Sault Ste. Marie's Dan Jennings, who lost his daughter Caitlin to intimate partner violence last year, is offering moral support to the family of another such victim who died in London, Ont. earlier this month.
Breanna Broadfoot, 17, was taken to a London hospital with critical injuries on July 16 and died two days later. Her 18-year-old attacker was shot and killed by London Police when they responded to the domestic violence call.
Last week, a vigil was held in a London park in remembrance of Broadfoot. Jennings and his wife Michelle made the approximately 850 kilometre drive to to support her grieving family in the same city his own daughter died almost exactly one year earlier.
The name of the park didn't immediately spark any memories for Jennings, but as he pulled up to the site of the vigil he realized Caitlin had attended day camps in the same park when she was young.
"That made the link even closer," said Jennings of the similarities between the two victims.
Jennings knows the emotions and heartache that comes with the loss of a child to violence all-too-well and he has been on a personal crusade to see the laws in Canada changed to prevent further acts of intimate partner violence.
In June, Jennings was in Ottawa to witness the third reading of a bill against coercive control in relationships, which was passed unanimously. In April, he was in the gallery at Queen's Park for the debate on provincial Bill 173, legislation that seeks to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic in Ontario.
Jennings said he is amazed at the amount of progress that has been made in the year since Caitlin's death by working alongside other groups, like Angie's Angels, which was created in response to the Oct. 23, 2023 IPV death of Angie Sweeney and the killer's three young children in Sault Ste. Marie.
He said it was an honour to be present at the vigil and offer support to Breanna's family.
Jennings' group, Caitlin's Heard, was created after her death to ensure her story carries on and to prevent similar incidents of IPV in the future. But he said as more women and girls have been lost in the year since, he wants to provide support for other families who want it.
"I have kind of changed the end of my speech, to: 'say their names, tell their story, be their voice. They will be heard,'" he said. "It's not just about Caitlin, it includes everyone now."
After hearing about Breanna's untimely death, Jennings reached out to her family about attending the vigil and was ultimately asked to speak at the event.
"We are now a part of a family that nobody wants to be part of. Our daughters are no longer with us due to a hateful act of monsters," Jennings said at the vigil. "Caitlin and Breanna were two young girls with an unfulfilled future. They should still be here."
Caitlin was 22 years old when she was killed in her London, Ont. home in July of 2023. Her accused killer and fiancé David Yates has been charged with murder in a case that is still before the courts.
While in London, Jennings had the opportunity to meet with the chief and deputy chief of the London Police Service, along with the lead investigator on his daughter's case. He brought up the pilot project introduced in the Sault by Chief Hugh Stevenson, which makes it regular practice to review all IPV calls in which an arrest is not made.
"I mentioned about Chief Stevenson's pilot project about the IPV calls and they seem very interested in hearing about it," Jennings said.
