New mural unveiled in Sylvan Lake

A new mural to honour the indigenous children who never made it home from residential schools was unveiled in Sylvan Lake on Thursday.

About 250 people including Sylvan Lake Town Council, Sylvan Lake RCMP, Sylvan Lake Fire Department attended the special ceremony on Lakeshore Drive at 44th Street.

The Artist, Ryan Jason Allen Willert, started the ceremony with a sacred prayer and song.He talked about the mural called "Let Them Play". 

"This process of this mural was dear to me.It's definately an honour to be a part of this project. Originally, we had an idea to do children of the past, but I felt a strong present vibe to it, so I included cloth clothing in the mural, which we never wore in the past."

Willert says he was asked about two months ago to do the mural. He has had a busy Summer. "I think this is actually my fifth or sixth mural this year. I've been planning this (Sylvan Lake) mural for about a month and a half."

Ryan's inspiration for the mural comes from the Indigenous way of life and the species that live in the natural territory of the Blackfoot people.

When asked about Truth and Reconciliation Day Ryan said "It feels good to see some of the community out, maybe next year we will see more."

Sylvan Lake Mayor, Teresa Rilling was speaking at the ceremony and talked about residential schools and the harm on children. "The establishment and operation of residential schools, were a central element of a government policy which can best be described as cultural genocide." 

Rilling talked about moving forward as a community. "As Mayor we formally invite residents and visitors to participate in the process of reconciliation."

Tracey Grienke, who played a large part in getting this mural to Sylvan Lake said they wanted to show children wearing their traditional outfits and dancing because they weren't allowed to in the residential school system. On the mural it says:

"Let Them Play is a memorial for the thousands of unmarked graves of children who never came home from these schools and who passed away due to the abuse. This mural is also a tribute to all the children today, from any culture, who were unable to play as a child due to negligence. We found you, you are free, time to play."