LA LOCHE, SK-A month to the day after a shooter entered the school's doors and killed a teacher and an aide and wounded seven others, the doors were finally open for students at the La Loche school to return for classes. Two teenage brothers were also killed in a nearby home on the same day.
The accused killer, a 17-year-old boy, who can't be named under Canada's Youth Criminal Justice Act, was charged with first-degree murder and attempted murder in the January 22 shooting. His friends reported him to be an outcast and a victim of bullying at school.
According to The Canadian Press (CP), the North Sask Victim Services, has been in La Loche offering support to victims and the community.
"I always compare it to a person's grief," said Betsy Kelly. "As an individual, you don't get over grief in a month or two, it can take years. And similarly a community: it will take many years to be able to move forward."
Kelly, executive director of North Sask Victim Services, told CP that she thinks the First Nations community of La Loche has shown "amazing resilience and strength."