Two women stood by the side of a storm-water pond in Morinville Thursday, remembering a little girl that drowned here last weekend. They hugged each other close with tears in their eyes. Around them, others did the same.
“It hurts,” one of them said.
Jade MacDonald was only two years old when she died on July 25. Before she was reported missing, she had played with her siblings in the park in The Lakes subdivision. An RCMP officer found her shortly after, unresponsive in the waters of a nearby pond.
On Thursday evening, residents, family members and friends came together at the pond to remember the little girl for the life she lived. They grieved and prayed for her, then released pink balloons and butterflies, symbolizing her release to heaven and the continuation of life on Earth. Pink was her favourite colour.
“I was reflecting on Jade’s life and was thinking of what kind of place the Lord has prepared for her up there,” said Pastor Greg Fraser with the Father’s House Church. “And I know it will be a place where she can climb, and run and jump and the life that is fully living within her will be able to be expressed.”
Jade was a happy and always smiling girl, said Amanda Jepson. She brought the butterflies to the vigil because they reminded her of the girl. It wasn’t easy to get them, though.
Jepson had contacted every breeder in Edmonton before the vigil but there were only 20 butterflies left. But Jade’s story had touched people, so the breeder managed to ship in another 100 overnight from Montreal, she said.
On Thursday, she released only a few of the painted ladies, an orange and black-winged species. Jade’s family let another 90 fly at her funeral on Friday (a story on the funeral will appear in Wednesday’s Gazette).
“For us, butterflies symbolize the continuation of life,” said Jepson. “Butterflies are so fragile, just like her life would have been fragile. Letting them go, they will go and pollinate now.”
After the prayers, a group of women gathered near an opening in the brush by the pond where residents had laid down candles and stuffed animals. The Morinville Marvelous Moms group organized much of the community’s support this week, including a ribbon campaign and the vigil.
Melissa St. Denis, a group member, said Jade’s death hit close to home for a lot of young families living in the community and close to the lake. Having a vigil gave people a chance to share their grief, she said. They decided to let the balloons fly as a symbol of releasing them to heaven.
“Morinville is a very young community,” she said. “I think the average age in Morinville is 35 years old. There is almost no house on our block with no small children in it, so I think when something like this happens it just resonates.”
The balloons flew long into the blue sky over Morinville, eventually turning into pink, little dots. As some residents already turned back to stand and talk by the water, one little boy nudged his friend and pointed at the cluster in the sky.
“It’s kind of like a smiley face,” he said.
Donations to family
The Father’s House Church and the Morinville Marvelous Moms group have created the Jade MacDonald Memorial Fund. An account has been opened with the Servus Credit Union and donations may be made at any branch in the province. Anyone looking to help the family can also buy lapel pins. They may be purchased at The Morinville Community Cultural Centre, Home Hardware, Animal Wellness Vet Clinic, The Green Bean, and beginning Friday afternoon at the Flower Stop.
