Students, staff, administrators, and community members from La Loche and farther afield, including Alberta, were in attendance for a day of remembrance in La Loche to remember loss of life and events of Jan. 22, 2016, and to celebrate the resilience of the community over the past 10 years.
“Dene Strong … Together we are strong,” was the message of the day.
“Today our hearts are full as we look back on a journey that began ten years ago,” reads a Dene High School Facebook post from Jan. 22. “It’s hard to believe how much time has passed, but gathering together today has reminded us all of the incredible strength, love, and resilience that defines our school family.”
In January 2016, Randan Dakota Fontaine killed his two cousins, then headed to the high school, where he shot nine people, two of which died. In May 2018, Fontaine was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 10 years. Fontaine was two weeks shy of his 18th birthday at the time of the shooting, but was sentenced as an adult.
Jason Young was a consultant for the school division at the time of the shooting. For the last few years he’s served as the Northern Lights School Division (NLSD) Education Director, of which Dene High School in La Loche is a part.
“I admire the people’s strength, to be able to pull this together, even participate,” he said of the event in La Loche in an interview with the Northern Advocate.
In sharing his perspective on the event and the past 10 years, Young said, the speakers were the highlight, particularly one student, who was injured at the time who shared her story, “where she is at in terms of her own journey, just making sense of it … of the terrible experience she went through, … and trying to live her best life,” he said of Taylor Haineault.
Haineault’s presentation was the highlight of the day, Young said he thought, “She lives there now …but, just to have her there was pretty incredible … just the fact that, after her speech, she was given a standing ovation.”
He said, reflecting on the day, “It was good for us to be together and support one another through what everyone has gone through. I mean always, always difficult, but pleased we could actually just come together and work through that difficult time together and for people finding, the strength to be able to be there, to organize the event would have been another huge challenge.”
Concentraton over the years focused on “the language,, then culture, their land-based program … I think those are the pieces that they do every day that really important, building resilience for themselves to just lean on each other for support and that’s the most important thing, and if they have that, then we can do what we need to do and keep moving forward.”
Other areas that have been fostered over the intervening years the creation of a Wellness Committee and partnering with community agencies has been a benefit and support for the community, Young said.
“We developed a plan for how we focus on wellness. There’s a whole variety of things that are part of that plan and we have always had a Wellness Coordinator, in that role to help plan.”
Maintaining options to support student’s mental health, such as counselling options available, is another area that has been important over the years.
Working with agencies, both locally and beyond have been another part of the work done in La Loche over the years, which includes a centre of trauma informed practices and other agencies including the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA).
The entry to Dene High School has also been remodeled, and a new school recently opened in La Loche.
Speakers for the event included: Elder Maree Dzenka; Connie Cheecham; Annette Montgrand’ Mayor Lyle Herman; Leroy Laliberte, Athabasca MLA; Keith Shewchuk; Jason Young; Jackie Janvieer; and Taylor Haineault.
“ Our strength is in each other. We stand with you always. Today we pause to remember the lives lost, the families forever altered, and the incredible resilience of our students and colleagues in La Loche,” reads a message from the Northern Area Teachers Association (NATA).
“The path of healing has no end date, but we don’t have to walk it alone. We see your strength, we share your memories, and we remain committed to support for everyone. Standing with you Dene Strong.”
A church service was held at the beginning of the day.
“We are very proud of the partnerships we have developed over the last ten years in support of the school and community,” Joey McCallum, chair of NLSD Board, said in a news release.
Eta nadetser means Together we are Strong – and represents the Ten Years of Community and School Resilience in La loche.
