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La Loche, Sask. marks one-year anniversary of tragic school shooting

Click to play video: 'La Loche, Sask. 1 year later'
La Loche, Sask. 1 year later
WATCH ABOVE: Sunday marks the one-year anniversary of the La Loche shooting that left 4 people dead in the northern Saskatchewan village. Joel Senick reports – Jan 23, 2017

A year ago today, La Loche experienced its darkest hour when a 17-year-old boy shot and killed four people in the northern Saskatchewan village.

“Jan. 22, [2016], was a day that brought us to our knees,” La Loche mayor Robert St. Pierre said in a press conference held in the days leading up to the one-year anniversary.

READ MORE: Alleged shooting threat made against La Loche Community School in Saskatchewan

The shootings happened at home in the village and inside the community’s high school.

“Each and everyone was lost. We lost a bit of ourselves. We became people we never thought we would,” Jayren Janvier, a La Loche high school student, said.

In the wake of the incident, a spotlight was shone on issues that had plagued the community.

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Committees were set up to address them. Now, affordable housing units are being built, an education degree program is established and there are more social workers at the high school.

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La Loche students also voted last month to reopen the building’s front doors which had been walled-off since the shootings.

“Every time we walk by a wall, it triggers us and reminds us what has happened back in January,” Janvier said.

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Justin Trudeau helps run basketball drills for La Loche youth

However, village leaders said there’s still much work to do and are urging that La Loche not be forgotten.

“We’re human beings, we don’t deserve to live in these conditions and everyone has to step up to the plate and make positive change,” Leonard Montgrand, executive director of the La Loche Friendship Centre, said.

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FULL COVERAGE: La Loche school shooting

As for the teen who pulled the trigger a year ago, he has pleaded guilty to murder and attempted murder charges. It’s yet to be determined if he’ll be charged as an adult or not.

However on Sunday, the focus will be on those who were lost as the community comes together for a vigil to mark the anniversary of this tragic event. It’s another step in their healing journey.

“We would like to move forward and reclaim what we have lost,” Janvier said.

Members of the media were asked to not attend the vigil in La Loche.

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