Community mourns Ottawa femicide victim at candlelight vigil

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The Hunt Club community came together on Tuesday evening to mourn the loss of 36-year-old Brkti Berhe, who was stabbed to death at a playground last week.

About 100 people, most huddled under umbrellas, gathered at Paul Landry Park on Uplands Drive, the site of the tragic event, for a vigil organized by the city councillor for Ottawa’s River Ward, Riley Brockington.

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Police and city councillors were in attendance, as well as community groups offering support. Many people held candles and flowers, some crying as they listened to speeches from community members and paid their respects.

“What happened here was horrible,” Brockington said, adding he planned to meet with Berhe’s family later this week. “It was shocking and painful, but please remember this is your neighbourhood and your park.”

Brockington said that the innocence of the community and the park had been shattered by the “hateful, horrific act” and that the community mourned Berhe’s loss, felt for her family and was “trying to make sense of what has happened.”

Berhe, a mother of four children aged eight months, three, 10 and 15 years old, was at the park with the two youngest on the morning of Oct. 24 when, according to eyewitnesses, a man jumped out of a car and attacked her with a knife.

He then got back in the car drove off, while bystanders cared for Berhe’s children and comforted the dying women. Several men photographed the vehicle, which police said helped them make a quick arrest on Highway 417 near Casselman shortly afterward.

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Fsha Tekhle, 36, has been charged with first-degree murder. Ottawa police said he had a domestic relationship with a family member of Berhe and believed he was returning to Montreal when he was arrested.

The killing of Berhe has been labeled as a femicide, marking the second time in three months that the Ottawa Police Service had used that term.

Yami Msosa, executive director of the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women, said femicide was a pervasive issue and that “we cannot turn our eyes away from the experiences of violence.

“It’s been decades and decades of survivors and families and front-line workers advocating for systems change and I think that today community is gathered … you see the impact that the femicide has had, and I think it’s really important to really centre healing and community in this moment because people are grieving and this was preventable. Femicides are preventable.”

Since last week, a memorial at a rock in Paul Landry Park has continued to grow.

An art piece entitled “Pebbles of Peace” with painted rocks in the shape of a heart lay on the ground at the memorial on Tuesday. According to the Hunt Club Community Association, the initiative was launched by a group of women, children and youth “who bravely came together to collectively heal from the loss of a dear mother in our community.”

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Barb Wilson, who has lived in the community for 35 years, said the tragedy was “really hard,” especially as she remembered passing by Berhe at a local store.

“This neighborhood is really quiet, peaceful, without any violence,” Wilson said, adding that she had just returned home from work last week when she learned by text message that someone had been stabbed to death in her backyard. “It’s just tragic that a woman has lost her life. Another woman has lost her life, and she has children.”

In a statement read by his brother, Paul Landry said his thoughts were with Berhe’s family, the children who bore witness and the families who were grieving the tragedy. Landry was Canada Post’s first deaf mail carrier and a nationally successful runner.

“We are deeply saddened to know that a life was lost so unnecessarily in a place named in honour of perseverance and dedication to community,” the statement read, adding that Landry hoped safety and security could be restored in time so that people could have fun and enjoy the park again. “We hope that the family and friends of Berhe find their own way to persevere through such a devastating loss and that the community rallies to support them through these difficult times.”

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A GoFundMe campaign launched to support Berhe’s family had received over $15,200 in donations as of Tuesday. It has a goal of $50,000.

Campaign organizer Luwam Kidane spoke at the vigil and said Berhe was “a beautiful mother to four beautiful children and an amazing wife for her husband.”

“It’s been a great loss in our community,” Kidane said. “We will always remember her.”

The Hunt Club Community Association is transferring all donations it receives until further notice to the GoFundMe campaign. On its Facebook page, the association also called on the public to support the family by donating items like baby wipes, baby formula, toys and snacks.

It said family members were receiving childcare support and meal prep by the local Ethiopian community, but those items would “provide extra comfort and support to help alleviate stress during this time.”

Berhe’s family has asked for privacy.

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