#8 and #9: Convent of Holy Angels Indian Residential School

This past weekend I had the opportunity to travel to Fort Chipewyan to attend the last two days of the Holy Angels Commemoration Memorial. While the Residential School building is no longer standing, the impacts it left on the community and generations of former students is undeniable. This school was called the Convent of Holy Angels Indian Residential School and was open from 1902 to 1974 (a smaller school was started earlier though). It's others names were Holy Angels Indian Residential School, Our Lady of Victoria Indian Residential School, Fort Chipewyan and École des Saints-Anges. Every one of its names are forever etched in my mind. It was operated by the Grey Nuns and Oblates of the Roman Catholic Church, the sisters and brothers mostly originated from Montreal, where the majority of the records about this school are currently located (and should be handed over to the Truth and Reconciliation Centre). The sole purpose of the Holy Angels school was to assimilate children of their Cree, Dene and Metis culture and language in North Eastern Alberta. It is important to note that some students from the region were sent further to other residential schools (St. Henri in Fort Vermillion and Blue Quills in St. Paul).

Today, the site of the Holy Angels Residential School has been repurposed and reclaimed for community celebrations and cultural retention. Aside from the arbour, the rest of the area is practically frozen in time. Wherever you walked, you are surrounded by barbed wire fences, serving as a stark reminder that the school was a prison and those fences were there to keep children, as young as 6, imprisoned. Having visited some of the homes along the Athabasca River, I think of how quiet and sad the communities and homes of parents and grandparents would be. There are several books that consider what life would be like if birth rates declined or just stopped (Children of Men and Handmaid's Tale). I have trouble imagining what my street would sound like without the laughter and shrieks from the neighbourhood children.

Healing is slow, but it underway, this weekend was an example of the incredible strength of former students and their families. We sat in talking circles and listened to their stories and about how they found a way to love and be loved despite being brought up without compassion or parents. Having the gathering at the site of the school and taking it back as a place to share traditional ways of life such as feasting, beading and speaking Indigenous languages is testament to this communities' cultural endurance. It is an honour and privilege to have been welcomed into this community for the last seven years. If you are reading this and want to take a trip to Fort Chipewyan please do, you can go by boat, plane or on the winter road. Go for a day or overnight and see for yourself how this incredible Indigenous community continues to thrive.