The Portage Friendship Centre will host a walk next Wednesday for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women.

Insight worker with the centre, Chantel Lavallee, outlines that the event will start at 1 p.m. at the Eagles Fire Youth Centre as they walk to City Hall. 

"We're looking to raise more awareness and to bring attention to search the landfill," says Lavallee. "For myself, two of my cousins are Jennifer Catcheway and Rocelyn Gabriel. So, this is very dear to my heart."

Lavallee says that the centre will have family members of other Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women at the event to speak about their feelings.

Jeanna Emms, from the centre, explains that they are hoping people will show up to support the families who are still struggling daily. She says that she wishes the same energy that is put into finding missing non-indigenous people could go into the Indigenous community as well.

"I can't help but feel that if this was a non-indigenous person, that landfill would have been searched already," says Emms. 

File Photo.Friendship Centre Employees Chantel Lavallee, Jeanna Emms and Chris Everett. 


Lavallee notes that the centre will host an event in November for missing and murdered indigenous men.

"My brother Dwayne Lavallee went missing in 2018. We're hoping to have something for them (men) in November, like a walk to raise awareness for the Missing and Murdered Men. We decided to do it separately because nobody really knows the statistics on how many men go missing."

The centre adds that they look forward to having everyone from the community come out and join them.

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