Wilma and Cliff Derksen usually mark the anniversary of the day their daughter's body was found with prayer, but this year they also went to court for the trial of the man accused of her murder.
On Monday, exactly 26 years after the Candace Derksen was found dead, the trial of Mark Edward Grant began.
Opening up the case to scrutiny again brings out mixed feelings in her family.
"We feel the grief of not having Candace with us and yet the relief—the relief that it is being revisited again by professionals," says Wilma Derksen.
After decades of waiting, the Derksens are now watching the trial very closely.
"We are planning to be here everyday, if possible," said Cliff Derksen.
The trial will cover some details of the case that are already publically known. Candace Derksen, a 13-year-old girl, vanished while walking home from school in November of 1984.
For more than a month, hundreds of people searched the Elmwood neighbourhood where she was last seen.
Her disappearance made headlines across the country and around the world.
Seven weeks later, her body was discovered bound and frozen in a shed less than a kilometre from her home.
For the next 22 years, her murder went unsolved.
Then in 2006, Winnipeg police's newly formed cold case unit gave the investigation a fresh look, calling their investigation Project Angel.
In May 2007, Mark Edward Grant was arrested and charged with first degree murder. He was one of 100 people originally interviewed by police in the ‘80s.
Now almost four years later, 45-year-old Grant has pleaded not guilty.
In court on Monday, both the crown and defence raised legal issues while the jury was not present. However, CTV is prevented from reporting on anything said while the jury is absent from court.
They trial is currently scheduled to last 25 days. For the first few days, no testimony is expected.
-with a report from CTV's Stacey Ashley
