Broncos tattoo helps man take ‘healing step’
REGINA Mark Antonichuk spent a couple of years searching for his first tattoo, but nothing stood out.
The 47-year-old Moose Jaw resident finally got inked after the April 6 bus crash that claimed the lives of 16 people aboard the SJHL’s Humboldt Broncos’ team bus and left 13 others injured. As soon as the idea struck him the Tuesday after the crash, Antonichuk knew what he was getting.
“It’s definitely a healing step,” he said. “It’s a memorial for those that are lost, those that are still there, and it’s a step forward for me — and there will have to be many of them.”
Antonichuk, who installs Fusion Internet connections in rural areas for SaskTel’s Sky Team, was returning from a job north of Nipawin around 5 p.m. that Friday.
Antonichuk says he was driving the second vehicle that arrived on the southbound shoulder after the Broncos’ bus collided with a semitrailer unit on Highway 35.
“We were within five minutes of it happening,” Antonichuk said. “There was a lot of chaos going on. There were already some blankets and jackets on scene. I grabbed my spare jacket and it stayed behind on the scene. I don’t care — it was used to keep someone warm. It went to good use.”
Antonichuk estimates he and his work partner, Kirk Reed, were on scene for about 15 minutes before the first emergency responder arrived. Antonichuk and Reed worked on opposite sides of the devastation. Both wanted to do whatever they could to help. Antonichuk stayed with a young man from the bus, trying to keep him calm and still, holding his neck until paramedics took over.
“We all see pictures of other accidents, but nothing can describe what you actually see when you’re actually on scene,” Antonichuk said. “My heart goes out to all the families involved.”
Antonichuk knows the images are forever etched in his mind, but he still worries about how affected families and first responders are doing. For his part, Antonichuk credits the support from his family and friends for his ability to cope.
Through a family friend, Antonichuk discovered Vivid Ink Studios in Stoughton. He sent the owner, Crystal Begin, his concept of the Broncos emblem with banners above and below reading: “With you on the scene, with you forever.”
Her only change was to add an angel wing.
A cancellation got Antonichuk in one of Vivid’s chairs on Thursday
It’s a memorial for those that are lost, those that are still there, and it’s a step forward for me ...
for a five- to seven-hour session. Begin, whom Antonichuk calls “a beautiful person,” even came in on a day off so she could do the piece.
On top of that, she refused to charge him for the work.
“As a mother, it broke my heart that so many lives were lost, and many others were fighting for their lives,” Begin said in a message.
“I wouldn’t feel comfortable charging for a tattoo, for someone who was there and had to witness it all. And I know that so many other tattoo artists would have done the same if they were in the same position.”
She said it was an honour to do Antonichuk’s tattoo. While it was an emotional day, “it would also have been very hard for both of us to do our part if we were overwhelmed with emotion and tears.”
The studio is offering the same deal to anyone who was directly involved with the accident or on the scene who wants a memorial piece.
“It’s just who I am,” Begin said. Photos of the tattoo on Vivid’s Facebook page have been shared more than 2,000 times.
Antonichuk says the post’s reach has been heartwarming and mindboggling.
“It definitely makes you feel good that so many people are coming together over something so tragic,” Antonichuk said.