Obituary of Lacandra-Dee Piitapooka RawEater Eagle Child

March 6, 2001 – Calgary, Alberta

September 18, 2023 – Siksika Nation, Alberta

Lacandra-Dee Raweater/Eagle Child, of Siksika Nation, Alberta, passed away on Monday, September 18, 2023 at the age of 22 years. She leaves to mourn her daughter Zaianna who was her pride and joy.

Lacandra “Sanchez”, was born in Calgary, AB, and when she reached the age of two years old, she moved to Siksika with her parents.  When she was about five years old, she went into the foster care system.  She came back home to her mother when she was six or seven in the year 2007 or 2008.  Since then, Larry Leather has been a father figure in Lacandra’s life.  Larry has taught her a lot about our cultural way of living.  She was raised in Crowfoot Creek until about 2022 when we moved to Gleichen. She attended Crowfoot School till Grade 6 except for one year when she went to Bowcroft School while living with her older sister, Lanissa.  She also moved to Lethbridge with her late dad and went to Winston Churchill School.  Once she was in high school, she attended SNHS and while there she went into work experience at the Elders’ Lodge.  She absolutely loved working with the Elders.  She gained a lot of knowledge and wisdom from them. 

Lacandra was also part of the Beaver Bundle.  She was amongst our ceremonies with the Beaver Bundle and Sundances.  She was also a jingle dress dancer and travelled with her family to powwows throughout Alberta and the States.  She loved to travel and watch the Indian Relay Races.  Lacandra also worked at the Petro Canada gas station as a cashier and, for a short period of time, she worked at Pete’s Store in Cluny.  She always had a warm welcome and was kind to her customers. 

Her sister, Danni Girl, was her main best friend.  They shared a special bond that could never be broken.  They were like two peas in a pod.  Lacandra always wanted to be a model, or an actor and she loved to sing.  She had the opportunity with her brother Colton and sister Danni to audition to be an actor in a movie.  She loved to take pictures and was very photogenic.  She was naturally beautiful, outgoing, and down to earth.  She taught herself how to play the acoustic guitar and ukulele.  She liked to sing and said she would become a singer one day.  As she got older, she met the father of her baby girl, Zaianna.  Her baby was born when Lacandra was twenty years old, and she was a devoted mother.  Lacandra loved her daughter with all her heart.  She wanted to go to school to give her daughter a better life and so she could also work with child welfare.  Her goal was to make an impact in our community and to make positive changes in the child welfare system.  Lacandra was always with her mom and Larry or her siblings.  She was very close to her family.  She was just starting to get to know her immediate family as well.  She was very funny and liked to make people laugh.  She enjoyed making new friends.  She would pull pranks and teased in a friendly way. 

Cooking and baking were things she enjoyed doing for her daughter and family.  She was just starting to get to know her father before his tragic death.  This had a great impact on her life, and she began to struggle with addiction after the trauma of losing her dad.  She recently got a tattoo of a butterfly on her chest.  It was to represent “New Beginnings”.  She didn’t even get to start her healing journey here on Earth because the Creator had other plans for her.

Everyone who knew Lacandra called her Sanchez instead of Lacandra.  Sanchez will be remembered for her beautiful smile and stylish ways.  She had a good heart and was there to give a helping hand everywhere she went.  She will also be remembered for when she would throw her head back and start cackling and laughing.  It was so contagious and funny that everybody around her would start laughing as well.

She will forever be loved and remembered.  Lacandra will never be forgotten, and her memories will live on through her family and her legacy will live on through her daughter Zaianna.

She is survived by her mother Laverna (Larry), brothers Colton, Sabastian and Vernon; and sisters Lanissa (Clinton), Lacinda (Kyle), Danni Girl, Feather, Fawn, Lai-lan and Elijah. She has a special nephew who she took as a little brother, Vernon.  She is also survived by nieces and nephews Dalaysia, Shayda, Violet, Autumn, Baby Sage, Morningstar, Legacy, Blue, Thunder, Asilas, Aziah, Velvet, Virgil, Teagon, and Koa; her paternal aunts and uncle Lynn, Tina, Fanny and Johnathon Eaglechild; her maternal aunts and uncles Verna Raweater (Ronald), Yolonda Big Old Man, Stanley Big Old Man, Irwin (Brenda) Big Old Man, and Dwayne Big Old Man.  Lacandra has many cousins, too numerous to mention from both Siksika and the Blood Reserve.  Her extended families include:  Blacks, Manyfingers, Paces, Bullshields, Little Lights, Crosschilds, Healys, White Elks, Many Guns, Back Fats, Royals, Poor Eagles, Red Guns, Youngs, Calling Lasts, Brasses, Axes, Righthands, McMasters, Ayoungmans, Waterchiefs, Black Horses, and Springchiefs.  The family apologizes for missed extended family names, there are just too many to name from both the Raweater and Eaglechild Families.

Lacandra was predeceased by her father Danny Eaglechild, her little brother Nolan Raweater, her paternal grandparents Dan and Elsie Eaglechild, her paternal uncles Darcy Eaglechild and Joey Eaglechild, her paternal cousins Kyle Williams and Todd Eaglechild, her maternal grandparents Vernon Raweater and Lorraine Waterchief/Young, grandparents Art and Violet Calling Last, great-grandparents Charlie Raweater and Millie Brass, great-grandparents George Sr. and Annie Calling Last, her maternal aunt and uncle Natalie Big Old Man and Vernon Raweater Jr., her maternal cousins Danielle Big Old Man and Audrey McMaster.

Wake Services will be held at Larry and Laverna’s home on Tuesday, September 26, 2023, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and then at the Gordon Yellowfly Memorial Arbour, Siksika Nation on Tuesday, September 26, 2023, at 6:00 p.m.  At midnight, Lacandra will be brought home where she will spend her last night with her family.

Funeral Service will be held the Gordon Yellowfly Memorial Arbour, Siksika Nation on Wednesday, September 27, 2023, at 1:00 p.m. Graveside Service to follow at Canon Stockton Cemetery (Siksika Nation, AB).  Condolences, memories, and photos may be shared and viewed at www.MHFH.com.

In living memory of Lacandra-Dee Raweater/Eagle Child, a tree will be planted in the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Area by McInnis & Holloway Funeral Homes, Eastside, 5388 Memorial Drive NE, Calgary, AB T2A 3V9 Telephone: 403-248-8585.