The memorial is located near the Holy Trinity Anglican Church, across the Churchill River from Stanley Mission. (Facebook/Teron Roberts)

By Derek Cornet

remembrance

LLRIB honours influenza victims with bronze plaque near Holy Trinity Anglican Church

Sep 5, 2023 | 5:00 PM

Stanley Mission victims of the Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1920 have been honoured by a bronze plaque in the northern Lac La Ronge Indian Band (LLRIB) community.

A ceremony was held Aug. 31 at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church, the oldest standing building in Saskatchewan, built between 1854 and 1860. It was attended by LLRIB Chief Tammy Cook-Searson, along with several councillors and Rev. Eugene Merasty.

The event included speeches, lunch, a short prayer, songs by the Northern Boyz Drumming Group, as well as unveiling of a bronze plaque weighing 130 pounds and costing approximately $8,000.

“It was quite a big crowd. There must have been about 30 to 40 people,” said Teron Roberts, who spearheaded the project.

“What was amazing is there were a lot of young adults and teenagers. About half of them were teenagers, which was good to see because they were interested in that kind of history and that kind of stuff that happened before, so that was really neat.”

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The Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1920, also called Spanish Influenza Pandemic, was the most severe global influenza outbreak of the 20th century and, in terms of total numbers of deaths, was among the most devastating pandemics in human history. It resulted in an estimated 25 to 50 million deaths and affected 20 per cent of the world’s population.

The new bronze plaque and stand cost an estimated $8,000. (Facebook/Teron Roberts)

Influenza devastated Stanley Mission in March 1920 with most residents becoming infected. Deaths ranged from six months to 88 years old. Victims were buried on their own lands or the church graveyard, but interment for most was in a mass grave on the island across from the church.

The plaque installed last week includes a history of what happened, as well as the names of those who were buried. It is written in Cree and English.

Among those in attendance at the ceremony was Solomon Ratt, who gave Roberts the idea of creating such a memorial.

“He had his grandparents buried there on the island, and he wanted something there to have something to memorialize them because there was nothing written about that time in Stanley Mission,” Roberts, who also has a grandparent buried there, said.

Funding for the bronze plaque was made possible by LLRIB Lands and Resources, Internal Council, and $2,000 that was raised through a GoFundMe campaign. Assistance was also provided by Stanley Mission Public Works.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com