Recognizing our aunties during victims and survivors of crime week

May 12, 2026 - Smithers, BC, British Columbia
From: Smithers RCMP

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This week is Victims and Survivors of Crime Week where we show the power of collaboration. 

In Smithers, collaboration is how the work gets done.

It happens when police, victim services, community agencies, families, Elders, aunties, courts and front line workers come together around people who have been harmed.

It happens in formal systems, but it also happens in the quieter spaces like hallways, in kitchens, at court, over coffee, and in those moments when someone needs to know they are not alone.

This week, we want to recognize Shannon Williams and Sheena Lattie.

Shannon works in Police-Based Victim Services, supporting people during some of the hardest moments of their lives. 

“My role is to provide crisis response, court support, safety planning and meaningful connections to resources that promote safety, stability and healing for victims of crime,” said Shannon Williams.

This year, Shannon has also developed and run Auntie’s Kitchen. Her work reflects that support does not always happen behind a desk. Sometimes it happens through food, culture, laughter, relationships, and showing up consistently for people.

Sheena is the program lead for Community-Based Victim Services, walking alongside people with advocacy, safety planning, emotional support, and connection to resources as they move through difficult and often overwhelming experiences.

“Community-Based Victim Services empowers people to reclaim their voice, safety and strength. When people feel supported, communities grow stronger,” said Sheena Lattie.

For the Smithers RCMP, victim services are an essential part of how the detachment supports people and responds to harm in the community.

“Victim services are invaluable to our detachment and to the people we serve,” said Staff Sergeant Ryan Law, Smithers RCMP Detachment Commander. “Police are often involved at a very difficult moment in someone’s life, and victim services helps ensure people are not left to navigate those moments alone,” added S/Sgt. Law, Smithers RCMP

Their shirts say Deadly Auntie, and their message is fitting.

The work of standing beside someone in court requires more than knowing the file. It requires understanding the person, their family, their community, their culture, and the strength it takes to keep moving through a difficult process.

Victim services is not always visible, but it is deeply felt. It is advocacy. It is safety planning. It is explaining systems that can be confusing and intimidating. It is walking beside people without taking their voice away.

This week, we honour victims and survivors of crime, and we recognize the people doing the work that helps communities heal.

And sometimes, it looks like aunties in the courtroom.

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