Witnesses at the inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls are being supported by an extensive mental-health network.
Melodie Casella, a health manager who is working with the inquiry, says potential witnesses have access to counselling and other supports long before they speak.
Support workers, clad in purple T-shirts, sit in the audience during the hearings to help anyone overwhelmed by sometimes searing testimony.
Casella, who has herself lost a family member to murder, says witnesses have told her that relating their stories goes a long way toward helping get past their trauma.
The inquiry is in the second of three days in Edmonton.
Testimony has often been deeply emotional and tears are frequent.
The Canadian Press