Payette offers words of hope for Humboldt
HUMBOLDT Drawing on tragedy and loss from her own past, Gov. Gen. Julie Payette had words of hope for the community of Humboldt and first responders during a visit on the weekend.
On Saturday at the Humboldt and District Gallery, Payette met with some members of the Broncos Junior Hockey Club, as well as first responders and some family members of the 16 people killed in the April 6 crash. She then attended a Broncos hockey game.
“I know exactly what it is to lose people close to me in a very public fashion, where the injustice of it is so strong, where the grief is so difficult to overcome,” Payette said.
When the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re-entry in 2003, Payette’s best friend and the commander she flew with in space were among those killed.
“I was five months pregnant with my son,” she said. “For me, I know how hard it is because I’ve been there.”
That hardship from her past allowed her to find some words of comfort for families of those killed in the crash.
“I wanted to let them know there’s always some positive that comes out even with the worst tragedies,” said Payette.
Some of the positives are apparent already, she said, referring to comments made to her by Humboldt mayor Rob Muench about how the hockey organization and the city are finding new ways to work together.
“They are working on projects together; they have similar objectives; they align themselves a lot more, he said,” Payette related, “which is exactly one of those small positives out of adversity.”
The team is finding its own resilience on the ice, and with Payette watching, defeated the visiting Melville Millionaires 6-3, a win that improved their record to 10-5-1 in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League.
Team alternate captain Brayden Camrud, who was one of the survivors of the crash, is tied for 11th overall in the league with 19 points.
Average attendance at games has been increasing and there are about 800 season ticket holders. One of those season ticket holders is from Vancouver and, using social media, connected with local young people and said they could use all the tickets from the games he couldn’t attend.
“That’s what this community has done. It found its resilience and pulled together and that, at least, is a positive,” Payette said. Nipawin Journal