A year after Chantel John killed, community opens park in her memory

It's been one year since 28-year-old Chantel John was killed, and her community is marking the sombre anniversary with the opening of a memorial park.

John's death hit Conne River hard, says Colleen Lambert, Miawpukek First Nation's tourism, culture and recreation manager for the Miawpukek First Nation.

"The community was devastated at the time. We remember it vividly," she said.

"It's something that's very difficult. We're a very small community, a very close-knit community, and so everyone knows everyone, everyone knows the families. Chantel was very well-known in the community, such a young person. In fact, she went to school with my son."

Thursday was going to be "a hard day" for everyone, Lambert said, but hopefully the opening of the Chantel John Memorial Park will offer some relief.

"We just thought, 'Wow, wouldn't this be a great opportunity for a place as a sanctuary for people to go?'" she said.

"Within our culture, a garden, nature, it's just all very spiritual to us, and in that sense it gives us the opportunity to heal and to find comfort and solace, so a natural setting is always just very appealing to us."

Lambert said given John's interests in nature and animals, the park was a natural move. There was also funding available for the project through the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Commemoration Fund.

"She was a lovely young lady. Very, very well spoken," Lambert said.

"She loved the environment, loved the animals. Just a very caring young individual."

The park is right off the main road in Conne River, Lambert said, and involved contributions from a number of people who knew John.

"The design of the park was meant to offer comfort and solace, so we have a gazebo built by a community member, we have the signage that was designed by another community member that actually went to school with Chantel in the early years, and we have some benches," she said.

"And we decided to plant red maple trees in honour of Chantel, as well as all of the missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls."

The dedication ceremony was small a move Lambert said was intentional.

"We wanted to keep it very intimate, we didn't want it to be lengthy, so we didn't invite in news crews or any political group or anybody that has an agenda. We want it to be for the community. We want it to be for the healing process," Lambert said.

At the end of Thursday's ceremony, a group of singers gathered around a photo of John and sang the Strong Women's Song, Lambert said.

"We really just want to offer some peace and comfort to the family, to the community, just to help them get through."

Kirk Keeping is accused of first-degree murder in John's death.

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