Every year on Oct. 4, communities across Canada come together to mark Sisters in Spirit Day.
In the Okanagan, the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society held its 14th annual march for missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
“We think about the ones who have never been found,” said Edna Terbasket, executive director of the Ki-Low-Na Friendship Society.
“We think about the anguish (of) their loved ones. There was never closure for them.”
This year the society expanded the vigil to also honour men, boys and two-spirited people.
The group marched from the friendship society to the William R. Bennett bridge with signs and posters of those missing. Marchers challenged the community to pay attention to what is happening to Indigenous people across the country.
“Open your heart, open your mind. We’re all human beings and these murdered missing indigenous sisters all have families,” Terbasket said.
“They had a mom, they had a dad, they had a grandma, a grandpa, sisters, and brothers. We’re human and we need to be valued.”
Members of the Kelowna RCMP were also present at the march and Terbasket said having them at the vigil shows their commitment to helping Indigenous people.
“(The RCMP) said they want to work harder to find some of our murdered, missing, indigenous sisters. It’s a work in progress,” Terbasket said.
The society hopes to hold the event again next year, which would mark 15 years of the march and continue to raise awareness throughout the community.