Crowdfunding campaign to support survivors of JSCN murders nears halfway mark

A crowdfunding campaign created by the family and friends of two victims of the James Smith Cree Nation stabbing rampage is nearly halfway to its goal of $100,000.

Bonnie Burns, 48, and her 28-year-old son Gregory “Jonesy” Burns died on the Labour Day Weekend along with eight others.

Brothers Damien and Myles Sanderson were the main suspects, but Damien was found dead on the First Nation while Myles was captured by RCMP south of Rosthern four days after the attacks. He died shortly after his arrest, and the cause of his death is currently under police investigation.

The fundraiser, hosted on the popular fundraising site GoFundMe, was created by Bonnie Leask and family of the victims, to help Bonnie Burns’ three surviving sons and her husband of 30 years get long-term therapy to help them deal with their trauma, as well as other support they may need.

Mark Arcand, Bonnie’s brother, said the family is grateful for the donations, which totalled more than $46,000 on Thursday.

“(We’re) really making sure this is going to meet the needs to get them some long-term therapy that they need because (of) what they witnessed and what they’ve seen. It’s not a good sight,” Arcand said.

“I really appreciate all of the support from everybody. It’s really going to make a difference in these boys’ lives.”

Speaking on behalf of his family, Arcand said the best thing for his nephews and their father was not to return to the family’s home following the deaths.

“We’ve talked about it as a family and the best decision for everyone, including them, is not reliving that trauma of what they’ve seen and going back to that house,” he said.

During a news conference last week, Arcand said his sister died trying to protect her four sons. The three younger boys witnessed the attack. One hid behind a high chair, and another was stabbed in the neck but survived.

“We’re going to try and find them a different place to live in, because it’s not going to be very healthy to relive that trauma when we’re trying to get them healthy,” Arcand said.