ESTEVAN — An Estevan woman’s new book takes a deep look into the unsolved 1986 murder of Kerrie Ann Brown in Manitoba, and the short but memorable friendship between the two.
Kathleen Ricard’s The Deafening Sound of Sorrow will be launched Oct. 16 at the Estevan Public Library. The date is significant, as it is the 39th anniversary of when Brown was abducted, raped and murdered in Thompson, Man.
Another event for the book will happen Oct. 18 at a Chapters store in Winnipeg.
Ricard said she met Brown in the summer of 1986 as they spent time with the same group of 20 friends. Brown disappeared after she attended a party for Ricard’s boyfriend at the time.
Ricard said she wrote the book in her 20s but shelved the project because Brown's murder has never been solved. On the eve of the 35th anniversary of Brown’s death in 2021, Ricard said she received a phone call from an old childhood friend.
“I … describe it in the book. He knew that I was a writer and he knew I had written this book in my 20s, and he challenged me to finish it. The conversation that ensued was that there was no ending [to the book], because in my mind, you know that with the true crime genre, everybody wants to know who did it,” Ricard said in an interview with SaskToday.
When she put the book aside, she thought she would finish the project when Brown’s death was solved. But the phone call triggered her desire to complete The Deafening Sound of Sorrow.
“One thing that has always pissed me off, for lack of a better term, is whenever you mention her name in Manitoba, or people are familiar with it, the conversation always leads to her monsters,” Ricard said. “Who did it? Who do you think could have done it? The suspects. All this stuff.”
A David Ridgen podcast, broadcast on the 35th anniversary of Brown's murder served as another inspiration for the book.
Ricard said she doesn’t know who killed Brown, nor does she want to imply the identity of the murderer in the book.
When she started working on the project, Ricard wrote out three questions: what did she remember most about Kerrie Ann Brown, what was she most grateful for from knowing Brown, and what did she learn from Brown.
“At the end of the book, I explain what she taught me personally in just knowing her in that brief period of time, which I carried through with my entire life,” said Ricard.
The original version of the book was similar to what Ridgen covered in the podcast, so Ricard rewrote the entire book to refocus the attention to Brown, the friends she had in Thompson, and what those friends did following the murder.
“We created a streetwise group in Thompson. We raised $10,000 and put a scholarship in Carrie’s name at the high school that is still there to this day.”
They went from being carefree teenagers to moving forward with a positive purpose. The friends tried to bring something good out of what she called a “horrific tragedy” by focusing on the beautiful memories.
“Those 20 kids that we all hung out with are a true testament to who she was. We spoke at all the schools. We actually went to the six elementary schools [in Thompson] and talked to them, shared the story, taught them lessons about what we learned and spoke on their level.”
A suspect was arrested but was later cleared because of a lack of evidence. The first chapter of the book is a fictional account of what was presented at the preliminary hearing in February 1987.
“It’s not your basic true crime story,” said Ricard. “This one does outline the murder, but it talks through the eyes of me being 14 years old at the time, and all this that happened to us, her friends and how we reacted to the murder.”
Ricard said she wants to see someone arrested and convicted for Brown’s murder. The things Ricard learned also impacted how Ricard raised her daughter. When the younger Ricard started asking about going to parties, Ricard knew a conversation was needed.
“I taught her to be aware of her surroundings. When you go out with friends, you make sure that everybody knows where you are at all times, and that you have a buddy,” said Ricard.
She wasn’t sure where to have the first book launch event. Fellow local author Maureen Ulrich, whom Ricard described as “a mentor”, suggested having the event in Estevan to get her feet wet.
“It is an emotional story, especially in Thompson … where I went August 19 and actually had a reading at the public library,” said Ricard.
Author copies were issued, including one to Brown’s brother in Thompson. Ricard said she received very good feedback from those who read the book.
This is the first book that Ricard has released. She has two other projects that are finished and will be published in the next year or two. They aren’t true crime books, and Ricard said this will be the only book of the genre that she writes.
“The only reason I wrote this is because I was personally connected to Kerrie,” said Ricard.
The book will be available at Michael’s Coffee Shop and Bakery in Estevan starting Oct. 16. It will also be available on a number of different online platforms.
