Today, the flag of the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation (LTFN) was raised to full-mast at CNC’s Prince George campus to mark the official end of the 215 Day Memorial Period.
CNC students and staff gathered in a ceremony at 2:15 this afternoon to pay respects to the children who died at residential schools and acknowledge the intergenerational impacts of the schools.
CNC lowered campus flags to half-hast at the end of May 2021 in memory of the 215 children whose remains were uncovered at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School. As a partner flying the Lheidli flag, CNC followed Lheildli T’enneh Chief and Council’s request to keep the LTFN flag at half-mast for 215 days.
In December, the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation announced it would raise a new LTFN memorial flag with an orange ribbon in the corner at 2:15 p.m. on January 4. The new version of the flag is now flying at CNC’s Prince George Campus.
“The orange ribbon has become a national symbol of remembrance for children who died while attending church-run residential schools,” said LTFN Chief Dolleen Logan in a statement. “Having an orange ribbon on our new LTFN Memorial Flag is a reminder that we will never forget the kids that didn’t make it home from residential schools and their families. We also believe it sends the right message as well to residential school survivors that they too will never be forgotten.”