A memorial project for the victims of the 2021 Kelowna crane collapse has been denied provincial funding, leaving grieving families disappointed. The RISE Memorial Foundation has raised over $150,000 for the project, which will be built at Knowles Heritage Park. They say they are fully funded and ready to begin construction.
The crane collapse in Kelowna in July of 2021 claimed the lives of Cailen Vilness, Jared Zook, Eric and Patrick Stemmer and Brad Zawislak.It’s been three and a half years since Steven Zook lost his son Jared in a tragic workplace accident , but the pain is still very real.
Zook’s 32-year old son was among five men, four of them construction workers, who were killed in a catastrophic The tragedy also claimed the lives of Cailen Vilness, brothers Patrick and Eric Stemmer and Brad Zawislak, who was working in an adjacent office. But the ongoing grief has now been compounded by a decision from the province that will put on hold a memorial project to honour the lives lost in one of B.C.’s worst workplace accidents in recent history.“Hugely disappointed, like how could they not consider when it is something so important,” Zook said. Through community donations and pledges, more than $150,000 has been secured towards the RISE Memorial — which will be built at Knowles Heritage Park, not far from where the tragedy unfolded.The newly-formed foundation leading the charge was banking on another $150,000 through a provincial capital grant to get construction started but on Thursday, the RISE Memorial Foundation learned that the application was denied.For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. “They had said we didn’t have enough funding to complete the project which couldn’t be further from the truth,” said Kelly Hutchinson, the foundation’s secretary-treasurer. “We have everything in place. We are shovel-ready. Our donations are even backstopped by the city’s contingency funds they announced this summer, so we are fully funded and ready to go.”Chris Vilness is not only the president of the RISE Memoriqal Foundation but also a grieving dad.“I do feel it is a commitment that the government needs to step up and support,” Vilness said. “It should not be up to the families to have to continue to beg and plead for more money. It’s humiliating to say the least.”Provinces to begin funding nurse practitioners for primary care by 2026Canada ready to send firefighters, resources to help battle California fires: TrudeauVilness added the families have been through enough hardship, including the ongoing wait for the results of the criminal investigation to be released. “The factual information for what happened that day sits with the government,” Vilness said. “It sat with WorkSafe. It sat with the RCMP and now it sits the Crown. So, yeah, we are asking the government to support our cause.”In an email to Global News, Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture & Sport Spencer Chandra Herbert stated, “My understanding in talking to staff is that the project didn’t fit the criteria for this one specific funding stream. But it’s an important project and I would be pleased to meet with the organizers to learn more about the memorial and how we may be able to work together to help it move forward.”It’s a project grieving families say would benefit the community at large. “It’s put together because of five men but I think it is bigger than that,” Zook said. “It’s for anybody that has to walk through any form of grief, any form of loss, a safe solitude kind of place.
Kelowna Crane Collapse Memorial Provincial Funding Workplace Accident Grieving Families
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