Humboldt book upsets families

SASKATOON •Asaskatchewan author says he had good intentions when he wrote a book about the Humboldt Broncos and the team’s deadly bus crash.

Humble Beginnings of the Humboldt Broncos and the 2017-2018 Team, written by Barry Heath, was self-published last month.

Heath, a former veterinarian and community coroner, says he’s sorry some of the victims’ families believe they had to give him permission to celebrate their loved ones.

Sixteen people were killed and 13 injured in April when the team’s bus and a truck collided near Tisdale, Sask.

Several family members say they didn’t want the book published and have asked people not to buy it.

Michelle Straschnitzki, whose son Ryan was paralyzed in the crash, says most of the families weren’t ready and didn’t want to participate in the book. The team’s president at the time also asked Heath not to write it, she said. “It seems very opportunistic and exploitive, to be honest,” said Straschnitzki.

“For him to include this very, very raw tragedy without our consent — the timing is really suspect.”

Heath said he isn’t making any money off the book. Proceeds go to a charity that gives bursaries to young hockey players. He said he relied on media interviews with family members and others to “capture and retell the beautiful memories of lives lost and changed.” Two parents had initially been willing to participate in the book, he said.

He believes some of the families are understandably still grieving. “Without knowing what is in the book — a tribute to the Broncos of last year, the response, the worldwide attention and giving, and the team history from its inception — I am the current focus of blame and anger.”