Last Thursday night brought together the Pembina Valley Twisters and the RCMP Horsemen to raise funds for the Hutterian Emergency Aquatic Response Team (HEART), a group specializing in underwater search and recovery.
The evening comprised of a friendly small-town hockey game with local band Uncorked playing prior to and during intermissions, all in support of HEART.
“It was a great time,” said event organizer RCMP Constable Gilles Gravelle. “Hockey brings us together. We can’t change the world outside, but we can bring a community together for one night to support a great cause.”
Photos by Siobhan Maas/Voice
Gravelle is happy to support the working relationship between Oak Bluff Colony and the Morris RCMP detachment. The colony, using a pilot plane, found a missing local couple in 2021, alive.
Founded in 2016 by Manuel and Paul Maendel, two brothers from the colony east of Morris, HEART aids in the recovery of individuals lost to drowning.
With scuba diving training support over the years from Brent Stoesz of Steinbach and the introduction of remote operating vehicles (ROVs) in the last several years, the response unit is currently building a facility on-site to house equipment, have permanent office space, and grow their ability to train other recovery teams.
Since its inception, the team has taken part in 68 call-outs, some as far away as Baker Lake, Nunavut, west to British Columbia, and east to Lake Erie.
Although the group hasn’t been as active recently, they launch a few awareness campaigns and functions each year.
Paul Maendel is enthusiastic about what robotics means for the team.
“We operate in dangerous diving conditions and searching in dark, murky water can be tedious,” he explained. “Many bodies go unrecovered because conditions become too dangerous. We need the right equipment and the right people. With ROVs, we rarely need to dive.”
Diving is occasionally still required if entrapment is an issue, but there is much less stress on the diver due to sonar equipment providing precise information taking place beneath the water or ice surface.
“Families are able to get resolution in a timely manner,” Maendel said.
HEART is excited to be partnering with First Nations communities, most recently in Sagkeeng last November, helping Indigenous teams train on robotics usage and scuba diving.
“They have so much tech and resources that searching for their lost people will be enormous for them,” said Maendel. “Many communities have years of tantalizing clues for where missing people might be. Can you imagine the closure after all these years? If we can be their trainers, empower them, share our passion, expertise, and knowledge, they can provide their own equipment and people.”
The Horsemen are a mixture of RCMP officers and colony players ranging from 28-60 years of age, making up a Thursday night recreational league that plays at the Morris Multiplex.
“Playing against the young Twisters players, we had to push ourselves,” Cst. Gravelle laughs. “I’m no spring chicken. We were all exhausted, but I still have a huge smile on my face.”
The Horsemen beat the Twisters 10-8.
Gravelle is already planning for double the turnout at next year’s hockey fundraiser.
For more information about HEART, visit hearteam.ca.
