The GoFundMe page set up to support Humboldt Broncos families has exceeded many’s expectations.
The page was set up shortly after the Humboldt Broncos bus crash on April 6 and has now reached over $7.28 million in donations from supporters from across the globe.
As of 11 a.m. on April 10, 93,037 people have donated to the page.
GoFundMe have also announced that they will waive the 5 per cent administration fee that they usual take from the final amount raised.
The page raised $1 million within 17 hours after Humboldt’s Slyvie Kellington created the page.
“After hearing about the tragedy and feeling absolutely helpless, one of my girlfriends contacted me – her name is Cailin Hergott – and she said, ‘What can we do? I feel the need to do something,’” Kellington told the Humboldt Journal. “I responded to her, ‘What do you mean what can we do? There’s nothing we can do.’ Then I had an idea. I said, ‘Why don’t we start a GoFundMe page?’”
There are no words to describe the level of support the page has received, she said in a recent GoFundMe page update.
“Almost 60,000 people from almost 60 countries around the world have heard our story and were moved to help. Thank you to everyone for your kindness and prayers, your donations, and for sharing this GoFundMe far and wide.”
Many have stepped up to help, including large corporate donations from Canadian Tire, Bell, Shaw, and Chevrolet Canada.
Many hockey and sports teams have also made donations with Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames, and Ottawa Senators.
President of the Humboldt Broncos said during a press conference on April 10 that a group will be meeting to determine how to address the needs of all the families and the logistics of dealing with the totals raised.
It is going to be a process and going to take time, he said.
“It is something that is on our minds. We have the needs of our families that we need to support and the needs of the organization as a whole.”
