Thirty years ago, St. Albert experienced a heavy snowfall followed two nights later by freezing rain. My wife and two oldest daughters were returning from an evening dance practice when they were hit by a car as they tried to cross a major intersection. My wife graduated from mortality with honours that night. She left behind seven children, aged 22 months to 18 years.
I can’t thank the residents of St. Albert enough for their support to our family. I am sure we were in a daze and didn’t say thank you nearly enough then as we tried to cope. Many people prayed for our family. Someone paid for the flowers we had ordered for the funeral. A friend took two days off work to drive me around as we made funeral arrangements and dealt with insurance and various legal issues. For months, meals were delivered to our family from members of our church, neighbours on our crescent, and complete strangers. My employer gave me flexible work hours so I could deal with my second daughter’s medical issues and learn how to be a single parent. Friends helped with my daughter’s physiotherapy at the hospital and visited with her. Another friend arranged for care for my preschoolers; recommending a mature nanny to come into the home during school hours and a day home when the nanny was unavailable. The schools provided help with any issues as they arose over the next 25 years. Several of our friends became substitute mothers for the girls.
Our family has now matured, with lives in Alberta and B.C. We are not perfect, but we love each other and help each other whenever we can.
There was another victim of the accident that night. The driver of the other car had the right of way. The fresh snow piled beside the road prevented him from seeing my wife until her car was in the intersection. The freezing rain made it impossible for him to stop in time. He did nothing wrong. He just happened to be in that place at that time. I doubt he and his family received the degree of support we did. I am sure he suffered trauma and nightmares because of the accident even though it was not his fault. I hope he and his family have been able to recover as well as we have.
Thank you all again for the help you provided to me and my children over the years. For us, St. Albert has always been a great place to live.
Brian Bennett, St. Albert
