'Absolutely moving' memorial to Kamloops residential school victims draws visitors to Woodstock, Ont.

WARNING: This story contains distressing details.

Celina Myers wanted to do something, but didn't know what, when news emerged that the remains of about 215 Indigenous children were detected at a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C.

Myers is a writer and social media influencer with more than 18 million followers on TikTok and 1.3 million on Instagram under the handle @celinaspookyboo. Her videos cover the gamut from humour to music.

So she used that same talent for creative expression to honour the lost children of Kamloops.

Preliminary findings from a radar survey of the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School indicate as many as 215 children could be buried there.

It's a story that's stirred strong reaction worldwide. 

Some have placed children's shoes on the steps of Catholic churches, others have expressed outrage online. Many have been moved to tears.  

Myers took a break from social media and put her mind to the significance of the discovery. She tried to educate herself about residential schools and paid attention to the reaction to the story from Indigenous voices. 

Then, she turned to her art in an attempt to create a visual expression of her grief that might also cause others to stop and give thought to the experience of First Nations people in the former residential school program..  

She cut a few hundred pieces of lumber into stakes, each a different length.

To the end of each stake, she stapled a plastic placard, drew an orange heart on it and pounded each stake into her lawn in long rows that almost resemble a line of tombstones at a graveyard. The stakes stand in straight rows, but at various heights, similar to what you'd see if a row of children of different ages stood shoulder to shoulder in a school yard. The hearts appear to take the place of faces. 

On other stakes, she put information about residential schools, and added printouts of some of the social media reaction to the Kamloops story from Indigenous people. 

'Go and listen'

Aside from speaking on background about how she built the tribute in her yard, Myers didn't want to be interviewed or photographed for this story. She says as a non-Indigenous person, she'd rather people share their feelings on the memorial and listen to the stories of people who survived residential schools or have loved ones who suffered there. 

"I want to be the best ally that I can, go and listen to the words of Aboriginal creators around us," she said in an Instagram post about her memorial, which went online on Tuesday. 

Myers lives on a busy street in Woodstock with plenty of car and foot traffic. She put out a bowl with markers, inviting passersby to write their thoughts and memorial messages on the hearts in honour of children in Kamloops and across Canada who were brought to residential schools

The group of orange cards crowding the lawn of her small house is an arresting site, slowing traffic and getting plenty of looks from passersby. 

Cassidy Morale saw the memorial on TikTok and came to see it in person on Wednesday with a friend. Both women arrived with their toddlers in strollers.

"Being here today has been absolutely moving," she said. "This is 215 children that are just missing. We both work in schools, it's really hard to see because that's a lot of kids that people like us work with every day and they were people."

The memorial can be seen on the west side of Springbank Avenue in Woodstock south of Devonshire Avenue. 

Support is available for anyone affected by their experience at residential schools, and those who are triggered by the latest reports.

A national Indian Residential School Crisis Line has been set up to provide support for former students and those affected. People can access emotional and crisis referral services by calling the 24-hour national crisis line: 1-866-925-4419.