Photo Credit: Jeannie Francis Facebook page

By Shane Clausing

Community

Grande Prairie woman walking 215 kilometres in honour of Kamloops residential school kids

Jun 6, 2021 | 7:00 AM

A Grande Prairie woman says she is going to walk 215 kilometers throughout the month of June to honour the 215 children whose remains were confirmed to be buried at the site of the former Kamloops residential school.

Jeannie Francis says she didn’t learn about the residential schooling system until later in her life but adds now she wants to push for more awareness.

“Years ago, I knew nothing about the residential schools or what happened in them. I read a book called Indian Horse and I did a lot of research after I read Indian Horse and I was really appalled at what had happened,” said Francis.

“I was kind of under the general consensus that everyone knew about this (residential schools) and then I realized after the news broke about this, is people didn’t know much about this.”

Not long after news broke about the Kamloops school, Francis wrote letters to her MP, MLA, and advocated for her workplace to lower their flags to half-mast.

Plan Ahead

Why Would You Pre-Plan Your Funeral?

Apr 03, 2024

Dying away from home

What Happens if You Die Away From Home?

Mar 04, 2024

Flag Retiring Ceremony

What Do You Do With Worn-Out Flags?

Feb 01, 2024

While she was happy she did what she did, she says she’s doing the walk so people can hopefully keep the conversation about residential schools going.

“I was really worried that this was going to be something that people would forget about in a week. I decided to at least do a walk, post about it every day and try to raise money for an Indigenous organization. (So) at least people in my friend’s list wouldn’t be forgetting about it.”

A friend of Francis’ suggested she post her idea to local social media group pages to see if she could gain some more traction and get more people talking about the walk and residential schools.

Throughout her walks in June, Francis will also be raising money for the Grande Prairie Friendship Centre. Her goal is to raise $1,000 and in the first 24 hours, she’s raised over $600.

“I am blown away, I did not expect to raise that much money,” said Francis. “I mostly thought that by posting it would get people to consider donating to Indigenous organizations, but the fact I’m so close to my goal already is mind-blowing to me.”

Francis says her walks will mostly take place around the Lakeland Dog Park, where the distance of the park is 7.6 kilometers. She also plans on walking around Crystal Lake, which is about 10 kilometers total in distance.

You can donate to Jeannie by heading to her donation page here.

Even if she surpasses the 215 kilometers mark early in June, Francis says she’ll keep walking.