Volunteers put up 215 crosses bedecked with children鈥檚 clothing at the Derek Doubleday Arboretum in Langley on Tuesday morning.

A sign explained the display offers visitors a moment to reflect on the memory of the children found at the Kamloops Indian Residential School.

鈥淪hould you choose, take time to remember, honour and reflect on the tiny souls, their families and the community,鈥� the sign read.

It was the idea of Cecilia Reekie, a former Langley school trustee and self-described 鈥渋nter-generational survivor鈥� who said she was inspired by the sight of crosses with clothing when she visited Kamloops after news of the discovery broke.

鈥淭hey were somebody鈥檚 babies,鈥� she told the Langley Advance Times.

鈥淎nd sadly, there鈥檚 going to be more.鈥�

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Reekie said she selected clothing that the children wouldn鈥檛 have worn, because they were in uniform.

One in particular touched her, a tiny white dress with orange trim and a ribbon on the front, which exactly matched the colour seen during the annual Orange Shirt Day held to recognize and raise awareness about the residential school system

Reekie praised the and Township of Langley parks staff for their 鈥渁mazing鈥� assistance.

Foundation Executive Director Susan Cairn, who took part in the installation, said the crosses represent 鈥渢he magnitude of the atrocity.鈥�

Cairns said the 215 鈥渘ever had a chance to grow up, to have a 10th birthday, or graduate, or be mothers, fathers [or] grandfathers.

Langley City Coun. Rosemary Wallace, a director with the foundation, joined in the volunteer effort.

鈥淭his is a very important message,鈥� Wallace commented.

鈥淚t gets right in your gut and your heart.鈥�

Volunteer Una-Ann Moyer, a former aboriginal support worker in the Langley school district, said the crosses make a visual statement that a number does not.

鈥淭his, to me, is powerful,鈥� Moyer commented.

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It was an opinion shared by Langley City resident Judy Goldsmith, a board member on the , who said seeing the crosses filling the green space in the front of the park makes them more than 鈥渢his number in our head.鈥�

鈥淭hese kids were somebody鈥檚 babies, and they can鈥檛 be forgotten,鈥� Goldsmith said.

Reekie said she expects the crosses will be up 鈥渋ndefinitely.鈥�

In May, the Tk鈥檈mlups te Secw茅pemc First Nation confirmed the remains of 215 children who were students of the Kamloops Indian Residential School had been found using ground-penetrating radar.