Missy Mantla is remembering her late son, Gewii Lafferty, as a loving, smart boy who was just developing a passion for hand games when he passed away in June.
Gewii was killed at the age of six in an ATV accident in Edzo.
An eight-year-old and an 11-year-old were also injured in the same incident. The children had not been wearing helmets at the time, RCMP said. The precise nature of what took place remains unclear, though the ATV was the only vehicle reported to have been involved.
Mantla said she hoped some good could come from the tragedy, such as families being more vigilant about ensuring their children wear helmets. She praised police in Behchokǫ̀ for their renewed efforts to make sure young people are wearing helmets in the aftermath of Gewii’s death.
Over the course of an interview recorded in late June, Mantla described what happened from her perspective, how she and her family have coped with the loss, and the memories she holds of her son.
Gewii was six and a half years old. He was about to turn seven in September. He was born on my late dad’s birthday: September 16, 2019.
He’s just the sweetest kid ever. He was a fast learner from when he was a baby, he was so smart. He’s the youngest of five and he started walking the fastest, he got off the bottle the fastest, he started using the toilet the fastest, and he was such a fast kid. He was so talkative. He talked fast. His attitude was like a little bossy old man.
He always wanted to be around me, wanted to follow me. We unfortunately lost his dad, Troy Lafferty, when Gewii was just 14 months old. He was so close with his stepdad, Roland Mackenzie – he was like his tail.
He loved hand games and he actually played his first hand games tournament here in Behchokǫ̀ when they had hand games for the youth. They were so good. There was video, people were going live, people were screaming for them, it was awesome.
The night before the accident, he stayed at his aunt and uncle’s in Edzo. His cousin, they’re like brothers, they always do everything together. They wanted to go to Yellowknife. They left and I didn’t hear anything until I got the call that my son was in an accident at about 9:15pm.
I called my friend to drive me to Edzo because I was really distraught. It’s a 10 or 15-minute drive but it felt like hours. At the Dehk’è Frank Channel bridge we had to wait at the red light. Sitting there for those four or five minutes, waiting for it to turn green, was so dreadful.
We got there and they wouldn’t let me get too close. My sister was holding me. People were telling me I needed to just let them work on Gewii. They said they were going to transfer him in the ambulance and we should meet them at the health centre.
I waited across from the emergency doors where the ambulance bay is. Nobody was going to move me. I was by myself – everybody was waiting outside for us. It felt like almost the whole community was there. I started praying, and then the RCMP came to the doors, and I already knew.
I work as a support assistant in Edzo, at Chief Jimmy Bruneau School. I love working there, it’s like a family. As soon as this happened, the teachers were waiting outside the health centre. Everybody sat there and cried, and people started praying with us.
My brother-in-law, [Tłı̨chǫ Grand Chief] Jackson Lafferty, called me when Gewii came home from the McKenna Funeral Home.
He suggested it would be a good idea if everybody wrote a little note on Gewii’s casket for him. People brought all kinds of markers and stickers and we were able to write messages to him before the service started that evening. Gewii would have loved all the colours and the notes.
They hadn’t been using helmets on the ATV. They were told to use helmets but they weren’t. I don’t blame anyone. It could have happened to anybody. It’s nobody’s fault, it’s just a freak accident.
I talked to the RCMP and told them they are doing a good job of making sure kids are using helmets. It wasn’t enforced before but now they are doing a really good job of making sure kids are using helmets. I thank them for stepping up. It’s sad that it had to come to this, but it is being done now.
Now, people are more vigilant. I think people are going to be more vigilant with their kids using ATVs, quads, even bicycles. I think the RCMP might give out helmets, too, because those are expensive.
All the support I’ve been getting has been really good – all my coworkers, my brother and his wife, my sister and her husband, my whole family and my best friend have been here. My best friend has camped out here with her family.
I will always remember Gewii wanting to snuggle with everybody.
My oldest one, he’s going to be 19, and Gewii was always bugging them. Even though he was so small, he was so strong, but he always snuggled with us and he always wanted kisses. He was also very independent. And he always wanted to play hand games.
Missy Mantla was talking to Ollie Williams. This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.
