, as well as murdered and missing Indigenous women.
Florence Henshaw, a residential school survivor, looks on at a St. Thomas, Ont. walk for National Indigenous Peoples Day on Monday, June 21, 2021. (Brent Lale / CTV News)
Florence Henshaw, a residential school survivor, looks on at a St. Thomas, Ont. walk for National Indigenous Peoples Day on Monday, June 21, 2021. (Brent Lale / CTV News)
A walk billed as 'Every Child Matters' took place along Talbot Street in St. Thomas Monday afternoon.
"It could have been me, it could have been my father, my grandfather, my grandmother, my aunts, uncles, anybody in my family," says Betty Jean Phillips Budden, the organizer of the walk.
"I cried for days after those children were found, and I just said, 'Tears aren't enough.' This isn't enough either but I just wanted to show care and compassion for the families of the residential school survivors and just remember them."
After a sea of people in orange shirts took over the downtown. The group marched a few hundred metres to the St. Thomas Anglican Church. There people laid 'tokens of rembrance' for the lost children.
"It's a stark reminder of what has happened and historically, it's unfortunate and sad. It's embarrassing," says Adrian ChrisJohn, chief of Oneida First Nation of the Thames.
Oneida Nation of the Thames Chief Adrian Chrisjohn speaks at the 'Every Child Matters' walk in St. Thomas, Ont. on Monday, June 21, 2021. (Brent Lale / CTV News)
Oneida Nation of the Thames Chief Adrian Chrisjohn speaks at the 'Every Child Matters' walk in St. Thomas, Ont. on Monday, June 21, 2021. (Brent Lale / CTV News)
"That's sometimes what people don't like to hear but it's the truth. We have to acknowledge that fact and work towards the real truth and reconciliation when it comes to First Nations and Indigenous people in Canada."
During the hour-long ceremony there were speeches, prayer, song and a 215 second moment of silence in memory of the 215 children from the Kamloops school.
"It's been swept under the rug for too long," says Budden.
"Every once in a while it'll come out, and then we get swept back under. But I don't believe that this time, we as a nation and our peoples, are going to let it to be swept under the rug again."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Still so much love between us,' Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
What to know about avian influenza in dairy cows and the risk to humans
Why is H5N1, or bird flu, a concern, how does it spread, and is there a vaccine? Here are the answers to some frequently asked questions about avian influenza.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
opinion The special relationship between King Charles and the Princess of Wales
Royal commentator Afua Hagan writes that when King Charles recently admitted Catherine to the Order of the Companions of Honour, it not only made history, but it reinforced the strong bond between the King and his beloved daughter-in-law.
Pro-plastic lobbyist presence at UN talks is 'troubling,' say advocates
Environmentalist groups are sounding the alarm about a steep increase in the number of pro-plastic lobbyists at the UN pollution talks taking place this week.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
$70M Lotto Max winners kept prize a secret from family for 2 months
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.
Trump's lawyers grill ex-tabloid publisher as 1st week of hush money trial testimony nears a close
After prosecutors' lead witness painted a tawdry portrait of “catch-and-kill” tabloid schemes, defence lawyers in Donald Trump's criminal trial on Friday sought to dig into an account of the former publisher of the National Enquirer and his efforts to protect Trump from negative stories during the 2016 election.