Remember Every Name Project

Remember Every Name is a group led by survivors of the Huronia Regional Centre that was open in Orilllia from 1876 - 2009, and the site of horrific abuse. It rests on ancestral lands of the Iroquaian and Algonquin speaking peoples, the traditional lands of the Huron-Wendat (Wyandot) & the Petun, and the ceded land of the Anishinaabe.

Remember Every Name is committed to making sure that people, locally and nationally, remember the brutal and recent history of eugenics and abuse that took place on the site. Remember Every Name organizes events Lost But Not Forgotten, a mother’s day memorial procession every year, to share their difficult and traumatic stories and to memorialize their experiences, and advocates for measures that should be taken in order to best honour the need for healing.

If you would like to get involved or receive updates from Remember Every Name please check out our Facebook page .
Legacy Group For Remember Every Name

The Huronia Regional Centre survivors who lead the advocacy group Remember Every Name reflect on the day (March 31) that Ontario's largest and oldest institution for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities closed its doors. They also discuss their annual Mother's Day Memorial and Procession and invite you to attend.

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Remember Every Name Logo

From a bare branch 7 blue forget-me-not flowers grow, honouring the lives lost that must never be forgotten. They also bloom like the strength and beauty of those who survived. The branch is without a trunk, or roots representing survivors who were broken off from their families who disappeared, as many children who were taken to live at Huronia Regional Centre lost touch with their family who were often discouraged from visiting. Survivors hung on and grew despite horrible conditions and abuse, but so many died or were murdered.


The 2 black crows are witnesses sitting on the branch, like those that have often joined and carefully watched while people gather at the HRC Cemetery. Crows have long memories and remind us we are not alone in caring for this place and the people buried there. They call out and encourage us to speak and demand the truth, that survivor’s stories are told so that history will not repeat itself.


A yellow butterfly floats above the branch, representing the freedom and achievements of survivors. These colours remind us of the pain and hope of survivors who are now free, who can never forget; and for our dream and struggle for an end to all institutions everywhere where people are not free.