Walk for Wenjack

Written by: SJ Anderson and Clayton Rama

This past week, learners from Revel Academy - now a Downie Wenjack Legacy School - walked to spread awareness about Residential Schools in Canada and the many lives lost due to the atrocity. 

As many of us know, hundreds of unmarked graves were found outside of Residential Schools in Kamloops, BC, Cranbrook, BC, Marieval, Saskatchewan and more. This both angered and saddened our learners, who wanted to make meaningful change following this devastating event. 

In memory of Chanie Wenjack and the many others who were taken from their families and homes, Revel Academy participated in the Walk For Wenjack on Friday, the 22nd of October. The march is dedicated to spreading awareness about the abuses suffered within the Residential School System. 

“[...] I personally never heard of this day, so I thought it was really cool that we walked and celebrated.” - Isabelle, Learner

“I think it’s very good that our school’s supporting this and paying our respects to Wenjack, so yes I find it was very important that we did this.” -Monaco, Learner

Revel Academy will also be taking a number of other steps, including but not limited to sending families home with a tracker. This allows students to walk with their families and record their distance - we hope to walk a full 600KM by the end of the year, enough to get Chanie Wenjack home. 

For further information, please visit downiewenjack.ca