18.97°C Vancouver

Aug 10, 2021 8:49 PM -

North Vancouver First Nations to look for children who never made it home

Share On

Three First Nations have launched an initiative to find answers about the children who once attended St. Paul's Indian Residential School in North Vancouver but never made it home.

The Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh and Musqueam nations have announced an Indigenous-led plan to find answers and confirm the oral histories told by St. Paul's survivors about children who disappeared.

Squamish Nation representative Khelsilem says they know current archives document a number of children died at the school, but the records are "piecemeal."

More than 2,000 Indigenous children representing six nations attended the school between 1899 and 1959, and many were then relocated to the Kamloops Indian Residential School, where the remains of more than 200 children were found in May.

Khelsilem says they have done some "very preliminary" work, but there have been significant developments at the site since the closure and it is currently the site of a Catholic high school.

A preliminary work plan proposes interviewing survivors who attended the school, gathering all records related to its history with the Catholic Church and doing a remote sensing search for bodies.

Khelsilem says there have been "bureaucratic" challenges in accessing complete records so far.

"It’s important to note that our people’s experiences with St. Paul’s Indian Residential School are well known and healing is needed to move forward. This work is being done to respect and address both known and unknown knowledge, and is a critical part of reconciliation," Khelsilem says.

The federal government announced today that it is adding $321 million to programs to help Indigenous communities search burial sites around former residential schools, prompted by the discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves at several former schools.

Latest news

rcmp-arrest-53-year-old-man-for-significant-fraud-in-romance-scam
BCJul 03, 2025

RCMP arrest 53 year old man for significant fraud in romance scam

On June 24, 2025 RCMP arrested 53 year old Michael Paul Snow for Fraud over $5000. Sunshine Coast RCMP began an investigation into this alleged offence in June 2023 when a Sunshine Coast woman reported a man she had met online had stolen $110,000 from her. Over the course of several months, Michael Paul Snow gained this woman’s trust and convinced her to participate in a business venture that was later learned to be non-existent. This type of offence is commonly referred to as a romance scam. As a result of a comprehensive investigation by Sunshine Coast RCMP a charge of Fraud over $5000 was
mann-government-removes-kuldeep-singh-dhaliwal-from-the-cabinet
IndiaJul 03, 2025

Mann government removes Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal from the cabinet

Punjab's Bhagwant Mann government has removed Kuldeep Dhaliwal from the cabinet and newly elected MLA from Ludhiana Sanjeev Arora has been made a minister. Arora has been given the industries and NRI departments. The NRI department was earlier with Kuldeep Dhaliwal, from whom his resignation was taken. According to reports, before the reshuffle in the Punjab cabinet, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had called Cabinet Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal to his residence today and asked him to resign. . Earlier, the agriculture and panchayat departments were also taken away from Dhaliwal.
WorldJul 03, 2025

Police say a man injured at least 1 with an axe on German train

German police say a man attacked and injured at least one person with an axe on a long-distance train in Bavaria on Thursday before he was detained by police. Munich police said the attack happened on an ICE express train between Straubing and Plattling in southern Germany. They did not immediately provide any more details.
statistics-canada-says-merchandise-trade-deficit-5-9-billion-in-may
CanadaJul 03, 2025

Statistics Canada says merchandise trade deficit $5.9 billion in May

Statistics Canada says the country's merchandise trade deficit narrowed to $5.9 billion in May as gold exports climbed higher. The result compares with the record trade deficit of $7.6 billion seen in April. Exports were up 1.1 per cent in May at $60.8 billion as exports of metal and non-metallic mineral products increased 15.1 per cent in May. Driving the change was a 30.1 per cent increase in exports of unwrought gold, silver and platinum group metals and their alloys — a category largely composed of unwrought gold. Excluding metal and non-metallic mineral products, Statistics Canada says
section-of-banff-national-park-remains-closed-to-visitors-two-weeks-after-rockfall
AlbertaJul 03, 2025

Section of Banff National Park remains closed to visitors two weeks after rockfall

A section of a trail in Banff National Park remains closed to visitors two weeks after a rockfall killed two hikers and injured three more. Parks Canada spokeswoman Amy Krause says an area around Bow Glacier Falls remains closed for a geotechnical assessment and adds there's no estimated reopening date. She says Parks Canada hasn't heard of anyone violating the closure order but adds that those who do could be ticketed or arrested. The agency says on its website that fines could be as high as $25,000. The area has been closed since June 19 after a rock slide along the popular h

Related News