“It’s good, everything is getting back to normal,” Hunter said almost a month after being home. “It’s easier for me to do stuff, everyday stuff, to get back to a routine. It’s nice just to have someone around all the time, to have my family around.”
The addition is 800 square feet and all wheelchair accessible. As his mother Shanda explained, it is different than handicapped accessible, as he has access everywhere. He can use the shower, he can roll under the sink to brush his teeth, and all the surfaces are flat and easy to get to. The work was done by Gordon Turner Construction and though they tried to get him in by Christmas, that did not work. But they were happy to get him back when they did.
“Everything is working well,” Shanda said. “It is easier on Scott and I. We work full time and you are going back and forth all the time. We can sleep at night having him home.”
Hunter was working on a crew in Saskatchewan on July 18, 2016 after graduating from Boissevain School. While building a pole shed, the board he was walking on snapped and he fell, hitting another board on the way down. He flipped over and landed on his head and neck. Among other injuries, he had a severed spinal cord and a paralyzed lower body. He spent time in Regina, before moving on to the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg. When he came back to town later that year, he moved into Crocus Hill while waiting for a different situation. Both he and Shanda were very thankful that a suite at an accessible place was available, but there is nothing like being at home.
He is in the family house, his space is his own, and set up much like an apartment with its own washer and dryer. In fact, the plan is for his parents to leave after a couple of years, letting him live on his own there, although he said he might rent out other rooms to friends.
One of the most striking features of Hunter’s space are the fish tanks. There are several with plenty of brightly coloured fish. He said he had fish when he was young and got a goldfish before he graduated high school. Once he was hurt, friends fed that fish, until it got the size of a medium barracuda.
“It got really big,” Hunter explained, “and then I got more and more fish. I decided to get it some friends.”
One tank was donated by the Westman Dreams for Kids Foundation, while other donations covered his couch and television.
Right now, Hunter enjoys having friends come over to visit. He is working out to keep his strength up and taking care of his fish. He cruises around in his truck, which has hand controls and a mechanical arm to pick up his wheelchair. He is thinking about eventually going to school, although he is not sure what he will take. He was planning to be a Conservation Officer, and Shanda said there might be something he can do in that department yet.
The Fergusons were grateful for the help they received from the community. There was a GoFundMe page, a baseball tournament, and a major event called FergFest held to raise money, and those, as well as other donations, brought in about $48,000. Hunter said the support was overwhelming.
“I feel a part of the community,” he stated. “I got a lot of support from people who don’t know me personally. I really appreciate people’s support to get through this. It will really help me get back out and start living my life again.”
Hunter was determined to pay it forward. For example, there was a young man in Winnipeg he shared a hospital room with who was injured in a dirt bike accident. Unlike Hunter, who had Workman’s Comp, he had no insurance. All of the needs, like wheelchairs, cost a lot of money, so Hunter donated to his GoFundMe page. In fact, he has donated several thousand dollars to others.
“I just wanted to help out with what I have.”
Now that Hunter is home, the next phase of his life can start.
“It feels good that I always have a place to come,” he explained. “A place where I can live and do the things I need to do. It is easier to do things, and so it is easier to go forward.”
by PAUL RAYNER, Recorder staff