Great-niece of Louis Riel laid to rest on holiday named after Métis leader

It's Louis Riel Day in Manitoba and while many are celebrating the province's founding father, one of his descendants was laid to rest in St. Boniface on Monday.

Augustine Abraham died on Feb. 9 at the age of 96. Abraham was the great-niece of leader Louis Riel and was often interviewed over the years about her famous relative.

• Great-niece of province's founding father celebrates Louis Riel Day in her own way

When she last spoke to the CBC's Marjorie Dowhos on Louis Riel Day in 2014, Abraham shared her memories of her great-uncle.

"We had a picture of him in our house. And we knew who he was and we said a little prayer every time we went in front of him."

Abraham said when she was a little girl she would pray that Louis Riel would help her get good marks on her school work.

"And you know what? He did! Because we did good in school."

Until well into the 20th century, Louis Riel was regarded as a traitor who instigated civil war. But in the 1960s, Riel's image began to turn around and today most Canadians, particularly the Métis, have reclaimed him as a heroic patriot, founder of Manitoba and a father of Confederation.

Beginning in 2008, the third Monday in February has been celebrated as Louis Riel Day in Manitoba — something for which Augustine Abraham was intensely proud.

"It should have been done when I was going to school," she said.

The family is grateful that Augustine could be buried on Louis Riel Day, her daughter Ginette Abraham said.

"I think my mother would be very happy. I think she would say that she's come full circle in her life," said Ginette.

"She was extremely proud of her heritage, had always told us, from the time we were very small children, that Louis Riel was the founder of the province of Manitoba and that one day she felt he would be recognized as the founder of the province, and she was right."

The family decided to hold a public funeral service, because, as Ginette said, they felt Winnipeggers deserved a chance to bid her goodbye. 

"We felt as a family that my mom probably needed to be honoured by people as well, for her contributions, and it didn't seem to make a lot of sense to have it as a private," she said.

"We're having a private interment, but to have the service as private didn't seem to make a lot of sense to us."

The funeral service took place at the St. Boniface Cathedral at 9:30 a.m.