Family seeks to keep girl's memory alive with 'buddy' benches

The parents of a five-year-old girl who died last summer in a Churchill, Man., canoe accident are carrying on their daughter's memory in a way they hope strengthens ties on the playground and in Manitoba communities.

"My daughter was a beautiful … sweet child and I just want everybody to know her and just appreciate everything about her," said Toni deLaroque, Danica deLaroque's mother. 

"It is hard to make sense of what has happened to our family, but it has made us stronger."

Danica was in a canoe with her father, Donnie, and younger brother, Connor, in July 2016 that capsized in the cold waters of the Churchill River, causing her to experience hypothermia and later die in hospital. Her father and brother were also pulled from the frigid water but survived.

"She was on the river with two of the people she loved the most," deLaroque said. "They were canoeing out to the belugas, she was singing Baby Beluga. The canoe capsized for no reason."

The family canoed the same waters a year earlier while on vacation and didn't encounter any problems, deLaroque said.

"Never ever did the thought of somebody dying from hypothermia cross my mind. I felt safe when we were canoeing, and obviously my husband did, too — he would've never put the kids in harm's way."

All the kids in the school will know to look for kids on those benches and say, 'Hey, why don't you come play with us?'-  Toni deLaroque, Danica's mother

An outpouring of community support followed that encouraged deLaroque to start Danica's Village, a charity in the works that will focus on spreading a positive message about the importance of community. 

"The saying, 'It takes a village to raise a child' is definitely an approach that we took as parents," she said. "You just rely on people to help you raise your children."​

To that end, money raised through Danica's Village will go toward the construction of "buddy benches," conventionally used in anti-bullying campaigns. The deLaroque family wants their colourful Danica-inspired benches installed on school grounds in Manitoba.

"All the kids in the school will know to look for kids on those benches and say, 'Hey, why don't you come play with us?'" she said.

"That is a picture perfect [example] of who Danica was. She would always go and grab kids she didn't know … she would just pull a kid in."

The family sold T-shirts and mugs at a Canada 150 event in their home community of Grosse Isle, Man., on July 15 to raise money for the project. 

The items, which are still for sale, include the words "Find Your Village, Love Them Hard," borrowing the name and merchandise idea from a fundraiser set up by family friends in the wake of Danica's death to help cover funeral costs.

The shirts and mugs are available for purchase through the Danica's Village Facebook group.