Close friends and family of Angie Sweeney believe, if the roles were reversed and something terrible had happened to one of them instead, Angie would move heaven and earth to make sure it didn't happen again. Just over four months since her tragic death at the hands of her ex-boyfriend, the Angie's Angels group is still pushing for the laws to be changed in regards to Intimate Partner Violence.
The group was created by Angie's family and friends just days after the events of Oct. 23. Currently, it meets every couple of weeks in person and by Zoom video chat.
Renee Buczel and Lindsay Stewart, two of Angie's closest friends, have taken the lead on many of the initiatives being driven within the group, supported by Angie's parents Brian and Suzanne Sweeney, as well as her brother Brian Jr. and his wife Sabrina.
Angie's family and friends are also mindful of supporting her two children, Emma and Wyatt.
"I often think to myself on the days where I feel maybe burnt out or sad or grieving or heavy, like I know if Angie could have said one thing to me before she left it would have been, 'Take care of my kids,' said Buczel.
Sabrina said the group couldn't be led by two more capable women than Stewart and Buczel and having them in charge has given herself and Angie's other close family space to grieve, but also be involved in positive change.
"They are genuinely Angie's best friends," said Sabrina. "If roles were reversed and this was them that this happened to, I'm telling you, Angie would not back down. She would be probably louder than we are."
Interviewed earlier in the week, Brian Sr. said the girls are doing an excellent job leading the group.
"I pretty much told them, 'This is yours. It's yours to take care of, yours to decide. I just want to be kept in the loop,'" he said. "I like to listen to them, all they have to say, they're very smart young women."
Buczel said she loves that the group and all of the positive things it is accomplishing gets to be Angie's legacy.
"That we can honour her in a way by doing this, in a positive way," she said. "It came out of something so horrible, but something so beautiful can come from that and actually impact change. I think that's phenomenal."
On Friday, International Women's Day, Stewart and Buczel attended the Women in Crisis lunch at Grand Gardens and in the evening supported Emma when she dropped the puck in remembrance of her mother at the Soo Greyhounds home game versus the Guelph Storm.
"Angie would be so proud of the strength, courage and bravery Emma has shown during challenging times, while facing such adversity," said Stewart after the puck drop.
On Nov. 10, Brian Sr. crashed a local appearance by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau by introducing himself and making the PM aware he would be hearing from him again.
Buczel and Stewart now sit on the Algoma Council on Domestic Violence and on Dec. 6 they attended a local event marking the 34th anniversary of Montreal massacre.
While Buczel and Stewart were attending the local Dec. 6 event, Angie's father Brian Sweeney was in Montreal, invited by a group of survivors of the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre. At the same time, he penned a letter urging senators to pass Bill C-21 which, among other provisions, contains measures to remove guns from domestic abusers.
"The bill is the result of years of advocacy from victims and women's groups, and women have died while the bill has been debated," said Brian Sr. in the letter.
That bill received royal assent on December 15.
Currently, the group is advocating for the passing of Bill C-332, which seeks to criminalize controlling or coercive behaviour from partners.
Buczel said passing of that bill could lead to monumental change and protect a lot of women and children who are in the same position that Angie was in before she was killed.
"There's just so much good that can come from it," she said of the bill.
While in Montreal, Brian Sr. made true his promise that he and Trudeau would speak again when the PM found the grieving father in the crowd and had another conversation with him.
"That's when I told him, 'Canada should be a global leader in stopping this domestic violence and IPV.'" said Brian Sr., "Let's face it it's happening all over the world. Not only just Canada."
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Buczel said it sometimes feels like she is living in the movie Groundhog Day, with them reliving the same conversations over and over again.
"With everything that has happened since [Angie's death] it does feel like it's been a really long time and on the other hand I still feel like October 23rd was yesterday," she said.
Stewart said working on the group has been a really helpful way to focus on something more positive.
"I feel like we can actually impact change and and make a difference," said Stewart. "For me, just sitting at home crying — it's just not helpful. I'd rather focus on something positive, something I can do moving forward, something to honour Angie and try to ensure this doesn't happen to anybody else."
Two immediate goals for the group are to see Bill C-21 come into law and for Angie's Angels to be registered as a non profit. Long-term, they would like to see Intimate Partner Violence completely eliminated in Canada.
Since being set up in October, the Angie's Angels Facebook group now has over 2,200 members. Not all of them are in Sault Ste Marie; many have joined from all over Canada to support the group's efforts.
"We've had women reach out whose story is similar to ours, their friend was murdered by their intimate partner 50 years ago," said Buczel. "There's still a lot of work to be done and they're still so much that needs to change."