For 24-year-old Rance Cardinal of Lac Seul First Nation, the long journey is already worth it. He started walking from Sioux Lookout to Humboldt on April 11 to show his support for the players and families affected by the tragic bus crash, which claimed the lives of 16 and injured 13 others.
As a former junior hockey player, Cardinal feels closely to those affected by the Humboldt tragedy. Cardinal previously lost a teammate to a car accident, as well as his younger brother to an illness five years ago.
“I have so much support right now. It means so much. I’m doing this for the boys, for the Broncos. I lost a brother, I lost a teammate ... I know how it feels. I don’t want the people of Humboldt to go through what I did. I took it negatively. I just want to do my part and show my support.”
After his first seven days of walking, he took a couple of days off to rest in Kenora. Yesterday, he started his 1200 kilometre journey once again. Cardinal says that he looks forward to helping the Humboldt community heal by offering his support.
“Honestly, I don’t know when I’m going to get there, but I’m going to get there safely. I’m just trying to get as many miles as I can per day. Like my late brother would say, we’ll bounce back. Thanks for honking everybody, lets keep it going.”
In only 12 days, the Humboldt Broncos’ GoFundMe online fundraiser was able to bring in over $15 million for the players and families affected by the tragedy. Over 140,000 from over 80 countries donated to the cause. It surpassed the record for any Canadian GoFundMe fundraiser ever, and is in the top three highest-generating fundraisers worldwide.The funds will go to the Humboldt Broncos Memorial Fund, and an advisory committee will be created to help distribute the money. The fund had an original goal of $5,000.
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Cardinal walks for Broncos
