Judge approves $50,000 for Broncos families
Payment is initial outflow of $15M raised after bus tragedy
SASKATOON Each family directly affected by the Humboldt Broncos bus crash will receive $50,000 in the coming days after a judge approved a court order outlining the process for determining how almost $15 million raised after the crash will be distributed.
That plan is expected to be complete by Nov. 15, at which point it will be presented to the court for final approval, according to the agreement signed by Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Neil Gabrielson on Wednesday.
Lawyers representing the Humboldt Broncos Memorial Fund Inc., which controls the money raised through Gofundme, and several of the 29 victims and their families generally agreed on the process, which was put forward last month.
Gabrielson’s approval means the memorial fund’s proposed independent five-member expert committee can now begin hearing evidence and testimony before coming up with a report outlining how the funds should be divided.
“Every one of us feels, especially the ones that lost their loved ones, that there’s no amount of money that can bring our loved ones back,” Scott Thomas, whose 18-year-old son Evan was killed in the crash, told reporters outside court.
“To try and put a number on that? I have absolutely no opinion on that. We’re just so thankful for anything that finds its way to us, and the good people in Saskatchewan, Canada and throughout the world who felt the need to do something.”
Sixteen people died and another 13 were injured when the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League team’s bus, which was bound for a playoff game in Nipawin, collided with a tractor-trailer north of Tisdale just after 5 p.m. on April 6.
In what is believed to be the most successful online fundraising effort in Canadian history, a Gofundme page set up by Humboldt resident Sylvie Kellington raised $15.2 million from more than 140,000 donors before it was shut down.
Some experts have advised leaving the courts out of the process, but the team has committed to distributing the roughly $14.6 million under a process outlined in Saskatchewan’s Informal Public Appeals Act, which has not previously been used.
In addition to the advances — which memorial fund president Darrin Duell previously said were “urgently” needed — and the committee, the court order also indemnifies volunteers working to help distribute the money.
The document is virtually identical to the draft order submitted to the court, but includes amendments proposed by lawyers representing Thomas and the families of Adam Herold and Darcy Haugan, both of whom perished in the crash.
Those amendments will allow families to address the committee directly, and ensure that funds are not distributed based solely on the expenses incurred by each of the families in the months since the crash.
Kevin Mellor told court his clients, Russell and Raelene Herold, are struggling to operate their Alberta farm without their son, and are likely going to have to pay for a hired man.
Thomas said after months with no opportunity to provide feedback he and his family are looking forward to speaking about their son, “the impact he had on our family’s lives, and the impact that we think he would have had on the rest of the world.”
Also in attendance on Wednesday was Christina Haugan, the wife of Darcy Haugan, and their two sons, Jackson and Carson.
Darcy Haugan was head coach of the Humboldt Broncos when he died in the bus crash.
Aside from the amendments proposed and approved by Gabrielson, MLT Aikins LLP, the law firm representing the memorial fund, has not heard of any opposition to the process outlined in the order, lawyer Jeff Lee told court.
“It’s still a big job that faces the advisory committee and the board of directors of the Humboldt Broncos Memorial Fund, but so far all constituencies are supporting the process — so far, so good,” Lee said.
The next step is for researchers and the committee — which includes hockey player Hayley Wickenheiser; Mark Chipman, chair of Winnipeg Jets owner True North Sports + Entertainment Ltd., and Saskatoon surgeon Peter Spafford — to start work.