Graham Dyck may not be a long standing member of the Humboldt community, but the newly minted Humboldtonian had the chance to represent Humboldt in a small way, when he travelled to Alberta to play some benefit concerts.
Dyck was hired by Jack and Beth McFadden and Simone Constantin with Consumer Choice Awards, where he played benefit concerts in Edmonton and Calgary.
Dyck was originally slated to play just two shows, but decided to add two others as unofficial fundraisers, making a busy four shows in three days.
Dyck kicked off the tour with three shows in Calgary, playing at China Rose, Gasoline Alley – Heritage Park, and on Mount Royal campus, before playing another show in Edmonton.
Dyck says it was a bit of a fluke that he was asked, noting the organizers of the fundraisers had no idea he was a Humboldt native, but says he was honoured to represent the community in a small way.
“It sure humbles a person,” he noted.
One of the toughest parts of the trip was actually the drive, noted Dyck, who says driving from Calgary to Edmonton was really heavy.
“Driving through all those different towns, and suburbs like Airdrie, and you’re going past Leduc and you’re thinking about all these different towns that a lot of these boys were from… you’re thinking it’s a sunny beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky, yet there are people that are really struggling right now and I’m coming from that hockey town where it all occurred.”
Dyck says the shows went really well, noting he was thankful for all the support he received, noting many in the audience had no direct connection to those involved in the accident.
“For all those people that came and are not forgetting that there’s still some very real struggles for the families… there’s continued care for the boys that are recovering and then there’s just some things that money can’t buy but just to know that they’re not alone is huge,” he said.
“Nothing compares to the people that had actual loss, that they’re still not alone and there’s still a lot of people that are there to help them and that it’s not something that just goes away,” he continued.
“We’re all still in a real place, there’s still just a lot of people that want to reach out and help and do whatever they can and that was very obvious in the reaction of the Alberta people.”
Being a paramedic himself, Dyck also says he has a deep appreciation for the job of those who helped at the scene or in the immediate aftermath.
“My hats off to all the EMS and first responders that went to those calls because we all train to be ready for something like that but I really don’t know how I would handle it.”
“And I really don’t know what sort of mental health toll it would take on somebody who had to respond or someone who actually had to be at the scene.”
