Residential school survivors gathered together to support one another and share this week.
Hosted by Moose Cree First Nation and Kashechewan First Nation, a survivors' summit was held from Tuesday, Feb 13 to Thursday, Feb. 15 in Timmins, bringing together residential school survivors from northern Ontario and Quebec.
“We have initiatives in both communities because both communities have survivors at Horden Hall,” said elder Stella Schimmens, who is from Moose Cree First Nation. “We have three generations of people who went to the school.”
Many attendees at this week's conference are survivors of Bishop Horden Hall, an Anglican residential school in Moose Factory. Indigenous children were sent there from 1906 to 1976.
The events focused on giving survivors a chance to share their stories and find comfort and safety to share their experiences.
“We’re telling our stories, we’re telling our truths of what happened to us, and we’re sharing them amongst us,” she said. “Some of us have never done it.”
Co-ordinators Laurence Jefferies and James Wesley's goal was to keep anyone sharing their story for the first time safe.
Schimmens added that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada kickstarted many of the initiatives that are helping survivors in community.
“We need to do it in our own space and with our own people,” she said.
The trauma of residential schools didn't end when the schools closed.
"There are a handful of people out on the street, and people see that, but if you look at those people, you'd find out that their parents went to residential schools, their grandparents went to residential school," she said.
Quilts for Survivors and the Mennonite Central Committee presented quilts to the survivors who attended.
“They brought almost 200 blankets, and there were 158 of us in the room,” said Schimmens. “So we had a ceremony with quilts being wrapped around us, and prayers were said and acknowledgments, it was very moving.”
The extra quilts are being sent back to the communities for those who couldn’t attend the event.
While there are often events for survivors in the communities up the James Bay Coast, this one lets those living in Timmins and other surrounding areas access support.
That safety to share stories is an important step to take, said Schimmens, especially as survivors get older.
“Everybody was touched by this,” she said. “We have a lot of intergenerational things to come to grips with, and that’s what we’re doing. We do it with stories, we do it with laughter, we do it by getting together.”
Bringing families together to process the trauma is also being considered.
“There will be future gatherings, and one of the things we are recommending is to have our children gather,” she said. “They need to gather and process those intergenerational things.”
A 24-hour national residential school crisis line to support former students and their families is available at 1-866-925-4419.
