Out-of-town volunteers sift through rubble to clean up Wendigo Road

Laverne Martin dug through rubble and ashes along the blackened streets in the Rural Municipality of Lac du Bonnet in search of a missing wedding ring.

The 39-year-old was one of more than a dozen volunteers who travelled to the Manitoba community last week to help clean up properties destroyed by the raging wildfires northeast of Winnipeg.

“There was almost nothing left,” said Martin. “I put myself in the homeowner’s shoes and tried to imagine how it would be if this was my house and all of my belongings. You just feel that devastating emotion in yourself.”

Martin, from Rainy River District, Ont., had kept up with the headlines over the last few weeks and wanted to help those impacted once it was safe.

“We tried to get in there very soon after (residents) were allowed in so that we could meet with the homeowners and see what their needs were,” he said.

Martin and 14 other volunteers from the non-profit organization Christian Aid Ministries Canada made the four-hour drive from Rainy River District to help.

For five days, they spent 10 hours a day cleaning up debris, cutting down damaged trees and searching for lost items.

A wedding ring was one of the many priceless items left behind in homes that went up in flames.

Although the wedding band couldn’t be located, a different ring was found — one given to the homeowner from a girlfriend when she was younger. Martin said the woman was elated.

“All the homeowners were very appreciative. Every one of them said, ‘Thank you just isn’t enough,’” Martin said. “To see that change in their attitudes from the time we got there to when we left was amazing.”

He said once the crew started working on the first property, neighbours took notice and asked if they, too, could gets some help. The volunteers ended up cleaning more than 20 properties.

“The orders just kept coming and coming,” he said. “It was fun to reach out and help the homeowners and show them that there is still somebody that loves and cares for them. We’re not just here to pat ourselves on the back or because it makes us feel good. It gives hope, especially to those that have been devastated by loss.”

The community was hit by tragedy last month when the bodies of Sue and Richard Nowell were found inside their burned-down Wendigo Road home.

As many as 1,000 people were forced to leave the RM of Lac du Bonnet but returned after an evacuation order was lifted about a week later. More than 20 properties on the street were destroyed by the blaze.

Brad Wood, a Wendigo Road resident whose property was cleaned up after it was reduced to rubble, said the volunteers brought some much needed hope back into the neighbourhood.

“It’s been an insurmountable task that they’ve performed. The transformation, hard work and dedication they provided — you would never have even gotten that from an insurance company,” Wood said.

“Without the ministry coming in and and putting forth that effort, we would still look like a war zone. The only thing I can say is that their work was such a blessing.”

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Christian Aid Ministries Canada, established in 1984, helps countries around the world in need. Since 2011, the organization has assisted in Canada after natural disasters, including wildfires.

Spokesperson Ronald Jantzi said it was the first time the organization has helped with disaster recovery in Manitoba. The ministry began its services in Lac du Bonnet nearly three weeks ago, just days after the flames were extinguished.

Volunteer members swapped out each week.

Jantzi said volunteers would next pivot to help in Denare Beach, Sask., a village about 20 kilometres southwest of Flin Flon, that has also been hit hard by fires.

“There’s hope on their horizon,” said Martin. “We feel very blessed and encouraged to do this and bring some hope back into these people’s lives.”

massimo.deluca-taronno@freepress.mb.ca