One might have expected a vigil for missing and murdered loved ones at the Manitoba Métis Federation Hall Dec. 2 to have been a sombre affair, but one of the sound heard there was laughter.
“Indians like to laugh,” emcee Ed Azure would later say. “If you hang out with Indian people long enough, it doesn’t matter where they are, what the occasion is, you’re going to hear laughter. In laughter, we understand, it is the music of our Creator. It helps to ease the sorrow we carry, and at the same time, honours our maker.”
The Manitoba Métis Federation was hosting its second vigil and feast for those who lost loved ones to homicide, and those that remain to be found. While not exactly an annual event (the last one was in 2013), it’s hoped that future years will see a regular return. The vigil also marks the beginning of Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation’s (NCN) homicide support group, beginning Dec. 14 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Caring 4 You office in Thompson.
Felix Walker, CEO of the NCN Family and Community Wellness Centre, helped greet attendees for the evening: “It’s times like these that the memories of my brother come flying back to me. One of the things we want to accomplish this evening, is to create awareness, to all of you that are here, that you’re not alone. We share a common experience, that we hope will create a common bond amongst all of us. Some of the families here have found closure. Others have not, and that’s a difficult thing, in communities as small as ours. As we go through this evening, remember that you’re not alone. That none of us are alone.”
Present to speak for the community were Thompson Mayor Dennis Fenske, NCN Coun. Shirley Linklater (representing NCN Chief Marcel Moody) and Chief Hilda Fitzner (representing Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Grand Chief Sheila North Wilson), and Rielle Beardy, (representing Churchill-Keewatinook Aski MP Niki Ashton). It also featured an honour song performed by Tiffany Yetman and company.
With ever-certain hope, Azure introduced the feast with a testament to our loved ones’ final resting place: “As Indian people, we never knew of this place called hell. For us, there were four heavens, and there still are. Every once in awhile, they’ll come and visit you; when you’re driving somewhere, you’ll feel a little chill, and their memory will come back strong. That’s them. And that’s what this is: An offering to our loved ones. We want to make sure, through this food, we send our love to our loved ones. We say, ‘come and eat with us.’”
The second half of the evening gave an opportunity for families to speak of their loved ones, with heartfelt testimonies from the Stweart, Moose, and Spence families. For some, their loss had come over 20 years earlier; but as families fought through tears to express their hopes and their pain, it would seem that not a year had passed. It was a powerful part of the vigil, with open tears, loving embraces, and the padding of Azure’’s gentle humour.
The end of the vigil was marked by the singing of songs, and the lighting of candles to be offered to the pictures of absent family. There were not enough candleholders to hold the love that was in the room that night.
