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- Hi my name is Shauna Mager and I am raising funds for my father, Rick Mager. I want to raise enough money to purchase a Legacy Park Bench and Bronze Plaque in his honour through the city of Winnipeg’s Park Bench Donation Program. The bench will be placed in the off-leash dog park in Charleswood, a former golf course located at SW Grant Ave at Haney Street. Rick was a member of that Charleswood Golf Club in Winnipeg for many years until it was closed and torn down to make room for the Moray Street Bridge extension and the creation of the Bill Clement Parkway in 2001. That golf course is where my father spent all of his free time when he wasn’t working at RBC or teaching Driver’s Education in the evenings. This is where he first taught me to golf at 6 years of age and also where my sister had her wedding reception. My father joined the Assiniboine Golf Club to continue his love of the sport but his golf days were soon over taken by his 10 year battle with Leukemia. I’ll never forget the day he called to update me that he was finally in remission only to find out a few months later that he was diagnosed then misdiagnosed with Throat Cancer. The 6 months of Chemotherapy he endured for the wrong diagnosis was quickly followed by 3 months of Radiation Therapy for the correct diagnosis that nearly killed him. My father was forced to go to the Portage La Prairie Hospital 45 mins away from Headingley where he lived as the city wouldn’t allow him to stay at the Grace Hospital only 10 mins away due to jurisdictions. This is when my dad chose to stop fighting his battle with Cancer. He was always a witty man so he cleverly hid his medication from the nurses in his socks until he could come home and see his family one last time at Christmas. He passed away in the ambulance on the way to the hospital later that evening, but only after he had my mother remove his socks revealing where all his medication was hidden. That story still makes me smile. It’s hard to believe that was 8.5 years ago. Reading his obituary makes me sad. He was such an amazing man and I feel like the people that knew and loved him never had the opportunity to celebrate his life. I will say this, Cancer affects everyone. Not only is it a struggle for those diagnosed but for those around them as well. It’s a major financial burden, a time commitment for those helping with your recovery, and an uncomfortable topic of conversation for those around you. Now that I have been diagnosed with my own cancer I felt the push to finally help my Dad be put to rest and at the same time allow for anyone who didn’t get to say goodbye a place to visit where he can be remembered.
Organizer