Mounties rally for Keian’s Holiday Wish
A team of Langley and Surrey RCMP officers spent Friday loading vans for Keian’s Holiday Wish Toy Drive. The annual campaign gathered close to 1,000 toys and more than $4,000 in donations, even after moving its main collection point to the Langley detachment this year.
For Keian’s father, Ryan Blundell, the support still feels overwhelming. He says he is “awestruck” each year by the volunteers, donors and organizers who keep his son’s legacy alive.
How one boy’s wish became a province-wide drive
Keian Blundell was diagnosed with leukemia in 2012 and spent long stretches at B.C. Children’s Hospital. Just before Christmas that year, he was well enough to go home, but worried about the kids who would stay behind.
He quickly organized a small toy drive with friends and returned to the ward with a dozen gifts for children he had met in treatment. After Keian died on Jan. 1, 2014, his family and RCMP supporters turned that simple act into Keian’s Holiday Wish Toy Drive, an annual campaign that now reaches families from all over B.C.
Langley Surrey Mounties collect toys for kids in hospital
Staff Sergeant Nigel Pronger, from the Surrey Provincial Operations Support Unit, helped coordinate this year’s effort. He says the toy drive has grown larger every year as more officers and community members get involved.
Most of the toys collected by Langley Surrey Mounties for kids in hospital will go to B.C. Children’s Hospital. Families arrive there from big cities and remote communities, often with little time or energy to think about Christmas shopping.
Easing the burden for families
Many of the toys are handed directly to parents so they can wrap gifts without worrying about the cost. Organizers say the goal is to remove one layer of stress during a frightening time and let families focus on their children’s health.
This year, organizers will also send toys to Langley Memorial Hospital. Sgt. Zynal Sharoom notes that local families facing unexpected hospital stays will benefit from the expanded support.
A caravan of goodwill
Supt. Harm Dosange, head of the Langley RCMP detachment, joined the Blundell family as officers prepared the annual caravan. He said the day “couldn’t have gone any better,” with vehicles packed full of toys and donations.
Shortly after 10 a.m., the convoy pulled out of the detachment, heading toward B.C. Children’s Hospital. For the Blundells, each box and bag loaded by Langley Surrey Mounties to collect toys for kids in hospital represents not just charity, but a living tribute to Keian’s kindness and the community that continues to stand behind his wish.
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