It’s been three and a half years since Steven Zook lost his son Jared in a tragic workplace accident, but the pain is still very real.
“Still the images kind of play through our mind all the time,” Zook told Global News.
Zook’s 32-year old son was among five men, four of them construction workers, who were killed in a catastrophic crane collapse at a downtown Kelowna, B.C., construction site in July 2021.
The tragedy also claimed the lives of Cailen Vilness, brothers Patrick and Eric Stemmer and Brad Zawislak, who was working in an adjacent office.
But the ongoing grief has now been compounded by a decision from the province that will put on hold a memorial project to honour the lives lost in one of B.C.’s worst workplace accidents in recent history.
“Hugely disappointed, like how could they not consider when it is something so important,” Zook said.
Through community donations and pledges, more than $150,000 has been secured towards the RISE Memorial — which will be built at Knowles Heritage Park, not far from where the tragedy unfolded.
The newly-formed foundation leading the charge was banking on another $150,000 through a provincial capital grant to get construction started but on Thursday, the RISE Memorial Foundation learned that the application was denied.
“They had said we didn’t have enough funding to complete the project which couldn’t be further from the truth,” said Kelly Hutchinson, the foundation’s secretary-treasurer.
“We have everything in place. We are shovel-ready. Our donations are even backstopped by the city’s contingency funds they announced this summer, so we are fully funded and ready to go.”
Chris Vilness is not only the president of the RISE Memoriqal Foundation but also a grieving dad.
He lost his son Cailen, 23, on the fateful day.
“I do feel it is a commitment that the government needs to step up and support,” Vilness said. “It should not be up to the families to have to continue to beg and plead for more money. It’s humiliating to say the least.”
Vilness added the families have been through enough hardship, including the ongoing wait for the results of the criminal investigation to be released.
“The factual information for what happened that day sits with the government,” Vilness said. “It sat with WorkSafe. It sat with the RCMP and now it sits the Crown. So, yeah, we are asking the government to support our cause.”
Late Friday afternoon, the ministry responsible appeared open to discussing the situation.
In an email to Global News, Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture & Sport Spencer Chandra Herbert stated, “My understanding in talking to staff is that the project didn’t fit the criteria for this one specific funding stream. But it’s an important project and I would be pleased to meet with the organizers to learn more about the memorial and how we may be able to work together to help it move forward.”
It’s a project grieving families say would benefit the community at large.
“It’s put together because of five men but I think it is bigger than that,” Zook said. “It’s for anybody that has to walk through any form of grief, any form of loss, a safe solitude kind of place.”
