REGINA – Close to 200 people walked from the Royal Saskatchewan Museum to the Legislature on Wednesday night for a candlelight vigil to show support for the people of La Loche in the wake of last Friday’s shooting.
Some in attendance even feared for their friend’s lives on that fateful day.
“I contacted one of my friends up there. It was sort of sitting on pins and needles to wait to hear from her, as it was, we had some good news, and she was fine,” explained Charmaine Ross, a local teacher who went to school with a woman who now lives in La Loche.
READ MORE: 4 people remain in a Saskatoon hospital following the La Loche shooting
Solemn prayers and a rendition of “Lean on Me” kept the crowds warm. Discussions of the tragedy and ongoing healing took place throughout the night.
As resources come into the small northern community, the vigil’s organizer, Juanita Tuharsky, said it’s vital to listen to the in La Loche there on how best to help.
“They have the answers. We need to help them nurture those answers and support them,” explained the Balfour Collegiate teacher.
Tuharsky initially spread word of the vigil through the local branch of the Saskatchewan Teacher’s Federation (STF). She guessed 20 people would show up initially, never expecting the vigil to have the reach it did.
READ MORE: La Loche Community School may reopen with security after shooting
The STF is helping raise funds to help La Loche, and they are sending more than monetary aide.
“They’re hurting and so we’ve sent counseling support up and good support from school divisions across the province,” STF president Patrick Maze said .
Maze added that while the teachers he’s spoken with in La Loche are having a difficult concern; their No. 1 concern is the students.
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