Paris Family Launches ‘Team Gary’ Hike for Hospice Campaign
- Casandra Turnbull
- Apr 8
- 4 min read
Eric Farrace, a member of Team Gary, and Heidi Wright, Gary’s wife, and Schae, Gary’s daughter, made a $6,500 donation to Stedman Community Hospice on behalf of Team Gary supporters last September. They are pictured with Julie Powell, President and CEO of St. Joseph’s Lifecare Foundation.
By Casandra Turnbull
Managing Editor
Stedman Community Hospice is a home away from home. When families walk through the doors of the Brantford-based facility, they’re greeted with kindness, compassion and an overwhelming sense of serenity as they brave the final steps of a loved one’s journey. It may be an end of a life experience, but it usually cultivates the beginning of new friendships as one Paris family found out last year when their beloved patriarch Gary Wright was admitted to Stedman Community Hospice on June 6, 2024 following a valiant battle with brain cancer. “Upon arriving we were welcomed by the kindest staff, dressed in every day casual clothes, that had a special way of calming our fears,” explained Heidi Wright, Gary’s wife and lifelong partner. Gary and Heidi share two children Skylar and Schae. Gary was diagnosed in June 2021 with Glioblastoma. He endured two surgeries to keep the cancer at bay but a recurrence in February of 2024 eventually led to the end of his battle. He passed away July 23, 2024. “The care that Gary received was incredible. The compassion that I witnessed from PSW nurses and spiritual care was above and beyond. They have a passion, which Gary told them numerous times,” said Heidi.That’s just one of the reasons why the Wright family is fundraising and participating in the 21st Annual Hike for Hospice on May 4, 2025. “Gary’s journey at Stedman has opened my eyes to the need for funds. Hospice is a needed part of end of life, where families can come together and just be,” she shared. “To show my gratitude, I will be fundraising for Stedman to allow other families to experience the care so needed at end of life, to have and feel the support our whole family felt.”Stedman Community Hospice’s annual operating budget is $3.8 million. After government funding, there is a shortfall of about $1.67 million. That is why donations through fundraisers like the Hike for Hospice, which has raised more than $3.4 million since its inception in 2004, as well as the Handbags for Hospice fundraiser that has raised $1.1 million since 2013, are so important. As Heidi reflects on her family’s experience at hospice, she noted it was all the things the staff and volunteers took care of to help them through the toughest time of their lives, so they could spend as much time as possible with Gary. Things like lining up physiotherapy, to ordering a wheelchair and even offering spiritual care to help families so they can create lasting memories through hand sculpture art, photographs, voice recordings, all the things a family cherishes in the years following their loved one’s passing. Not long after admission, the Wright family quickly realized that Stedman Community Hospice was the best place for Gary to receive peaceful and comfortable care.“Gary’s bed could be wheeled right out to the patio and the beautiful gardens, where he slept, visited or ate a meal. The gardens are the most incredible sight I have ever seen. Volunteers work diligently on maintaining their beauty,” Heidi recalls. In those gardens is where she found her own inner peace and allowed herself to grieve for what was to come but also finding moments of gratefulness for the care Gary was receiving. The impact of their time at Stedman Community Hospice is still very powerful, more than nine months since Gary passed away. Heidi just completed a 10-week Spousal Loss Bereavement Program, supplied by Stedman Community Hospice at no cost. “I gained understanding and knowledge towards my grief and gained some friendships in that group. So funding isn’t just for the patient, it’s for families affected by loss and counselling is also offered one-on-one.”Heidi and her children launched their Hike for Hospice fundraising campaign just two weeks ago with an initial goal of $500. They’ve already doubled that goal and there’s no telling how much they will raise, after all, the Wrights are no strangers to fundraising for important causes. During Gary’s cancer journey, they often held fundraising walks and events in support of the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada under the name Team Gary. Just months after his passing, Team Gary came together again to raise money for the Paris Terry Fox Run, living up to the group’s motto ‘in this town we fight together.’ Fundraising and sharing Gary’s story has become important in keeping Gary’s memory alive, which they do to remind people of the impact one person can make with some faith and a whole lot of resilience. If you’d like to donate in Gary’s memory visit https://www.stedmanhike.ca/ and search for ‘Team Gary.’ “I want to emphasize my thanks to anyone and all whom have donated and whom will be donating,” said Heidi, who in our little town is famously known for her delicious sourdough bread. “As a perk, anyone who donates will be put into a draw for a loaf of my (getting famous) sourdough bread,” she ended, once again highlighting the true resilience and positivity that’s just part of the Wright way.
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