'We can't just sit around': Fundraiser to pay for residential school searches smashes goal
After the disturbing discovery of the bodies of 215 children on the property of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, First Nation communities are now calling on the government to search the grounds of other residential school sites.
"They have to help us do the research here to determine if we have unmarked graves,” said Chief Councillor Ken Watts of the Tseshaht First Nation.
That prompted a group of three to start a GoFundMe page in order to pay to search locations on Vancouver Island. Their goal was $25,000.
"I just checked moments ago and it was over $32,000,” said Steve Sxwithul’txw, co-founder of the fundraising page.
That interview was at 11 a.m. on Wednesday. By 5 p.m., it had grown to $40,000.
"We can't just sit around, we've done enough of that,” said Sxwithul’txw. “It's been confirmed, there's bodies right across the country at all of these sites, I'm sure, and sitting around and not doing anything is the last thing we should be doing."
The group says it is willing to work with any First Nation community that wants to work with them, or any professionals.
"In total, we've located about 800 unmarked graves,” said Mike Cooper, senior locator at ScanPlus.
In the last five years, the Sooke company - which offers ground-penetrating radar - has worked with three different First Nation communities, locating unmarked and often forgotten graves.
"Due to the passage of time, or by accident, grave markers have been removed and then what we do is we go in with this machine and we can locate unmarked graves,” said Cooper.
The fundraising group acknowledges government funding could be coming at some point, but wants to get started now and will consider searching sites off the island as well.
"(If) we, let's say hypothetically, get a larger amount and we are able to do that, we're going to make sure that this gets done and scan those lands where those other residential schools are,” said Sxwithul’txw.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
'It was joy': Trapped B.C. orca calf eats seal meat, putting rescue on hold
A rescue operation for an orca calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off Vancouver Island has been put on hold after it started eating seal meat thrown in the water for what is believed to be the first time.
Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
B.C. judge orders shared dog custody for exes who both 'clearly love Stella'
In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a B.C. judge has awarded a former couple joint custody of their dog.
Saskatoon police to search landfill for remains of woman missing since 2020
Saskatoon police say they will begin searching the city’s landfill for the remains of Mackenzie Lee Trottier, who has been missing for more than three years.
Shivering for health: The myths and truths of ice baths explained
In a climate of social media-endorsed wellness rituals, plunging into cold water has promised to aid muscle recovery, enhance mental health and support immune system function. But the evidence of such benefits sits on thin ice, according to researchers.