Healing community with prayer walk

This past June, Mishkeegogamang First Nation band member Vincent Kakekayskung was waiting for his girlfriend to pick him up.
What he didn’t know was his girlfriend, along with four others, had died tragically in a car accident near Slate Falls First Nation.
“I waited for 24 hours, maybe,” said Kakekayskung. “Then I heard a vehicle had gone off the road after that. I’ve been struggling ever since.”
Kakekayskung said he felt something hit him in the heart, a deep sadness. The thought of doing a healing walk for himself sprung up in his head.
As he began to plan the healing walk, he decided it needed be more than about himself, so he decided to do a prayer walk to honour those who died in the crash.
Slate Falls band members Gordon Carpenter, Samantha Loon, Claudia Loon, and John Bighead, along with Kimberly Whiskeyjack of Sioux Lookout were driving towards Slate Falls when they skidded on a gravel road into Brokenmouth River. They did not survive the accident, which occurred 15 kilometres outside of Slate Falls.
Along with friends and family, Kakekayskung is walking from Mishkeegogamang to Slate Falls.
He went to Ronald Roundhead, a Native alcohol and drug abuse program worker, for assistance in organizing the walk.
“It’s a powerful thing when the young people do something like this,” Roundhead said. “It leaves me feeling hopeful that the community is much stronger than people might suspect.”
The walk began at the Mishkeegogamang band office at 11 a.m. on July 29. The youth will walk about 300 kilometres.
“At the Slate Falls turn-off, near Sioux Lookout, we plan to hold a ceremony and prayers for the community, as well as for the walkers,” said Kakekayskung. “In the community itself, we will do another ceremony, and a feast.”
Kakekayskung said the walk is expected to take five or six days.
Bruce Kwandibens, a Mishkeegogamang band member and a walker for the prayer walk said he is walking to “support Vincent.”
“I’m walking with him every step of the way to Slate Falls, I believe this is a good walk,” he said.
Kwandibens said it has been an amazing experience so far.
Edna Skunk is the health director for Mishkeegogamang. She drove with Daisy Spade, a diabetes worker in the community to make sure the walkers were well.
“He lost his girlfriend to that tragic accident, and that’s what he wanted to do, so we’re supporting them,” said Skunk. “It brings healing, I hope it opens those young people’s eyes to the importance of this walk.”
She said they were there to talk with them if they needed someone to talk to, but for now they were eager, happy and high-spirited.
“We talk to them about what comes along the way. Sometimes low feelings, and that’s perfectly normal,” said Skunk.
They will be travelling by car with the walkers up to the Vermillion Bay junction near Sioux Lookout, Ontario.
She said the walkers will be camping out in the wilderness when night falls.