From: Brent, Louise and Bud Sanderson
During a recent week of vacation at Malachi we suffered two truck breakdowns on the Malachi road. On Friday, September 13th we broke down on the road and only made it to the landing with some major help. After some work on the truck during the week we thought that we had resolved the problem, but when we attempted to head home on Sunday September 22nd, we subsequently broke down on the road again. If not for the help of a number of our lake neighbors on both occasions, we likely would have spent one or more nights stranded in the bush.
Our great thanks to Steve Cowan who stopped to help us on the night of September 13th and provided a number of tows to get our vehicle started and who was instrumental in getting our truck to the landing. The night of our second breakdown on September 22nd, the only reason that we even made it home to the city at all was due to the help of a number of parties who towed us to Trapper Ron Zelinski’s, helped us work on the problem and when that failed, transported us and our gear back to the city in what amounted to a mini-convoy. For that, our many thanks go out to Kurt and Gail Enns; Bob and Kelly Flanagan and Kelly’s partner Dawn; and Deb Weiske-Robertson and her husband Dale. We’d also like to thank Jamie Campbell, along with Susan and Herman Wehrle, who all stopped to offer us any assistance that they could. Finally, Trapper Ron Zelinski was instrumental in both lending us tools and offering us the use of his telephone in order to find a tow truck on a Sunday night.
We also would like to give a glowing customer review to Brake Star Inc. on Highway 17 in Kenora. Noel Leonard and his shop’s staff treated us like gold and repaired our truck for a very reasonable cost without either of us ever seeing one another face-to-face. If anyone on the lake is ever in need of auto repair services, we can’t recommend them highly enough.
A vehicle breakdown in what amounts to the middle of nowhere can leave you feeling helpless. You have no idea what a difference it made to us to be on the receiving end of so much ready help and assistance from friends and neighbors from Malachi. Whatever help that we have provided to others in the past always seems to come back to us when we really need it and these incidents prove that. Let’s all keep this great circle going ‘round.
Thanks again to all of you!