It was a time for celebration at Cowessess First Nation after weeks of grieving after the discovery of 751 unmarked graves at the former Marieval Residential School.

On Tuesday, the federal and provincial governments officially signed an agreement that would give the First Nation jurisdiction over children in care for the first time since 1951.

The agreement signing also marked the first time that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has visited Cowessess First Nation since the discovery and he wasted no time addressing the tragic findings.

“It is shameful that here in Cowessess and across the country children died because of the policy of residential schools,” Trudeau said.

The Prime Minister went on to say it is up to everyone, Indigenous or non-Indigenous, to work together towards righting the wrongs of residential schools.

“We have to not just fix the wrongs of residential schools and the impacts on your communities, but the work of reconciliation is work that must be joined by all Canadians,” Trudeau added.

As for signing the agreement, Trudeau said the children are the future and they need to be kept in their communities and giving the First Nation jurisdiction over child care services is just another step toward reconciliation.

He added that the agreement could never happen without the partnership between the government and Cowessess.

“That has been the work of reconciliation that communities like Cowessess have led on over the past many years that we can come together to sign this today mere weeks after the tragic discoveries,” Trudeau said.

Following the signing of the agreement, the Prime Minister visited the site of the unmarked graves to pay his respects to those who lost their lives at the residential school.

Premier Scott Moe attended the ceremony on behalf of the provincial government and he also had a message for the people of Cowessess as they deal with the findings of the unmarked graves.

“I'm also here to ensure that this community of Cowessess and other communities across this province know that Saskatchewan people send their love, they send their prayers and they send their gratitude to everyone in Cowessess,” Moe said.

“They want you to know that as we walk through the next number of days, weeks, months, years, that we're going to do that together, we as Saskatchewan people will be with you every step of the way.”

It was also announced that the federal government is committing $38.7 million for the Cowessess child services system.