The Cape Breton community recently helped fund the cost of bringing home a retired police officer after he became stranded in an Ottawa hospital.

Walter Rutherford, a retired police officer, and his wife, Cathy, are well known in the Sydney area of Nova Scotia for spending their lives helping others. Their family and community wanted to give back to the couple, who have always supported others without expecting anything in return.

Walter has been in intensive care at an Ottawa hospital since late September, with his wife by his side. While his medical team hoped to bring him home to Sydney, Nova Scotia, the cost of the medical flight, including medical staff and equipment, was expected to be around $50,000.

To help cover the cost, Walter’s family and friends organized a fundraising event with donations and a silent auction, and the event sold out, with all 400 tickets purchased to help pay for Walter’s medical flight home.

The Rutherford family has faced many heartbreaking losses in recent years, having lost both their sons. Walter’s illness presented his wife, Cathy, with another difficult time, but family and friends from the community helped support her through it.

Although the cost of bringing Walter home was ultimately covered through the efforts of health officials in Nova Scotia and Ottawa, many donors were offered refunds but chose to leave their money to help the family with other expenses. The efforts of the community and the health officials helped Walter and Cathy finally return to Cape Breton, where police escorted Walter from the airport to Cape Breton Regional Hospital.

Source: Ryan MacDonald, CTV News