On March 6, ‘honour walkers’ Laurens Thiessen van Esch, Ann Heinrichs, Brad Langendoen and Nathan Thorpe were joined by 16 supporters on the campus of Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) as they prepared to leave Winnipeg on their way to Stoney Knoll, Sask. They began a 550-kilometre trek to Edmonton, to mark their solidarity with Indian Residential School survivors, especially indigenous children who tried to run away from those schools but never made it home, on March 8.
In 2006, Stoney Knoll was the site where Mennonites, Lutherans and first nations people signed an historical memorandum of understanding that outlined the need for all parties to respect ‘the sacred nature of covenants,’ and agreed to work together for ‘peace, justice and sufficiency for all our communities.’ The ‘honour walkers’ plan to be in Edmonton on March 27 for the final Truth and Reconciliation Commission event. Follow the walkers on their journey at http://www.honourwalk.ca/.
--Posted March 20, 2014
“Honour walkers” Laurens Thiessen van Esch, Ann Heinrichs, Brad Langendoen and Nathan Thorpe, joined by their supporters. (Credit: Deborah Froese/Mennonite Church Canada)
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