BURST
Plans are underway for a permanent memorial to commemorate the victims of the Lapu Lapu Day festival attack.
RJ Aquino, chair of festival organizer Filipino B.C., said he is meeting with the city to start discussions on a permanent memorial.
“It’s clear that people are still needing to visit, reflect and grieve and the fact we are over a week out and people are still, at all hours of the day, gathering to pay their respects calls to the significance of the event and the need for a permanent fixture there.”
He said the planning is still in the preliminary stage, and does not know what shape or form a memorial would look like or where it would be located, but said it needs to be “mindful and respectful.”
On April 26, an SUV drove into a crowd at the Filipino festival, killing 11 and injuring dozens.
He said he is not aware of any plans to remove the growing, makeshift memorial on East 41st Avenue and Fraser Street.
“The flowers will wilt and candles will melt, and people keep coming and adding to it,” said Aquino, adding the city understands people’s need to grieve and gather. “I don’t see it going away any time soon.”
Preeti Faridikot, a Vancouver school board trustee, said she plans to bring a motion in late June for a permanent memorial near John Oliver Secondary, but not on school grounds.
“It could be a space of healing for some people, I think we really need it,” said Faridikot. “The design and vision should be done with the community, the city, the province and the Filipino people who are affected.”
She said she wants to proceed with “care, dignity, and cultural sensitivity.”
“We have to be very respectful and careful,” she said. “It’s going to be in collaboration with the Filipino community, the affected families, the city, the province, and the school board, everybody together.”
Mayor Ken Sim said the city will wait for the community to take the lead to ensure any memorial is done in a respectful way.
“I know I can speak for the council on this one, we have incredibly caring people here that feel absolutely devastated, as all Vancouverites, British Columbians, and Canadians do, and anything we can do to respectfully support the community, we will in a heartbeat,” he said.
In a statement, the City of Vancouver encouraged people gathering at the makeshift memorial to place flowers, candles, and stuffed toys to be safe, keep sidewalks clear, and avoid gathering on major roads. It also asked mourners to use flameless candles to prevent fire hazards.
The last week and a half since the horrific vehicle attack has been “emotional,” said Aquino. He had left the street party with his wife and three kids to have dinner at home and got a panicked call from an organizer. He had expected a wrap-up phone call, said Aquino. Instead, he heard the words “mass casualty event,” and raced back to the scene.
The focus of Filipino B.C. has been on taking care of the victims, their families, volunteers and attendees and tending to their immediate needs, such as providing bridge funding for child care or transportation costs or replacing lost or damaged cellphones.
Filipino B.C. has set up a resiliency centre at Killarney Secondary School, which is open May 9 from 5 to 8 p.m. Due to demand, Aquino said they are planning to move the centre closer to the scene of the tragedy and are working on finding a location.
“We continue to mourn, we continue to grieve. I don’t know if it’s going to subside from how high the emotions have been,” he said. “But we’re trying to put in place all the things that give people a path to heal and grow stronger from this.”
With a file from The Canadian Press