Anakin Suerink (top), in Star Wars garb, and 'Leprechaun' Joe Hittel rapel down Executive Place in Downtown Red Deer on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2020. The pair was taking part in Rope for Hope in support of Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

A SMOOTH DESCENT

Rope for Hope raises more than $100,000 for Make-A-Wish

Sep 19, 2020 | 10:28 PM

Amid the haze, 24 rappelers took to Red Deer’s Executive Place Saturday in order to brighten the lives of kids battling life-threatening medical conditions.

When all 2020 Rope for Hope donations are counted, the total will exceed $100,000 just for the Red Deer event, an amount that will grant at least 10 wishes.

In 2018, Anakin Suerink was the recipient of a wish, which was a trip to Disney World. The man responsible for raising the necessary funds was Joe Hittel, now 85, who had just completed his first rappel for Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta.

On Saturday, not only did Hittel complete his third rappel after raising more than $50,000, Suerink did his second rappel, raising more than $10,000. For Hittel, whose trademark is a leprechaun costume, his total is the highest in Canada for the second straight year, and he even did it with rainbow-dyed hair.

future use uncertain

Downtown building removed, but fire-ravaged property next door remains

14h ago

2024 Red Deer grad ceremonies coming up soon

15h ago

BRING YOUR SMILES

Market at Red Deer returns to RDP this long weekend

May 17, 2024

“With all the support I had here, it’s just lovely, and Anakin did a wonderful job,” said Hittel. “I feel so proud of him that he did raise that money, and more power to him. He’s going to be back next year, I’m sure of that.”

Suerink, a massive Star Wars fan, even joined the 501st Legion after that organization helped present his wish two years ago. He wasn’t as nervous as last year prior to rappeling, he told rdnewsNOW moments before heading up.

“There are no words to describe how happy I am,” the 18-year-old shared. “[As far as what I want the wish kid to wish for], I just want him or her to wish for whatever makes them happy. It’s really important to me because for all of what I’ve been given, it’s the least I can do for other people.”

Suerink, who recently graduated from Lindsay Thurber, lives with hydrocephalus, epilepsy, two brain tumours, fibromyalgia and is legally blind, among other things. The family held an online auction and put an exceptional amount of effort into raising the ten grand.

Joe Hittel (right), 85, and Anakin Suerink, 18, celebrate after completing their third and second rappels, respectively, for Make-A-Wish’s Rope for Hope fundraiser. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

Anakin’s mother, Elizabeth Eckert, says although his conditions yield good and bad days, nothing was stopping him from once again rappeling 13 storeys down Executive Place.

“He’s always been an incredible kid, [and] determined. When he sets his mind to something, he does it. This year he said, ‘Mom, I want to give a kid a wish,’ and honestly I said, ‘That’s ten grand, I don’t know if we can do it.’ But he said we were going to do it, and we did it. He’s over the moon, or over the edge right now, because he gets to give a wish to a kid like him. It’s amazing.”

In 2019, Rope for Hope in Red Deer raised just over $60,000. Fundraising totals were higher this year, partially due to some participants from the Edmonton area instead rappeling in Red Deer after the capital city’s event was cancelled due to COVID-19.

Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta granted 133 wishes last year, a number that is significantly down largely thanks to the pandemic. After uniting with Children’s Wish Foundation in 2019, Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta has 438 kids awaiting a wish, with at least 21 in Red Deer.

Leanne Gullekson, Communications and Marketing Officer with Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta, says though COVID-19 has impacted the organization, it is in a position to achieve its mission going forward.

As for the saga of Anakin and Joe, she says what they’ve done will allow kids to feel normal and be the centre of attention for all the right reasons, rather than the wrong ones.

“[Their story] really shows that one person can make a huge difference, and that that difference, however small that may seem, is the world to a child living with a critical illness,” she says. “It changes everything.”