Children of Shingwauk Alumni Association opens Every Child Matters Sacred Memorial

Every Child Matters Sacred Memorial opens The memorial which opened in Snowdon Park this weekend is dedicated to four children who drowned in the park from 1914 to 1960.

The Children of Shingwauk Alumni Association is holding its annual gathering in Sault Ste. Marie.

A special event held in conjunction with the gathering took place nearby where a memorial to honour the lives of four boys who died on the site was officially opened. The Every Child Matters Sacred Memorial is located in Snowdon Park, behind what was once the Shingwauk Indian Residential School.

"I can't believe this day is here," said Jackie Fletcher of the Children of Shingwauk Alumni Association with tears in her eyes.

"We worked so hard to get this memorial done."

Snowdon Park once held a small pond. The memorial is dedicated to the memory of Gerald Crossman, who drowned in the pond in 1960 at the age of 10. Also memorialized are the lives of Peter Beauvais, who drowned in 1929 and two unidentified young boys who drowned in 1914. The three were students at the Shingwauk school.

"I'm sure their communities would love to know who they were," said Shirley Horn, a founding member of the alumni association.

"It's like our relatives going away and disappearing and not knowing who they were anymore or where they lie."

Also recognized in Saturday's ceremony was Nellie Mitchell Ojeebah, Ellen Pine, Marjorie Owl and Barb Sagon. They are being honoured for their efforts in saving Robert Crossman from his brother Gerald's fate.

"We're finally putting some closure on this place," said Mitchell Ojeebah.

"It's a hard thing to look at, knowing what happened here. But, now we can recognize the good of it."

The memorial comes after years of dialogue between various groups to find a means of memorializing the deceased, while recognizing the park's namesake, Ashton Snowdon, a prominent member of the community.

Meantime, the Children of Shingwauk Alumni Association has been trying for years to find the names of the two unidentified boys who died in the park.

The association told CTV News those efforts are still ongoing.

For more inforamtion on the association, the annual gathering or memorial, visit the Children of Shingwauk Alumni Association's Facebook page.