Portapique is finding ways to heal 3 years after a shooter's rampage
CBC
Nearly three years after a deadly rampage started in Portapique, the small Nova Scotia community is finding ways to heal.
The mass shooting, which took place on April 18-19, 2020, left several people injured, homes destroyed and 22 people dead, including a pregnant woman.
The Mass Casualty Commission that has examined the causes and consequences of that deadly weekend will release its final report on Thursday in Truro.
Andrew MacDonald was one of the people wounded by the gunman that weekend.
He and his wife were driving through Portapique when the gunman pulled up beside them in a replica police cruiser and opened fire.
MacDonald says he isn't dwelling on the past.
"That event had no bearing on the land and the places where we live here, it's the same place it was before," MacDonald said.
"Of course, something bad happened here but it was a short incidence of time. We wish it didn't happen, of course, but no, other than that, it's a great place to live."
Erin MacKinnon shares MacDonald's sentiment.
She has raised five children in the community and three still live there. They've never considered leaving.
"It was important for us to stay and it was even important to let people know that it was OK to stay," MacKinnon said.
MacKinnon said it's also important to add to the community. A playground completed in 2021 is a major part of that.
"The first thing we all were saying [was] we want a playground, we want somewhere where our kids can feel safe, because their healing was more important than our own healing as adults," MacKinnon said.
The residents have now turned their attention to a new community hall.
P.E.I.'s Public Schools Branch is looking for 50 substitute bus drivers, and it'll be recruiting at three job fairs on Saturday, June 8. The job fairs are located at the Atlantic Superstore in Montague, Royalty Crossing in Charlottetown, and the bus parking lot of Three Oaks Senior High in Summerside. All three run from 9 a.m. until noon. Dave Gillis, the director of transportation and risk management for the Public Schools Branch, said the number of substitute drivers they're hiring isn't unusual. "We are always looking for more. Our drivers tend to have an older demographic," he said.