DEH GAH GOT'IE KOE/FORT PROVIDENCE - Nick Sibbeston cried publicly for the first time about the experiences he lived through while at residential school.

He wasn't alone. Sibbeston was one of 27 people who shared their stories about residential school with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. Commissioners Marie Wilson and Chief Wilton Littlechild were in Fort Providence from April 26 to 27 as part of the commission's Northern tour.

"It was very emotional and it's very heartening to have an opportunity to speak publicly and to a body such as that," Sibbeston said.

The commission can be part of the healing process for residential school survivors because every time you talk about what happened to you, you feel a little bit better, Sibbeston said. The commission is also playing an important role in helping the Canadian public understand that aboriginal people who attended residential schools suffered serious trauma, he said.

"It's serious human stuff we're dealing with," said Sibbeston, not minor matters.

Sibbeston, a resident of Fort Simpson, told the commission sexual abuse was one form of trauma he suffered during his six years at the Sacred Heart Mission in Fort Providence. For the course of a winter, Sibbeston was sexually abused by an older boy at the school.

While the focus for many is currently on the physical and sexual abuse that occurred at the schools, Sibbeston, 67, told the commission being away from their homes and parents was just as traumatic for many children.

Living at the school was not like living at home and the nuns were not like normal people, Sibbeston said.

"Not once can I remember a hug from a sister, a kind hand," he said.

At the schools, children lived in a world defined by fear, sin and constant punishment.

"It has a devastating effect on children," said Sibbeston.

"To this day, I can't live a normal life."

Sibbeston said it was a relief to be able to share his story with the commission.

Chief Joachim Bonnetrouge of Deh Gah Got'ie First Nation also has personal knowledge of the lasting effects residential schools have on the children that attended them. Bonnetrouge didn't spare many details as he spoke to the commission about his six years at the Sacred Heart Mission. Afterwards, one community member came up to him.

"She said 'holy smokes Joachim, we didn't know,'" he recounted.

Today residential school survivors and their families are still dealing with the trauma created by the schools, he said.

Considering the tough issues brought up at the commission, Bonnetrouge said the two days went surprisingly well.

Bonnetrouge said he was proud of the good support systems in place for people who shared with the commission, particularly the work local caregivers did.

"There were quite a few very emotional periods of time during the two days," he said.

Jennifer Poitras, the commission's Northern tour co-ordinator, said the hearing in Fort Providence was very successful.

For quite a few of the speakers, it was their first time making a public statement about residential school. Some said it was the first day of their healing journey, Poitras said.

A total of 20 people made public statements while seven chose to make private statements to the commission. The number of public statements in Fort Providence were fewer – by about 10 – than the Northern average for the hearings, but that isn't a benchmark to measure the Fort Providence event against, she said.

In communities like Fort Providence, where a residential school was based, there are often more issues around sharing and trust. Every community is at a different stage, Poitras said.

Those who weren't ready to speak to the commission will have other chances. The commission plans to gather more statements in communities during the next three years.

Having a hearing in a community means that residents will now be familiar with that process, Poitras said.

"The whole point of this was to open that door," she said.

All of the gathered statements will be archived in a national research centre that is being created. Depending on the type of consent that the speaker gave, their statement could be used for research or education purposes and be available for use in documentaries and for their family members to see in the future, said Poitras.

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