Events are happening today and this week at the site of the former residential school in the Delmas area.
The St. Henri Indian Residential School (Thunderchild) near Delmas burned in 1948. This week, Battlefords Agency Tribal Chiefs and ground searchers are on site to ensure those who attended that residential school are not forgotten.
Monday a pipe ceremony and feast honoured the Delmas children. That took place during the morning and early afternoon. Speakers and dignitaries were scheduled to speak later that afternoon, but events were cancelled due to the heat.
Those in attendance also wanted to acknowledge the children of the former Battlefords Industrial School, which was situated on the former Government House site now owned by The Ridge - MGBHLM Economic Development.
The ceremonies on Monday were done according to strict protocol, with the pipe ceremony and prayers held in advance of the start of the search for unmarked graves in the area. The ceremonies were designed to include the entire Delmas community as part of reconciliation.
“It’s horribly heartbreaking, it’s part of our shared history,” said Alexis Christensen, director of communications at BATC, in an interview scheduled to air on the Talk of the Town show on Access Now TV. The interview was taped prior to the announcement of the discovery of 751 unmarked graves at the Marieval Indian Residential School site at Cowessess First Nation.
The belief is that there are graves in the Delmas area, said Christensen. She noted that Senator Jenny Spyglass, a survivor of the Delmas residential school, has been vocal about the issue.
The next steps will follow in the coming weeks, according to BATC, as ground penetrating radar will be used to search for unmarked graves. BATC is working with SNC-Lavalin, who has offered to provide the radar at no cost.
The plan was to sweep the Delmas area, said Christensen, and there were plans to sweep the Battlefords Industrial School site as well to ensure nothing is missed there. Representatives from SNC-Lavalin were at the ceremonies Monday and will be conducting the search over the coming weeks. There are at least a couple of areas around Delmas that they want to focus on.
The expectation is the ground sweeping at Delmas will happen over the coming weeks and possibly months.
“It means that hopefully we are going to provide some more answers specifically to families,” said Christensen. “There is a chance that some of these bodies could be sent home.”
