Photo description:

BROOK JONES/FREE PRESS An Ash Wednesday service is hosted by St. Boniface Cathedral in Winnipeg, Man., Wednesday, March 5, 2025. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent which is a 40-day period of spiritual preparation leading up to Easter. Fleurette Laurencelle, 70, (right) is pictured after Frère Germain Kpakafi marked an ash cross her forehead.