Tiles to represent boarding-school victims

The heart of loss

Tile project hopes to heal the hurt of victims of residential schools

By Tony LofaroAn Ottawa teacher is commemorating thousands of aboriginal children who were victims of Canada's residential school system over the last 100 years. Sylvia Smith's Project of Heart is attempting to decorate 50,000 postage-sized wooden tiles to represent the estimated number of children who died through illness or other causes in the school system.

So far, 2,500 tiles have been decorated by groups and individuals across Canada for the project, and another 4,300 tiles have been distributed and are about to be completed. The project began several years ago with the help of one of her students at about the same time the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was established to look into assimilation and abuse of aboriginal children at residential schools across Canada in the 20th century.

"We're trying to educate non-indigenous Canadians about what actually happened at Indian residential schools in hopes that there could be some kind of reconciliation, or some kind of dialogue could be started to begin the healing journey for these people," said Smith, a teacher at Elizabeth Wyn Wood School, an alternative high school.Comment:  For more on the subject, see White Writer Tackles Boarding Schools and Residential-School Comic-Book Videos.

Below:  "Sylvia Smith's Project of Heart is attempting to decorate 50,000 wooden tiles to represent the estimated number of children who were victims of Canada's residential schools." (Bruno Schlumberger, The Ottawa Citizen)