The doors are now open at a new temporary residence for out-of-towners coming to Edmonton for extended medical treatments. The sign on the front says "Amy’s House" but it’s also a house that was built out of love and hope.
Local artist and arts organizer Phil Alain brought together a community of friends and supporters to make this place into something positive and enduring. It’s dedicated to his wife, Amy Rempel Alain, who died from cancer earlier this year. He said that it was really her wish to open this house to help others who had to come to Edmonton from much farther away.
“Back in November, when Amy was going through her treatments, I was with her a few times where we'd run into people at the Cross Cancer who literally were driving in two or three hours, almost daily, to go for radiation treatments,” he said.
“It was just such an awful thing to have to watch them have to come in sick and they’re dealing with cancer and getting treatments, and having to drive back and forth as well to and from the city just to be administered stuff that made them feel worse.
Amy, ever the sociable and open-hearted person, would always engage these people in conversation, he continued. Eventually, she and Phil realized that they could actually help them get through their ordeals, even if it simply meant giving them a place to stay.
“It was more about when she was going to beat her cancer – how she wanted to set up a little home of some sort where we could put people up when they were coming to town. We could actually help them out that way. Of course, she didn't beat her cancer, but… I knew that was one of her passions. We were given donations to help our family, some of that we never, ever got a chance to use because of the shortness of her cancer battle. So, I started to initiate the process of fulfilling her dreams through this. I didn't want people to feel like they just gave us money for no reason, and we wanted to keep paying it forward because we had so much help during our process. If we can do that for other people, now, it'd be a real great thing.”
The house is located in downtown Edmonton, a 12-minute drive to the Cross Cancer Institute and the U of A Hospital, and walking distance to the Royal Alexandra Hospital, too. Right now, it is suitable for one family at a time just to make sure that there is plenty of privacy and comfort for the occupants. Work is ongoing to prepare it so that it could accommodate multiple families at a time on separate floors of the house. The goal is to make it a free residence that even includes meals and transportation in order to maximize the amount of energy that people can focus on getting better.
It’s a project that has already captured the hearts of many. It was a whirlwind summer of renovation for Alain, one that involved dozens of friends, family members, supporters, and even strangers who had simply heard about the project and wanted to help.
“There are a lot of people that did a lot of good things,” he said. “The volunteer help was a steady flow. There was a lot of emotion in that house.”
Amy’s House officially opened its doors on Saturday which would have been Amy’s 39th birthday.
To celebrate the occasion, Phil and his team will be hosting a few fundraising events this weekend. There is an evening wine tasting event that is already sold out but the major focus will be a family activity day. It will include a family fun run and obstacle course, a magic show, and a hot dog barbecue. The entertainment will involve some live music plus an art display. It takes place from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5 at the Greenfield Community League, 3803 114 St. in Edmonton. Attendance is free but donations to Amy’s House are definitely appreciated, Alain said.
There is also an online silent auction already underway to help out with the fundraising. People can visit the Amy’s House Fundraiser Auction photo album at facebook.com/AmysHouseEdmonton to view the items and make bids. A crowdfunding page is also underway. Search for Amy's House - We LOVE YOU Amy! at www.gofundme.com.
Alain said that Amy’s House will need to establish a strong and healthy bank account in order to be managed properly over the long run.
“I'm hoping to just have people in the places to administrate everything and I'm just overseeing everything because I do have to provide for my kids still. That’s always going to be my number one focus. To get this rolling so other people can can manage it will be my dream. And I'm sure Amy would have been thrilled that way, too,” Alain said
