Healing, hope and reconciliation – those were the goals of a memorial march uptown on Aug. 18.
The event was held to commemorate the life of a woman who was found dead near Flin Flon decades ago.
Flora Ballantyne, an indigenous woman who lived in Flin Flon during the ’60s and ’70s, went missing in the fall of 1979.
Six months later, her body was found near Channing, not far from the railway tracks and creek.
While family members thought the death was suspicious, no arrests were ever made.
Marchers at Saturday’s rally ranged in age from young children to elders, and included many with family ties to Ballantyne or other missing or murdered indigenous women and girls.
“It feels happy and sad. I feel like I want to cry,” said Melanie Daniels, one of Flora’s nieces.
George Morin, Ballantyne’s nephew, organized the march and other events, including a traditional healing at Amisk Lake and a gathering and smudge ceremony at the site where her body was found.
The march was approved by the City of Flin Flon and RCMP escorted the group. Officers mingled with the marchers, even allowing some of the marchers’ children to ride along in the police cruiser during the march.
While attendees could be easily forgiven for seeing the march as a somber affair, Morin said he felt the march was important to encourage healing and understanding.
“With all the planning and the relatives who have come here, I’m so thankful. In particular, I felt a sense of reconciliation, which is prominent with the 94 calls to action that all of Canada have to reconcile,” he said.
“I won’t use the word harm, but there have been mistakes made in the relationship with First Nations. It’s time to amend and move on and make Canada a better country.”
In particular, Morin applauded the response he received from Flin Flonners, including city officials and police.
Morin, who now lives in Prince Albert, lived in Flin Flon with his aunt Flora during the mid 1960s. “It’s moving closer to being friendly Manitoba,” he said.
“For the kids, this has been a highlight of their lives. To see a police officer, not in a threatening way but in a very welcoming manner, that’s how police need to be seen. The reception was so nice, like today. To not think negatively of the RCMP, I’m so thankful for that. It was so spontaneous. We didn’t ask for that. It was so good to see.”
