Keewatin Tribal Council (KTC) organized a march in honour of missing and murdered aboriginal men and women in Thompson Oct. 4, marching from the KTC offices to the southern bank of the Burntwood River. Family members of the missing and murdered stood in the October cold to share their grief and memories.
Laura Wood-Labonte attended to speak for her cousin, Christine Wood, whose recent disappearance is currently the subject of an active police investigation (supplemented by a private detective, as well as searches by Winnipeg’s Bear Clan).
Wood-Labonte noted that the reality of a missing person is difficult to grasp, until it happens to someone close to you. “It’s hard seeing my aunt and uncle every week, seeing the heartache in their eyes.”
She said that the RCMP have been investigating thoroughly and have kept the family informed; however, she notes that the tips investigators have been receiving are often weeks old. Wood-Labonte noted that individuals with information should report it immediately. “Even if you’re unsure, time is precious.”
Not everyone was satisfied with the RCMP’s performance, however. Marylin Flett of Tataskweyak Cree Nation, whose husband Raymond went missing in July 2015, had marched at a separate event earlier this year, near the anniversary of his disappearance. A year later, she and her family are still investigating the disappearance themselves, and continue to express frustration with local RCMP, who she states will not re-open the investigation. Nonetheless, she and her family continue to search for him to this day. “I was married to this man for 35 years. I didn’t give up on him, and I won’t give up now.”
Hazel Mink of Chemawawin First Nation spoke on behalf of her sister Maggie, who had gone missing in Vancouver in 1985. Mink noted her sister had been in a tumultuous time in her life at the time of her disappearance, with a boyfriend going to jail, and his mother pushing her to move to Oshawa with his family. Mink abruptly lost contact shortly after. Mink notes that Chemawawin First Nation has hired a private investigator, and continue to await the results from this investigation.
Not all the individuals honoured that day are missing due to suspicious activity. Pamela Wood was walking for three individuals that day, including her uncle, Douglas Bighetty, who is reported to have become lost in the wilderness after leaving for his fishing camp. “I keep dreaming of Douglas,” said Wood, with tears flowing freely from her eyes. “Like he’s going to be right there, asking, ‘Did you miss me?’ It hurts when I wake up, and he’s not there.”
After speaking, the group descended to the bank of the river to release flowers into the river in memory of those missing or murdered.
