Family devastated after riverside memorial destroyed

A Saskatchewan family now living in Vancouver drove more than 25 hours back to Saskatoon after learning the heartbreaking news that a riverside memorial for their family member had been destroyed.

It was the same drive Dakota Bear and his family — who are connected to both the Mistawasis First Nation and Witchekan Lake First Nation communities — made last February when his brother, Nathaniel, died after falling off the CPR Bridge into the South Saskatchewan River.

“This is a sacred site. This is a memorial site,” Dakota said. “A lot of people came here to heal because a lot of families had lost people in this water and off of this specific bridge.”

The site, which is along the river and Spadina Crescent near that bridge, was erected by Nathaniel’s family after nearly two weeks of searching for his body. Once Nathaniel was found, his family welcomed their community to the riverside to grieve together.

A cross stood at the site to mark the memorial, with photo albums, framed photographs, gifts and medicines like sage and sweetgrass piled at its base. A small wire fence surrounded the memorial.

Dakota was shocked when he saw a photo on his phone in early May, showing nothing left at that very site.

The remnants of the first memorial put up for Nathaniel Bear near the CPR Bridge in Saskatoon along Spadina Crescent on May 12, 2023. (Libby Giesbrecht/650 CKOM)

He called it an injustice that his family — and their community — has suffered.

Dakota’s wife, Casey, said many families came to the site during the initial memorial ceremony, saying they’d had no closure themselves after similar tragedies involving their own loved ones.

Casey said there are no measures in place to protect people on the bridge, whether they are in that place by accident or for mental health reasons.

“They were able to have that space to mourn and to grieve in a healthy way (and) in a traditional way because as Indigenous people, our culture is what really grounds us,” she said.

“That was healing in and of itself, seeing mothers and grandmothers and uncles and aunties coming here and saying, ‘Thank you for providing this space.’ ”

Such healing spaces for Indigenous people are lacking in Saskatoon, Casey said.

Dakota said many people they know would frequent Nathaniel’s memorial regularly, give the family updates and maintain the site for them.

“And then all of a sudden, it was just gone,” Dakota said.

“All of the things that we wanted to pay our respects to Nathaniel and his life are gone,” Casey added. “And that hurts a lot for our family. That’s why we drove 25 hours straight to come here.”

Dakota said he thinks the site was cleaned up and cleared away rather than an act of vandalism. He said someone took all the items away and the grass around it appeared to have been freshly cut.

“If this was just desecrated, there would have been materials all over,” he said.

Patricia LeDoux, the grandmother of Nathaniel and Dakota, described seeing the bare memorial site as “heartbreaking.”

“It’s like another attack, another show of disrespect and how very little we as Indigenous people are valued,” LeDoux said.

“We feel heartbroken, we feel angry (and) we feel this is another injustice,” Dakota added.

Responding to a social media post about the subject, the City of Saskatoon said it investigated the matter internally and confirmed its parks and maintenance staff did not remove the memorial.

“Our staff were aware of the memorial’s existence and sensitive to its meaning. Again, we are sorry to hear this, but we have no further information to share at this time,” the message from the city read.

An emailed response from the city on Friday also said it has been further able to confirm that no other city department removed the memorial.

Dana Kwan, Meewasin Valley Authority marketing co-ordinator, said her team also did not remove the memorial.

Dakota Bear (second from right) with his mother (right), grandmother (second from left) and wife (left) at his brother’s memorial spot on May 12, 2023. (Libby Giesbrecht/650 CKOM)

“Meewasin was saddened to hear of the removal of Nathaniel Bear’s memorial near the river,” Kwan said in an email on Monday. “Our staff have spoken directly with Dakota Bear about this and expressed our condolences.”

Dakota is frustrated that no one has taken responsibility for clearing the memorial and communicating with the City of Saskatoon about the matter has been difficult. He wants to see a policy put in place by the City of Saskatoon to protect memorial sites like his brother’s, to ensure they are preserved and protected.

In a ceremony held Saturday afternoon, Dakota and his family once again welcomed their community as they held a second memorial ceremony for Nathaniel. The family recreated the memorial with a much bigger cross and sturdier fencing to commemorate his life.

“To be able to mourn and grieve as a community, that’s what really brought healing,” Casey said, adding that doing so is medicine in itself — preventing future tragedies by drawing people together.