Erickson rallies around attack survivor

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This article was published 26/06/2023 (1066 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

ERICKSON — Less than three weeks after a violent home invasion in Erickson shocked the community, members of the small town and surrounding communities showed their support for the survivor of the brutal attack by sharing a hot breakfast on Sunday morning.

Hundreds of community members poured through the doors of the Erickson Recreation Centre for a pancake breakfast fundraiser for Candace Richardson, who was violently attacked while sleeping in the basement of her home on June 6.

Now back in Erickson after a stay in Winnipeg hospital, she and her fiancé, Scott McMunn, were overwhelmed by the community support.

“It really shows how close a community like Erickson is, when something goes wrong or something like this happens,” McMunn said of the turnout for the fundraiser. “It’s a little overwhelming but it’s amazing.”

Though breakfast was scheduled to be served at 10 a.m., a line of hungry supporters stretched into the parking lot before doors officially opened and the demand didn’t stop until nearly noon.

Volunteers bustled around the kitchen, flipping pancakes, carrying jugs of coffee, shuffling plates, and cracking eggs. Several trips to the local Co-op were made after all of the donated food from local organizations was used up (donated eggs and hashbrowns ran out within the first hour).

The high turnout was so unexpected that the kitchen staff had to substitute french fries for hashbrowns as supplies dwindled. People thanked the volunteers in the kitchen as they dropped off their empty plates.

Organizers estimated that at least 300 people attended, and just over $9,000, through ticket sales and raffle draws, was raised for the couple.

The food was cooked in the rec centre kitchen, which is also the kitchen for the restaurant that Richardson and McMunn own, McMunny’s, which has been closed since the attack.

The fundraiser was an effort spearheaded by Spring Gregorash, Brendan Snyder, and Gillian Robertson. Both Gregorash and Snyder are from Erickson but now live in Brandon.

Gregorash wanted to find a way to help Richardson, and Snyder had the idea for a pancake breakfast and with a tight turnaround time, the date was set, tickets were sold, and donations of coffee, meat and prizes rolled in.

“Literally in 24 hours, we’re like, ‘Let’s do this,’” Gregorash said, adding she knows a lot of people and reached out to them after the idea for a breakfast fundraiser was decided. “They just all came together.”

Snyder said that people pulling together to make the fundraiser happen showed the power of a small town.

“[Erickson] is such a small community,” he said. “Everyone just wants to help.”

Many who attended the breakfast either knew McMunn, who is from Erickson, or knew the couple from the restaurant.

Long-time Erickson residents and people from out of town gathered around plastic tables to share conversation over pancakes and to show their support for the community.

Some people like Forouzandeh Kasrai, who lives in Brandon, came out to support the community for her friend, who lives in Erickson. When Kasrai found out what happened to Richardson, she wanted to contribute, and when she saw an ad for the fundraiser on Facebook she decided to drive out.

“This is nice to see how people support each other and help each other,” Kasrai said of the crowd.

A familiar face to Brandonites, James Montgomery, former general manager of Brandon Riverbank, came to the breakfast and volunteered to help. While collecting used plates and mugs onto a cart, Montgomery told the Sun he has a cabin in the area.

He said it was heartbreaking for him to hear about the attack earlier this month, especially with other tragedies in the area like the fatal bus crash near Carberry last week.

“The people here are fantastic. They’re loving people,” he told the Sun. “… it’ll be a challenge for Candace to come back from this, but I know the community will continue to pull together to show the family support.”

Others like Blair Irvine, from Rapid City, took advantage of a sunny morning motorcycle ride to stop in for breakfast and support the cause.

Meanwhile, David Manuliak and his wife, Marnie, came from Lake Audy. They said they wanted to support the couple whose restaurant they frequent.

“They’re very good people and we felt like we should support them,” Marnie said.

Some of the fundraiser volunteers travelled to Erickson to help cook and bus dishes. Maggie Ross, who cooks and serves at a care home in Sandy Lake and has a pottery business, said that offering to help was her way of giving to the cause.

“I don’t have money, but I have some skills and some time,” Ross said.

Mildred Zwarich, who lives five houses up from Richardson and McMunn, said that she’s known McMunn since he was a kid. She said the amount of people that showed up for breakfast is an indicator of how supportive the community is.

“When tragedy strikes in the town, as you can see, we pulled together,” Zwarich said. “You cannot ask for a better community.”

Later in the event, Zwarich won a blanket as a prize in a raffle draw. Richardson is pregnant, and after receiving the blanket Zwarich hugged McMunn and handed the blanket to him, telling him it was for the couple’s baby.

Though Richardson did not want to comment, McMunn told the Sun that Richardson is doing well, though he expects her physical and mental recovery will take a lot of time.

Richardson still doesn’t have use of her hands due to severe wounds from the knife and will likely need surgery soon, McMunn said.

“We were a little surprised that she wanted to come back home so soon,” McMunn said about Richardson returning to their home and the scene of the attack. “But that’s something that she didn’t want [her attacker] to take away from her, which just shows how strong of a person she is.”

McMunn said that the fact that Richardson was out socializing with fundraiser attendees is an indicator that she’s doing well, despite the long road of recovery and rehab ahead of her.

“To see her smile right now is so special,” he said. “It’s gonna be a long road, but we’re on the right track.”

As the fundraiser wrapped up, many people talked to Richardson and hugged her. The group of volunteers gathered for a group photo with Richardson and McMunn. Everybody smiled.

Carter Prince, 18, is charged with attempted murder in connection to the attack on Richardson. He hasn’t applied for bail and remains in custody.

» gmortfield@brandonsun.com