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Donations pile up for families of victims lost in bridge disaster

More than $50,000 raised; more on the way Whistler residents and businesses are rallying to provide financial support to the families of the four victims who died or are missing after the Rutherford Creek Bridge was washed out in the early morning ho

More than $50,000 raised; more on the way

Whistler residents and businesses are rallying to provide financial support to the families of the four victims who died or are missing after the Rutherford Creek Bridge was washed out in the early morning hours of Oct. 18.

Jamie Burnette, Ed Elliott, Daryl Stevenson and Mike Benoit were all employed in local nightclubs. They were driving home to Pemberton, in two separate vehicles, after finishing their shifts. The vehicles plunged into the swollen creek after the bridge was washed out. Casey Burnette, Jamie’s brother, was in the vehicle with Jamie and Elliott but managed to swim to safety.

Within days of the tragedy, friends and co-workers of the families put together the Victims of the Rutherford Creek Bridge Disaster Fund to assist the families of the men, and fundraising efforts began in earnest last weekend.

The response has been overwhelming.

A silent auction held at the Crab Shack on Thursday and Friday raised more than $33,000. Moe Joe’s held a fundraiser party and raffle on Friday that brought the total to more than $50,000.

The Boot Pub hosted the Tragically Hip, Canada’s pre-eminent rock band, who have donated all the proceeds from shows on Monday and Tuesday, estimated to be between $13,000 and $15,000, to the fund.

The Westin Resort and Spa hosted a formal dress casino night and silent auction on Wednesday.

A bank account was set up at the Royal Bank for the fund, and Paradata, a local company that specializes in secure online payment systems, set up a donation centre on the Internet at www.paradata/rutherfordcreek/.

The Victims of the Rutherford Creek Bridge Disaster Fund was recently registered as a non-profit society, with a six-member board to distribute the funds. The first priority of the fund was to help the families of the four victims says Marianne Wade, a Whistler councillor and society member.

"Some of that money is already spent, covering air fare, helicopters during the flooding, daily expenses for the families, mortgages, everything that has to be dealt with now," said Wade.

Long term needs, such as paying bills and mortgage payments, will be addressed when the society meets for the first time and assesses the needs of the victims’ families.

A portion of the money will also go towards the creation of a trust fund for Cole Burnette, the fourth-month old son of Jamie Burnette. Race and Co. is setting up and administering that fund.

Wade knew two of the victims, Ed Elliott and Jamie Burnette, and is friends with Moe Joe’s owner Andy Flynn, who has spearheaded much of the fundraising, as well as much of the support given to the friends and family of the victims. Inspired by Flynn’s example, and moved by the loss of Ed and Jamie, she got involved with the society this week.

Nobody expected the fund to generate this much money in such a short period of time, she said.

"The community has been just so great in responding to the events," said Wade. "We’re overwhelmed."

"I know Andy and how he runs his business, and it’s a lot likely a family. There’s a lot of respect there, and it’s a really close-knit group where people really care about one another. The whole group has just been going full guns to help the families, and the community has been there to help them."

Flynn was touched by how many businesses donated good prizes to the silent auctions, and by the level of support from average locals – people who don’t have a lot of money.

"It’s definitely amazing. The last year has been terrible (for business), and the people are so open and generous it’s unbelievable. Locals have had a hard time, but it’s like they’re saying ‘we have to open up because it could have been me, or you, or anyone," said Flynn.

Flynn has employed Jamie Burnette and Ed Elliott for the past four years, and was close friends with both of them.

According to members of the community, Flynn has been active in every part of the relief effort, flying family members out to Pemberton by helicopter, helping to search for the missing men, and, along with Dave Wallensky, Matt Steele and Paul McNaught, organizing fundraising efforts. He has also been there for his staff, which he says are coping the best they can.

"You have good days and bad days, and the staff has been extremely good. We so loved the both of them, it wasn’t hard for people to start working and raising money for the families of Jamie and Ed, and for Daryl and Mike as well. It’s easy when it’s such a big loss to the community."

McNaught, the manager of the Boot Pub, was in the unique position of hiring one of the most popular bands in Canadian history to play a benefit show for the victims.

According to McNaught, the Tragically Hip were in town recently with lead singer Gord Downey playing a solo show at Garfinkel’s in August, and the band stuck around to write some songs for their upcoming album. The band saw the venue at The Boot Pub, and decided that they would like to play there, under an alias, The Fighting Fighters.

"It was always going to be for charity, but we hadn’t decided yet where it was going to go. When the flood happened, there was no question," said McNaught.

The Tragically Hip are donating the entire proceeds from both shows to the Fund, which McNaught estimates will be in the $13,000 to $15,000 range.

For Boot staff and friends of Daryl Stevenson and Mike Benoit, McNaught hopes the event will bring some closure to the tragedy.

"We’re a really unique family here," said McNaught. "Everyone is soldiering through, thinking good thoughts.

"The support in Whistler has been incredible, just back-to-back (with fundraisers), and people are saying let’s do what we can and pulling together.

"The Hip have been amazing. Being what they are, they are really close to the hospitality industry, and were affected by this.

"We’re just stoked to be able to contribute to the fundraising and make sure the friends and families of the victims don’t have any financial burdens to carry," he said. "

The Fairmont Chateau Whistler has also pledged $20,000 for people in Pemberton and Squamish who have had their homes and businesses damaged by the flooding.

The Delta Whistler Village Suites is helping people affected by the flood by offering suites for $10 a night for standard rooms, and $20 a night for two bedroom suites. The rooms have essentially been donated by the Delta, as the nominal fee only covers the cost of the rooms’ upkeep and some light housekeeping service.

On the provincial and federal fronts, money has also been pledged to help out those affected by the flooding. The amount of money and the distribution of the funds has still to be determined.

The total cost of the flood to the infrastructure and families has yet to be determined, but the province estimates that it will be in excess of $30 million.