Theoren Fleury has been part of the Victor Walk for the past five years, bringing his story of overcoming childhood sexual abuse to people across the country.
But the former NHL star says the largest crowd he has encountered in those five years was the one that greeted him in Estevan on Friday.
Supporters gathered at the Subway restaurant on Fourth Street, and walked to 16th Avenue, and before walking back to the Estevan Courthouse for a rally, where several speakers, including Fleury, addressed the audience.
After the rally, they went to the Orpheum Theatre to watch Victor Walk, which documents the first walk in 2013. While at the Orpheum, Fleury spoke alongside Kim Barthel, his co-author for his most recent book, Conversations with a Rattlesnake.
He admitted he was surprised with the number of people who showed up in Estevan.
The walk in Estevan was a homecoming of sorts for Fleury. He was born in Oxbow, but moved to Russell, Manitoba, as a child. He still has numerous family members in the southeast.
“Estevan has been a shot in the arm for all of us,” said Fleury. “We’ve been doing this for a lot of years now. People are listening and the momentum is picking up, and there were a lot of survivors in the crowd who have come and feel very comfortable.
“And that’s sort of the gist of this whole thing is to get people comfortable talking about their experience with childhood rape and sexual abuse, and violence and bullying and that sort of stuff.”
Fleury was sexually abused by a former coach, Graham James, when he was a child. Fleury revealed the abuse in his best-selling 2009 memoir, Playing with Fire. James, who already spent time in prison in the 1990s for sexually abusing players, has spent more time in prison for his crimes against Fleury and other players.
The Victor Walks have shown Fleury the resilience of people in general. Those who participate in the walk are looking for healing, and for people who have had similar experiences.
“People are talking about it,” said Fleury. “We really need to focus on getting more services and getting more people into healing, and getting them excited about the process of going through whatever they need to go through to get peace and happiness.
“I know that’s possible because I’ve been on that road, and every day it gets better, every day I get stronger and every day I feel excited. It’s been absolutely wonderful.”
He told the audience in Estevan that during his first book signing for Playing with Fire, he encountered a young man who said “Me, too.” Fleury credits that man for saving his life.
“Every day I am in awe of people’s courage, and what I saw that day was the greatest act of courage I had ever seen in my life,” said Fleury.
Since then, he says nearly 600,000 people have shared their stories with him, and he continues to hear stories on a daily basis.
“I just had three people come up to me just now,” said Fleury. “It’s why we do this. It’s not always expected, but we’re not surprised or shocked when they do show up.”
He noted that when he first started writing Playing with Fire, it was going to be about his hockey career. But it was his co-author, Kirstie McLellan Day, who encouraged him to tell his entire story, including childhood sexual abuse.
Among those who were in Estevan for the Victor Walk was Colin Patterson, Fleury’s teammate with the Calgary Flames when they won the Stanley Cup in 1989. Fleury noted Patterson was in Estevan that day specifically for the walk.
The Victor Walk started in 2013 when Fleury was approached by a close friend about organizing a walk to create awareness for childhood sexual assault. The walk was held in Ontario that year, and since that time, it has visited communities across the country.
The Victor Walk is held to create awareness and raise funds for the Breaking Free Foundation, which assists victims of abuse, and other organizations in communities working with abuse survivors.
Estevan was the fourth city in a five-community tour for the Victor Walk. Other stops were in Saskatoon, Moose Jaw, Swift Current and Regina. The turnout in those communities was good, he said, but not as strong as Estevan.
Several other speakers addressed the crowd at the local rally. Christa Daku, the executive director for the Envision Counselling and Support Centre, said they see a lot of adult survivors of child abuse.
Childhood trauma can lead to addictions, mental health issues, self-sabotage and high-risk behaviours, she said. Envision offers services to individuals whose lives have been impacted by all forms of violence, and not only do they serve survivors of violence, but they help secondary survivors, such as those closely connected with those who were abused.
“I want to acknowledge the people who gather around here to begin the conversation around childhood abuse and trauma,” said Daku.
She asked the crowd to ask what happened to someone, rather than ask what’s wrong with them.
Deputy police Chief Murray Cowan with the Estevan Police Service reminded the crowd that they need to feel comfortable to come to police.
“I don’t want people to think ‘Should I report this or shouldn’t I? I don’t want to look bad. I don’t want them to be mad at me. I don’t want them to think that I’m just a nuisance.’ That is never the case. And it never should be,” said Cowan.
Cowan has taken specialized training when it comes to sexual abuse crimes, and until his move into administration two years ago, he continued to work with victims of abuse.
“Child abuse and childhood trauma are very difficult things to talk about,” said Cowan. “That’s why rallies like this are so important.”
Shandra Carlson, the executive director from the Breaking Free Foundation, said it takes more than one person to make an event like this happen. She noted the foundation’s volunteer board has taken vacation time to be part of this year’s walk.
She was so happy to see so many people in Estevan for the event.
“You, coming out and supporting this awareness, it is so near and dear to our hearts, and we know without conversation, nothing is going to change,” said Carlson.
