St. Regis Mission Removes Memorial – Ceremony Planned for Spring

We at the St. Regis Mission Church, continue to feel shock and sadness since the discovery of unmarked graves at the Kamloops Indian Residential School and Cowessess First Nation (Marieval Indian Residential School). We continue to pray for the souls of the innocent children.

With the arrival of winter weather, the church needs to be able to remove snow and ice to ensure safe entrance and egress for parishioners, including elders. After attempting to reach out to the community, the shoes that had been placed as a memorial at the church were respectfully removed. The shoes were blessed and smudged in July during a short ceremony at the church. With great respect, the St. Regis Mission Church has ensured elements of the memorial, namely the flag on the front door, remain in place.

The St. Regis Mission Church Parish Council has created a sub-committee tasked with working with the community to plan a permanent memorial at the church site. Community members interested in participating in the memorial planning are urged to contact Bernice Lazore, Jamie Ross or RJ Dolly McDonald.