Sask. hockey player resting at home after neck slashed by skate
8h ago
'Considering the circumstances ... this is best-case scenario,' Cole Cusitar said.
Regina residents can help keep STARS Air Ambulance in the sky and in return have a chance to win a million dollar new house.
The STARS Lottery Saskatchewan launched Thursday for its sixth year with the unveiling of one of the top two prizes, a $1.5 million home located in Pilot Butte.
The nearly 3,400 square foot home has four bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms. It will also come fully furnished.
The goal of the fundraiser is to raise around $2 million dollars, which represents just a chunk of the $11 million needed each year to keep STARS running.
Since its inception in 2012, it has carried out more than 4,000 missions.
One of those missions was to pick up 12-year-old Caiden Hendry.
He was out dirtbiking with his dad and brother near Nokomis, a town located about 165 kilometres southeast of Saskatoon, when he hit a hill like a ramp, causing him to fall off the dirtbike.
The dirtbike landed on top of Caiden, causing his femur to break and pierce through his leg.
There was only one thing going through the then 10-year-old’s mind.
“Was I going to die?”
He was transported to the hospital in Nokomis. His mom, Kalie, recalled seeing her son in the hospital.
“It was funny because I thought I’d be a lot more upset, but when I got there I kicked into helping him mode and making sure he was staying calm and safe because he was so scared and in so much pain,” she said.
STARS transported
“I never even really realized the importance of STARS until we needed it,”
Kevin Easton was the flight nurse during Caiden’s call.
“It’s a little harder when it’s kids,” Easton said. “All of us who work with STARS have kids and have families and it makes it more difficult to do the job but you go ahead and you do what you have to do.”
He said one of the best parts about the job is being able to see people get back to doing what they did before the accident.
Other prizes for the lottery include a $1.5 million home in Saskatoon, vacations and cash prizes.
Tickets are available until July 19.