Brock Fraser accepts gifts from the Indian Residential School Survivors Society, which will receive $65,000 after his 215-kilometre run (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Chad Klassen

BROCK'S 215 RUN

Brock Fraser honoured for raising $65,000 for his 215-kilometre charity run

Jun 21, 2021 | 3:57 PM

KAMLOOPS — Two days after finishing the last leg of his 215-kilometre run — a charity run to honour the 215 unmarked graves found last month — Brock Fraser was honoured on Monday (June 21) by the Indian Residential School Survivors Society, which is the recipient of $65,000 worth of donations thanks to the run.

The society presented Fraser with a piece of First Nations Art and a blanket as a sign of gratitude for his fundraiser.

“It was a great honour, great people, and completely unexpected,” Fraser told CFJC Today. “This wasn’t about me and I’m grateful to all the people I’ve been able to communicate with and all the new friends I’ve made along the way.

Over the span of two weeks, Fraser ran 215 kilometres and raised $55,000 on the run’s Facebook page, as well another $10,000 in private and corporate donations.

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“It makes me feel pretty great. Everybody came together for a great cause and I’m super proud of the community and everybody who donated to support this survivors’ society,” said Fraser.

Executive Director of the Indian Residential School Survivors Society Angela White says Fraser’s efforts go a long way for a non-profit agency.

“When Brock, an Indigenous man, does something he feels he needs to do, it fills his heart. Well, it fills our heart because we can’t always do everything we want to do as a non-profit, and that’s our main goal — to provide emotional support or cultural support in safe spaces,” she said. “People like Brock now allow us to do that in a larger capacity.”

With more residential school survivors coming forward with their stories in light of the discovery on May 27, the society’s profile has been raised significantly.

Opening in 1994, it has historically flown under the radar, but it’s now been able to reach more people. The donations from Fraser’s run will help the society have a greater impact for people in more remote northern communities in B.C.

“We get core funding, so we have to plan out when we go into those rural communities, and we do one a year,” said White. “I think this will allow us to do a few more communities because some of the ones we go into, your only way in is through sea plane or 10-hour rides into communities, so that allows us to do a lot more.”