Huge support for fire victims comes from out of province

On July 5, Graham said she mentioned it in her sermon at church which prompted a member of the congregation to take a stand. He challenged everyone in the congregation to meet the needs of those people who had lost almost everything to the fires.

From there, the congregation challenged the community to match the donation. The project continued to grow when Opaskwayak Cree Nation held a concert for the cause, gathering even more items to be donated.

What resulted was enough donations to fill two trailers with everything but the kitchen sink. On Thursday they unloaded dishes, furniture, clothing, tools, televisions, beds, bedroom sets, books and even a piano and an organ.

Graham said one lady donated multiple boxes full of items and proceeded to make a trip to the mall to purchase an entire cart full of toiletries (toothpaste, shampoo, etc.) to donate as well.

“That’s the generosity we’ve been looking at since the beginning of July,” said Graham, who said she’s been “overwhelmed” by the incredible outreach.

“I know the spoken word has a lot of power but who knew it could inspire a 27-foot truck to be filled to the rafters, plus an eight-foot trailer.”

Shirley Henderson, with the PAGC, said they’re happy to welcome the donations for distribution.

“We’ve had a number of burn outs—15 families in Montreal Lake,” said Henderson.

Even more homes were lost around Lac La Ronge, although the exact number is unknown.

According to Henderson, lots of need still exists in both communities, especially for household items.

“We had one lady from Montreal Lake who arrived here and all she had on was bedroom slippers. She didn’t have time to pack anything and all of her stuff had burned,” said Henderson. “So I’m sure there’s a number of families who are like that.”

So far, a load of 77 boxes has been hauled to La Ronge and another stack of boxes to match was being hauled up to Montreal Lake this week.

According to Henderson, the PAGC is still accepting donations from people in Prince Albert and area which they will distribute the best they can.

To donate, people can contact the PAGC Health and Social Development division at (306) 953-7283.

asoloducha@panow.com

On Twitter: @alex_soloducha

by Alex Soloducha

Huge support for fire victims comes from out of province

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