Sault Métis Community Keeps Tradition Alive

On November 1, the Historic Sault Ste. Marie Métis Council hosted a small gathering of community members at the Sault Ste. Marie Métis Heritage Centre to honour an enduring Métis tradition — paying tribute to our ancestors.

While All Souls Day is observed across many faiths, for Métis families it has long held a deeper cultural meaning, a moment to blend prayer, remembrance, and community togetherness in honour of those whose lives built the foundations of today’s Nation.

The gathering began at the Heritage Centre, where community members made floral bouquets to be distributed to cemeteries throughout Sault Ste. Marie. Candles were lit, and offerings of food and tobacco were placed to honour the spirits of Métis ancestors. Each act — a flower, a flame, a prayer — carried forward the love, gratitude, and remembrance that bind generations together.

Floral Bouquet at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery

Honourary Senator Brenda Powley offered prayers on behalf of the community at each cemetery visited. Her words reminded those present — and those long departed — that

remembrance is a sacred duty.

Bouquets, candles, and offerings were placed at several sites of great importance to the Métis of Sault Ste. Marie:

At the Heritage Centre grounds – the former graveyard of the NWC/HBC post, where the community continues to gather in the heart of their historic river-lot community;

At Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, the final resting place for those once buried in the original Sacred Heart Cemetery — a burial ground that was twice relocated during the city’s development;

And at Pine Grove Cemetery, where contemporary Métis leaders Steve Powley and Dolores Pinder are laid to rest, both remembered for their immense contributions to the recognition and revitalization of Métis rights and culture.

As dusk settled and candles glowed against the November air, the soft light reflected the community’s ongoing promise: to keep the memories of their ancestors alive, to speak their names, and to pass forward the teachings that continue to guide the Métis community.