Dozens of people directly or indirectly affected by the tragedy at Ste-Rose Educational Daycare in Laval gathered for a mass to honor the victims.
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“Even the dogs have sad eyes,” said Father Claude Brissette at the beginning of this special celebration, which took place on Friday morning at the Sainte-Rose-de-Lima church.
“The violent death of a child is an absolute evil, an infinite sadness,” he continued.
Many songs accompanied this emotionally charged mass, in which the small cries of the few children present were mixed with silent tears.
“This tragedy has tested us deeply. […] It is an enormous suffering, an agony. What happened ? What will happen? asked the priest Michel Bouchard, who was celebrating the mass.
He had placed a small stuffed dog on the altar, accompanied by two large candles in honor of the victims and four small ones for the injured youth.
The church will host in a few days the funeral of little Jacob, four years old, who died on Wednesday when he was in kindergarten in a few days.
“It’s going to be difficult, especially for the family,” Father Bouchard told the Journal.
Continuation of the homage
In the morning, several people continued to bring flowers or cuddly toys to the church square.
This applies in particular to Jessie Laflamme, mother of three young boys, one of whom goes to a day care center not far from the scene of the accident.
“We think it might have been us. It is a disaster. Lots of misunderstandings, frustration, anger. We sleep badly, we think about them,” she says, holding her five-month-old baby.
“All I’m currently feeling is the heaviness, the loss of speech, the lack of understanding,” continued Marie-Ève Leblanc, who worked for a long time in the Laval Early Childhood Education Network, emotionally.