Plates, cutlery, coffee and squares were some of the items collected by schools in the Prince Albert Catholic School Division and donated as a group to James Smith Cree Nation.
The division’s schools began looking for ways to support the community following the mass stabbing on the Labour Day weekend.
Education director Lorel Trumier said it was important to support the community in their time of need.
“We knew at that time we could quickly act, that they needed some support and would be serving many people,” Trumier said. “We tried to quickly get something together and got some cases of materials like plates and cutlery and cups and those kinds of items.”
Trumier said the division was in “a little bit of a hold pattern” after the stabbings occurred. They reached out to James Smith Cree Nation directly since they didn’t want to interfere with the ongoing police investigation, or the manhunt for Myles Sanderson.
Once police caught Sanderson, Trumier said they put out a call for items through their administration teams.
“We knew that we couldn’t engage directly (and) would have to wait just a little bit longer,” she explained. “We were contemplating how we would do that and then with the announcement that they had captured the second suspect, we knew there would be now the healing that the families and community would go through.”
In addition to donating items, the division offered special prayers at a Mass at the Cathedral on Sept. 18. The donation also included a cross blessed by Bishop Stephen Hero on behalf of everyone in the division.
“We were trying to act quickly,” Trumier said. “We certainly continue to pray for them, I think most importantly, and we hope that God is with them here in their times of need.”
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca
