An online campaign is supporting the family of a Denare Beach man who died following a traffic accident.
Ken Sewap was pronounced deceased following a tragic accident on Highway 167 outside Creighton on
Aug. 19.
Sewap, 24, left behind his girlfriend, two children ages 1 and 2, and a long list of friends.
One of those friends is Alycia Cardell-McLeod. Born in Denare Beach and now living in Saskatoon, Cardell-McLeod had known Sewap since elementary school.
“I had just recently seen him in July, and he was talking about how excited he was to watch his babies grow up,” said Cardell-McLeod. “And I thought, without having him anymore, there’s a financial burden on a single parent with two kids. I was hoping to help his family, give them some time to grieve without worrying about financial obligations.”
Cardell-McLeod started a GoFundMe page for the Sewap family. As of Tuesday morning, the page had raised $1,165 and been shared on Facebook 200 times.
Area residents donated as much as $200 each to the family and left notes of condolence on the page.
For Sewap’s girlfriend, Janinne Ross, the accident was devastating.
“The last time I saw Ken, he said, ‘I’ll be right back, my honey. I love you,’” said Ross. “Ken was an angel in disguise, and I could tell. All he wanted to do was make people smile and laugh.”
Cardell-McLeod says the Sewap family has reacted with kindness and gratitude to the GoFundMe campaign. When she told Ross about the page, Ross was floored.
“She was very, very grateful,” Cardell-McLeod said. “I talked to members of his family and they were happy that somebody set something up.”
The page has already hit its fundraising goal of $1,000 but is still open to further donations. Cardell-McLeod is hoping the page will continue raising more support for the family.
Most of the donations have come from Denare Beach and area residents, particularly those who knew Sewap and his family.
“Ken loved his kids so much,” said Ross. “He would do pretty much anything to keep a smile on their face, as well as mine.”
Cardell-McLeod has been thankful for the response the page has received.
“As everyone knows who’s from Flin Flon, when something like this happens, everyone kind of pulls together to help people out,” she said.
