In late May 2025, Denare Beach, Sask., was devastated by the Wolf wildfire.
Over 200 structures in the remote village of 850 people — located about 400 kilometres north of Saskatoon — were destroyed. The southern half of the village was gone.
That included the house owned by Steven Harrison, located near the shore of nearby Amisk Lake. Harrison, a volunteer firefighter, was among the last to leave before the fire consumed the community.
“Everyone else pulled out, but we stayed back to fight the fire,” Harrison said, recalling the 20-hour days they put in while trying to hold back the flames.
When he returned a week later, his house was gone. “The amount of devastation was incredible,” he said, gazing at the empty lots surrounding his new house being built by volunteers from Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS).
The goal of the organization, which was founded in 1950, is to repair and rebuild the homes of people like Harrison who are impacted by disasters such as wildfires, floods, hurricanes and tornados in Canada and the U.S.
MDS volunteers came to Denare Beach from across Canada and the U.S., serving for a minimum of one week. Some stayed longer.
People in the village speak highly of the firefighters, calling them heroes. But Harrison sees it differently. For him, the real heroes are the volunteers from MDS.
“I was only doing my job,” he said. But the volunteers are “freely giving their time to come and help people they don’t even know. They are true heroes to me.”
Harrison is one of five homeowners receiving a new home through MDS in the community. Recipients were selected based on financial need, because they are seniors, or due to disabilities and other challenging issues.
‘A paradise of trees’
Another family receiving a new home are Carmell Monias and Ivan Knutson, both members of the Cross Lake First Nation.
“I still can’t believe it,” said Monias, an elementary school teacher, of the help they are getting from MDS. “It’s such a relief after the stress of the fire.”
One of the major losses for Monias was her sacred bundle containing some of her most precious possessions: Two drums; traditional medicines such as sweetgrass, tobacco, sage and cedar; a smudging kit; and eagle feathers — all things given to her by elders or that she had made or collected herself.
“I kept it in my bedroom, in the corner. But it’s gone,” she said, wiping a tear.
Along with grieving that loss, they also miss the bush behind their house.
“The grandchildren used to love to run and play there,” she said of the burned-over areas. “This was a paradise of trees.”
Among the volunteers in Denare Beach in late May was Vern Klassen, a retired construction worker from Duchess, Alta. For him, serving with MDS was simple: “I needed something to do. I wanted to stay busy and help others.”
Reg Walde, a retiree from Kamloops, B.C., saw it as a way to live out his faith. “I’m not a preacher, but this is what I can do to share the Gospel,” he said.
Larry Ruffin lll is from Choctaw, Oklahoma. The 22-year-old student at Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg was in Denare Beach on a scholarship from MDS. “It’s great to be able to help someone in this way,” he said.
For Denare Beach Deputy Mayor Karen Thomson, the service of the volunteers — who will be in the village until the end of August — is welcome.
“They reinforce my belief that there are still some kind people in the world. They came here with such warmth and tenderness. It’s special,” she said.
With 68 building permits issued this year already, including the five to MDS, she is encouraged by the pace of the rebuilding — even as people continue to grieve their losses from the fire.
“Out of the ashes, we are seeing hope and promise to help us get on our way,” she said.
John Longhurst visited Denare Beach at the invitation of Mennonite Disaster Service in late May.
