Man crossing Canada to shed light on MMIW

By Jeremy Appel on August 28, 2018.

jappel@medicinehatnews.com @MHNJeremyAppel

Following the disappearance of his aunt Frances Brown on Oct. 14, 2017, Matthew Jefferson felt compelled to raise awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women.

How is he doing it? By walking from British Columbia to Newfoundland.

“That’s been my inspiration,” Jefferson, who is Métis, said at Medicine Hat College’s Indigenous centre, where he spoke Monday during his stop in the Hat.

“You always know about it, always hear about it, being Indigenous, but you always think, ‘Oh. That can never happen to me.'”

He said 38 members of his family have gone missing on the Highway of Tears — the stretch of highway between Prince George and Prince Rupert — since 1970.

He also drew inspiration from listening to other Indigenous people’s similar stories of loss.

Jefferson says his journey thus far has shown him the generosity of average Canadians.

“So many people want to help, but nobody knows how,” he said. “Part of my journey is educating them in how they can help change; help facilitate this bridge that I want to help create.”

Jefferson has travelled roughly 3,000 kilometres in the past three months.

“I’ve had some very long days, but if I can keep this pace — Creator willing — I will be reaching my destination of St. John’s, Newfoundland by mid-January,” he said.

The amount of time Jefferson spends walking each day depends on a variety of factors.

“That all depends on the day — how much food I’ve had the night previous, how much energy, how much sleep, when I wake up,” Jefferson said.

“Sometimes I wake up at 1:30 a.m. and I just go.”

He estimates that on average he walks 55-105 km per day, or 10.5-15.5 hours.

In order to keep his energy level up, Jefferson eats seven times a day, consuming between 8,000 and 10,000 calories.

“I snack constantly.”

Besides eating power bars, vegetables and fruit, Jefferson chugs soy sauce to replenish his electrolytes and salts, which he describes as “gross but effective.”

Jefferson says he sleeps in his tent unless he meets someone who provides him with accommodations.

He even camped outside a prison in the pouring rain on Canada Day this year on his way out of Kamloops, which is on a plateau.

The only flat land he could find to pitch his tent happened to be where the prison is located.

“There are some weird moments on the road,” Jefferson said, adding that he’s had his fair share of encounters with wildlife, including bears, eagles, coyotes, lynx and an elk that head-butted him.

He’s being sponsored by New Balance in Victoria, which has provided him with the five pairs of shoes he’s gone through thus far.

Jefferson says he isn’t sure how he plans to return home to B.C. after he completes his journey.

“If I took a flight, that would be a slap in the face — what would take five hours by flight would take a year to walk,” he said. “If I drive, it would take three days.”

Jefferson set up a GoFundMe for his personal expenses and a Patreon for those looking to assist his family.

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