Midland Community Hall Association hosted a community talk on Thursday, June 2, at the Badlands Community Facility (BCF) to spread awareness for accessibility with former Humboldt Broncos player and survivor Ryan Straschnitzki.
The Association is currently raising funds to support building a new, fully-accessible outdoor rink to replace the aging Midland rink, for all members of the community to enjoy-regardless of ability.
On April 6, 2018, the Humboldt Broncos were travelling to play against the Nipawin Hawks in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League when their bus collided with a semi-trailer at the intersection of Highway 35 and Highway 335 near Armley, Saskatchewan-about 720 kilometres northeast of Drumheller.
Ryan, who was 18 at the time of the accident, was left paralyzed from the chest down.
Although Ryan’s hockey career ended that day, he has remained determined. He is back on the ice playing sledge hockey.
Through his talk, he demonstrated throughout his hockey career and on to the biggest test of his life, that his determination came before and has served him his entire life.
“I faced a lot of it (adversity) growing up, and my dad always taught me to never give up. That’s the cliche you hear when there are closed doors. So when I had those closed doors, it was about working hard and focusing on the next step because you can’t go back and change the past. It is important to go through those things now to better yourself for the future.”
This prepared him for that tragic day when he heard the bus driver holler and saw the truck cross the bus’s path.
When he woke up, he couldn’t move his legs and thought something had pinned him, until he saw that wasn’t the case.
He has worked hard and shown determination, and today Straschnitzki is with the National Development Sledge Hockey team and is working toward making a spot on the Paralympic team for 2026.
He feels strongly about accessibility.
“In today’s age, it is becoming more aware of it and a lot of people are making changes. Calgary is not the most accessible city, but the more awareness you bring, the more change we can see coming,” he said.
Over the last three months, he has begun speaking to groups. Prior to the BCF engagement, he visited DVSS and presented to the students.
It was received well.
“They really liked it, and I got to chat with a few of them. It is a great high school, and they have some great programs.”
He hopes his words resonate with the students and the community.
“I hope people can grab some inspiration or motivation from this and spread the word. My story tells a lot, but at the same time, the main reason we are here today is to promote accessibility because at the end of the day, it will help a lot of people.”
The promoters of the Midland rink project announced the evening with Ryan Straschnitzki raised $2,500 in free will offerings. Their fundraising total is $114,954.41.
