Walk for Wenjack helps Calgarians support reconciliation with action
Dozens of Calgarians gathered for a Walk for Wenjack on Sunday to raise awareness and funds to support reconciliation.
Accenture Canada hosted the event in partnership with the Downie and Wenjack Fund, founded by Gord Downie of the Tragically Hip.
Keith Burns, an organizer and technology consultant with Accenture, explained how the first walk in 2016 started outside Jeffrey Indian Residential School and followed the path of Chanie Wenjack, a 12-year-old boy who was trying to rejoin their family but never made it home.
This weekend's walk honoured that legacy by learning about the legacy of residential schools and fundraising to help support reconciliation efforts, Burns said.
"We are doing a walk right now to help reconciliation and the journey towards bridging the gap of Canada's history," he added.
The group had raised more than $27,000 to benefit the Downie Wenjack fund. Around 80 people were expected to attend a smudge ceremony and drum circle, then a reflective walk along the Bow River pathway.
"Having events like this allows us to listen, learn from those who actually experienced it and really reflect on what our ancestors and previous governments have done," Burns said.
"It allows us to be more inclusive as a society and work towards something where we are all in this together."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.