National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women

On Friday, May 3, 2024, SD83 students, staff, Knowledge Keepers, Elders and community members recognized the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and LGBTQ2S+ people. The event, observed annually on May 5th, serves as an important reminder of the ongoing crisis facing Indigenous communities. 

Across the District, various schools were adorned with red dresses, symbolizing the lives lost and the continued fight for justice. Teachers, students, and staff wore red and engaged in discussions and activities aimed at raising awareness and advocating for change. 

Indigenous Education Workers Fawn Herrington and Chelsey Hill and Success Teacher Chinook McLean organized the 1st annual Red Dress Ceremony and Reflection Walk held at JL Jackson and McGuire Lake Park. Students and staff from both Salmon Arm Secondary campuses gathered on the lower field at Jackson to pay their respects for this very important day. Knowledge Keeper Dodie Jones and the JL Jackson Traditional Drumming group opened the ceremony, while Knowledge Keepers Joanne Buffalo and Minnie Kenoras, and Neskonlith Councillor Joan Manuel-Hooper addressed the audience. Joanne Buffalo was accompanied by five generations of her family, and her daughter Charissa also spoke on her personal experiences as an Indigenous woman.

Red dresses, hung all around the perimeter of McGuire Park, swayed in the wind, while the crowd made their way on the Reflection Walk. The dresses and messages serve as a solemn tribute to the lives lost and a call to action for a future where Indigenous women and girls are valued, protected, and respected. In honouring Red Dress Day, students and staff in SD83 reaffirm their commitment to reconciliation with Indigenous communities and working towards a more just and equitable society. 

Special thanks to the Knowledge Keepers Joanne Buffalo, Minnie Kenoras and Dodie Jones who participated in the ceremony, Neskonlith Councillors Joan Manuel-Hooper and Frances Narcisse, Elders from the Neskonlith Indian Band, and to the City of Salmon Arm for the use of McGuire Lake Park.  

Gone but not forgotten.