Very Important Patients

Name: STARS
Price range: $

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It doesn’t matter who you are. It doesn’t matter where you are. If you need critical care, our mission is to be there for you in whatever capacity we can help. Every one of our VIPs — Very Important Patients — has a unique story of how STARS was their best hope in a worst-case scenario. We are honoured to share some of their inspirational stories here.

If you are one of our VIPs and would like to meet your crew or share your story, please email us at vip@stars.ca.

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Jenn Oakes

One moment, Jenn was enjoying a beautiful summer day of boating. The next, she was tossed from the boat into the lake, fighting for her life. Jenn’s life changed forever in that instant, but thanks to STARS allies, she was given a second chance.

Man in red checkered shirt and cap standing in hangar with red helicopter in background

Clayton Orr

This STARS Very Important Patient remembers the evening everything changed for him — and the numerous people along the way who worked to ensure he lived to tell about it.

Bald person on green and white motorcycle posing next to red helicopter on desert airstrip under clear sky

Adair O’Grady

Adair O'Grady enjoyed the first day of seeding with his dad for the past 30 years. It’s one of the most exciting times on the farm. But last spring, that excitement quickly turned to their worst nightmare.

Woman holding two young children in burgundy outfits, standing in front of a red fire truck, all smiling at the camera

Peggy Benko

Peggy Benko was busy working in her office when she suddenly collapsed. An ambulance rushed her to the hospital. She’d had a ruptured brain aneurysm and needed immediate surgery, but the nearest availability was a three-hour drive away.

Person wearing glasses and hoop earrings smiling at camera, with wavy brown hair and black top, blurred background with red and blue elements

Carrie Derin

In summer 2012, Carrie Derin was quadding with her family in southeast Saskatchewan. An unexpected hazard in the road lead to a serious injury, requiring a quick response by STARS.

Person in olive jacket and gray hoodie sitting in front of red bus with "STARS" text visible on the side

Chris Cardiff

After a dirt biking accident in Saskatchewan in 2018, STARS VIP Chris Cardiff was placed on the onboard STARS ventilator and taken to hospital.

Person in light pink t-shirt sitting in open red van trunk with equipment and red storage containers visible inside

Draedon Faubert

Family rallies around 16-year-old Draedon Faubert after a motor vehicle accident early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Woman in navy dress posing beside vintage red railroad car against clear blue sky

Justeen Kolody

After being stranded for hours in her crushed vehicle, Justeen Kolody was found and rushed to hospital. Having lost a third of her blood, STARS was called to get her to a trauma center.

Person wearing a black wrap top with a red lipstick smile, standing in front of a red and white aircraft or vehicle in an industrial setting.

Hilleree Valade-Kubar

STARS gets the call to transport a visiting Ontarian who suffered a heart attack while on a mountain road trip with her life-long friends.

Person in white shirt and baseball cap smiling while posing next to red and white aircraft with "AMBULANCE" text visible on the fuselage.

Cody Kerr

Cody was critically injured in a highway incident when he made the split-second decision to aim for the ditch instead of taking a head-on collision with a vehicle that veered into his lane. He's grateful for the STARS crew that came to his side. “These people saved my life,” he said.

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Very Important Patients