The office of Canada’s interlocutor for unmarked graves at residential schools is scheduled to wrap up its first national gathering Wednesday in Edmonton.
Kimberly Murray was appointed earlier this year to work with Indigenous communities to help them search for unmarked burial sites.
Her office set two days of meetings focusing on efforts to recover missing children who died while being forced to attend residential schools.
Sessions were to include information about archives, search technology and protecting burial sites.
Residential school survivors and church representatives were invited along with federal government officials.
Many investigations are being done at former residential schools across Canada, following the discovery last year of what are believed to be 215 unmarked graves at a former school site in Kamloops, B.C.
An estimated 150,000 Indigenous children were forced to attend residential schools in Canada.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has documented stories from survivors and families detailing mistreatment at the schools, including emotional, physical and sexual abuse. It said there were at least 4,100 deaths at the institutions.
Anyone experiencing pain or distress as a result of their residential school experience can access this 24-hour, toll-free and confidential National Indian Residential School Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419.
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