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The path she started, they still follow: Annual Walk of Reflection honours Jenni Le Forestier’s legacy 

February 19, 2026   ·   0 Comments

By Riley Murphy

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A time for reflection, and a time to be with one another.

That’s what Jenni Le Forestier set out to do with her first Walk of Reflection held in 2022.

A time for those in the community not just to reflect on the beauty around them and what it represents, but also to spend time together.

Following Le Forestier’s passing from cancer in 2022, her family and friends have continued on her tradition and hold a yearly walk of remembrance, in the same place, for the same reasons.

Le Forestier, a Belfountain resident, was a community champion in numerous ways.

Not only was she a Green Party federal candidate for Dufferin-Caledon in 2021, but Le Forestier also led the Belfountain Community Organization and served on the Town of Caledon Heritage Committee.

She worked tirelessly to protect the landscapes of Caledon, building movements against projects threatening water, farmland, and heritage.

She was an active contributor in many environmental groups, including Gravel Watch Ontario, the Reform Gravel Mining Coalition, the Peel Enviro Hub, the Coalition for the West Credit River, and the Stop the 413 and Stop Sprawl movements. 

The Remembrance Walk, organized by Stacey Mortimer, Ann Seymour, Alexis Wright, and Le Forestier’s mother, Janine, stands to keep awareness of the issues Le Forestier worked so hard to represent.

The walk begins at Higher Ground Cafe in Belfountain, a staple in the Belfountain community, then follows a short path down past the West Credit River and loops back on Bush Street. 

Seymour is not only an organizer for the walk, but was Le Forestier’s neighbour, jokingly adding that anyone who lives in Belfountain is a neighbour to one another.

Seymour explained that Le Forestier originally planned this walk after getting the idea from the movie Groundhog Day.

“The main character repeats the same day, day after day, after day. Jenni made the connection to Groundhog Day because as advocates for the environment, we repeat again and again the same actions and tasks and ask our government to protect nature,” says Seymour.

“But importantly, on this day, Jenni’s goal was for us to be together, just to be present by the river, to take a breath, and just be.”

Seymour reflected on this very conversation she had with Jenni during the inaugural walk in 2022.

“I really value this day. We intend to continue in the future,” says Seymour.

She explains that they knew they had to carry the walk on, “as the years go by, it just becomes more and more important to do this work, and it is difficult work. It is a lot of work as well to communicate with all levels of government to protect the ecosystem that we find here.”

Now in its fourth year, the group plans to continue it for many years to come.

“Every year, we will have this day just to gather and reflect on all of the work that has been done to protect the West Credit River and Caledon’s environment. Jenni’s purpose in doing her work, her main purpose, was to protect the West Credit River for her daughter,” says Seymour.

“She came at this fight as a mother.”

Mortimer spoke to the group gathered outside of Higher Ground Cafe that day about what the walk represents, something that reflects bringing everyone together, themselves and the land and the waters.

Appreciating and reflecting not only on the land and water that support everyone, but also about reconciling one’s relationship with the original stewards of the land, and making a start by reconciling with the land itself.

Mortimer says these were often the topics they mulled over when they first lost Jenni, and how it’s important to keep the walk and these reflections growing. 

On the walk trailing down River Road, up to Shaws Creek Road and back over to Bush Street, where the walk began, Le Forestier’s friends and family pointed out the places that held memories still near and dear to them during the walk on February 15.

The group stopped and reflected at a point along the West Credit River, and all the Le Forestier set out to protect and advocate for.

Continuing along the walk, parks and trails were pointed out where one could often find Le Forestier herself.

When the group returned to Higher Ground Cafe and huddled together for their yearly group photo, it was clear that this walk would stand the test of time, just as the work they’re trying to do.

The Coalition for the West Credit River, a group which Le Forestier was once a part of, has been tirelessly advocating since 2018 about the proposed Erin Wastewater Treatment Plant that will have “adverse effects on native Brook Trout and their coldwater habitat in the West Credit River.” 

The group fears that with the sewage effluent discharged from the proposed Town of Erin Wastewater Treatment Plant, the self-sustaining native Brook Trout population in the West Credit River will suffer.

This coldwater species’ survival depends on stream temperatures no greater than 19 to 20°C for any sustained period of time.  

Seymour is a member of the Coalition and explained that they recently attended the Town of Erin Council meeting to advocate on numerous items related to the treatment plant.

Such as a full and effective effluent cooling system installed before the plant goes into operation, which would be necessary to maintain the river’s temperature.

The Coalition for the West Credit River says it supports growth and sustainable development through a wastewater plant that does no harm. 

The group will continue to advocate for the protection of the West Credit River, just as Le Forestier had for numerous years.

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