Memorial held for Regina woman whose death sparked calls to action on homelessness

A memorial feast was held in Regina on Thursday for Marjorie McKay, a woman whose death sparked calls for action on homelessness in the city and the creation of a camp for the homeless named in her honour.

Numerous community leaders and the family of Marjorie McKay arrived for a feast in Pepsi Park on the one year anniversary of her death.

“It’s a great turnout. I like that. What my mother created here, you know, amongst her friends and so great to see,” said Howard McKay, Marjorie’s son.

Last October, Marjorie McKay died in Victoria Park while a public discussion about homelessness was being held outside a church across the street.

Her death prompted the creation of a community of tents for those in need of housing and also renewed discussion about long term solutions.

Shylo Stevenson, Camp Hope Organizer, said they created Camp Marjorie in her honour then renamed it to Camp Hope after her funeral.

“That’s what it evolved to and here we are a year later and still in a more dire state than we were last year unfortunately but we are striving in the right direction,” he said.

One year later, a petition drive is underway to convince city council to implement its five-year-old plan to end homelessness.

“Out of the folks that were left behind at Camp Hope, by spring of this year we had lost nearly 10 per cent of them and now we’re almost at a loss of one in five so you have loss of life which is very tragic,” said Alycia Johnson with Rally Around Homelessness.

City Council will vote in December on whether to commit the dollars needed to seriously tackle houselessness. It could lead to another chapter being written in the legacy of Marjorie McKay.