CBC News
Led by singers and escorted by pallbearers from the RCMP and Winnipeg Police Service, a white casket bearing the body of Cathy Merrick, the late Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs grand chief, arrived to lie in state at the Manitoba Legislative Building on Wednesday morning.
The song from the group of First Nations women — one carrying Merrick’s headdress — echoed through the broad foyer and grand staircase of the building as they headed the procession.
Immediately behind the casket walked Merrick’s husband, Todd, and the couple’s three children, along with other family members, a number of First Nations chiefs and other dignitaries.
It was a slow, sorrowful walk as the casket was taken to the Chandelier Room on the second floor for a sacred private ceremony.
Public viewing was scheduled for noon until 5 p.m.
WATCH | Procession follow’s grand chief’s casket into legislature:
Procession follows Manitoba grand chief’s casketA song from First Nations singers echoes through the Manitoba Legislative Building as pallbearers carry the casket of Cathy Merrick, the late grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, into the lying in state.
Merrick, 63, is the first woman given the honour of lying in state inside the legislature, and the first person to do so since 2013.
She died suddenly on Sept. 6 after collapsing outside the Law Courts building in Winnipeg while speaking to reporters.
A book of condolences for the public to sign has been placed at the base of the grand staircase in the Manitoba Legislative Building and flags at the building have been lowered to half-mast.
Merrick’s death was marked by a vigil outside the Winnipeg courthouse earlier and a sunrise ceremony.
Former Manitoba premier Gary Doer, who showed up at the legislature on Wednesday to sign the book, said Merrick was a person of integrity and leadership.
“She had it all and she lived it all, and that’s why there’s so many people grieving her passing,” he said.
Merrick of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs poses for a photograph in May 2023 as she prepares for the official royal coronation of King Charles III in London. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press)
Her body will be taken from the legislature to the RBC Convention Centre for a wake service from 5:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. It will then return to her home community, Pimicikamak Cree Nation (Cross Lake), for a wake service at the arena on Thursday and Friday.
A last viewing will take place on Saturday, ahead of the funeral service and interment later that same day at the Cross Lake Cemetery.
Merrick spent more than a decade as a band councillor at Pimicikamak and became the community’s chief in 2013 — only the second woman to do so.
She was elected grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs in October 2022 — becoming the first woman to lead the advocacy group in its nearly 35-year history — and was re-elected to the post in July 2024.
Pimicikamak Chief David Monias called Wednesday’s event at the legislature “a big deal” for not only his community, but for diplomacy between the province and First Nations.
“That’s what Cathy was about — she was about unity. She was a big proponent for treaty rights and … relationship building,” he said, noting it was Premier Wab Kinew who approached Pimicikamak’s council to see if they would consider having Merrick lie in state.
“That’s something we hope to see more of, where we have better relations with our provinces, our counterparts. That’s what she wanted to do, is bring everybody together. And even in death she’s bringing everybody together, setting aside our differences to celebrate a woman, a mom, a wife and one of our own.
“It’s a big honour for us.”
Pimicikamak Chief David Monias said Merrick was a strong but humble leader who always wanted to make sure people felt respected. (Chelsea Kemp/CBC)
Monias, who first nominated Merrick as a candidate for AMC grand chief, said she held all of the qualities of a strong leader. She always reached for a handshake or embrace “to make sure people felt respected,” he said.
“She was fair and honourable. That’s the way our leadership has been in our community. We’re taught that — be hard on the issues but be soft on the people.”
When Merrick took on an issue with other governments, she was there to make sure it was a win-win situation, not one where anyone came up short, said Monias — “to uplift our people to the same parity of services as everybody else.”
‘Carried a lot of love’
Grand Chief Garrison Settee of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, the northern Manitoba First Nations advocacy organization, said having Merrick lie in state at the legislature “validates her as a leader.”
“I think beyond being the grand chief and beyond being a leader, she was a woman that carried a lot of love and compassion, and she cared for everyone,” he said.
“One of the things that I keep hearing is that she made you feel special whenever you were around her, and she made you feel like that you were equal to her, regardless of if you were living on the street or in a high-profile position. Everybody was equal to her.”
WATCH | Late grand chief ‘cared for everyone:’
Cathy Merrick, late AMC grand chief, ‘cared for everyone’ Grand Chief Garrison Settee of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, the northern Manitoba First Nations advocacy organization, reflects on the kindness Cathy Merrick, who was grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, showed to others.
Louise Menow came out of the legislature after viewing Merrick, then picked up a drum and sang.
“In my culture it’s a sign of respect, it’s a sign of honour,” she said, noting she immediately felt like crying when she saw Merrick’s body. But then “something came over me,” and there was a calmness, she said.
“It just felt very humbling to be able to see her at rest.”
Menow said she came to know Merrick during various walks, gatherings and protests led by the former grand chief. Menow said at one point, she was about to refer to Merrick as a friend, when the grand chief stopped her.
“She said, ‘don’t call me that. I’m your family now.'”
The two were also together in Merrick’s final moments outside the courthouse. Merrick had been speaking to media about what she called “a gross miscarriage of justice” following the acquittal of a Manitoba corrections officer charged in the 2021 death of William Ahmo, a First Nations man who was an inmate at the Headingley Correctional Centre.
Menow said Ahmo was one of her best friends.
Shortly after beginning to talk about another topic, Merrick collapsed.
Louise Menow, left, and David Ferland play drums and sing outside the legislature. (Chelsea Kemp/CBC)
“I was just grateful to hear her last testimony in regards to the verdict. I’m honoured to have been able to be in her presence in the last minutes of her life,” Menow said.
“She fought hard for our people. She’s just someone I want to be like.”
Noreen Barlas, who is originally from Thompson, also came to the legislature to pay her respects to Merrick.
She met Merrick over a decade ago, when Barlas was an educator studying youth suicide for a graduate program.
During that time, Barlas went to Pimicikamak and developed a bond with Merrick, who invited her over for pickerel cheeks. The two remained close up until Merrick’s death, she said.
“She’s someone that embodies what a matriarch is in any society,” said Barlas.
