Family and close friends of Daniel Reoch, the Squamish man missing for over two months, will gather next week for a spiritual ceremony that will call upon the spirit of ancestors to locate him.
Squamish Nation council member and Daniel’s aunt, Deanna Lewis, says the spiritual ceremony would involve one or two people channeling the spirit of ancestors to access other realms to find out where Daniel is and what happened to him.
Danie Reoch was last seen on November 26, 2019 in Squamish Valley, and police say they are concerned about his well-being.
The Lewis family has spearheaded the search efforts along with police and community members.
Nearly 20 people will come for the ceremony, although only one or two people are trained to do the calling. About 30 friends and family members are also expected to join in the ceremony that will take place in the Squamish Valley area where Daniel went missing.
“There is the main spirit person and the rest will be singing and running in the area where Daniel was last seen,” Lewis says.
The spiritual ceremony is called Squineeloch, and only certain people are trained to do it, she says.
The ceremony was suggested by Linda George-Isaac, a Squamish Nation elder who has researched and witnessed similar ceremonies. Lewis says she has also participated in three such ceremonies.
“It was very powerful and very real, and they do speak to our ancestors. They can really see what is happening and they can warn you,” Lewis says.
Lewis says it was hard talking to the family about doing this ceremony.
“The ceremony can tell us if he is alive or not. If he is in the spirit world, they will find him and locate him and that is the key thing. We want to find him, wherever he is,” Lewis says.
According to Lewis, Squineeloch is used in both joy and grief, to ‘brush-off’ or cleanse people when they are going through a rough phase or for auspicious start to a new job or a major life event.
It can also be used to find missing people by those gifted with the ability to channel the soul’s connection to the spirit world.
Squamish RCMP officers will also attend the ceremony.
“The RCMP is totally in support and will follow any leads suggested by the ceremony. We are looking at all aspects now with just one goal of finding Daniel,” Lewis says.
Mary Smith, Daniel’s aunt, says the family plans to organise another large-scale search soon, with the help of former police officers and experts.
She says the family feels Daniel’s disappearance is highly suspicious and there is a possibility he met with foul play.
“We have spent a lot of sleepless nights thinking about him, and we want to know what happened, and we want to bring Daniel home,” she says.
Deanna Lewis says she also feels that there is more to his disappearance. Daniel, she says, is a very social person and it’s highly unlikely he just left town without informing anyone.
“We love him very much and he is a very social, loving person and it’s not like him to just take off and not be in contact with anyone,” Lewis says.
