A Fort Saskatchewan resident is feeling the love.
To say that Diane Stefanyk has had tough few years is an understatement. She lost one son back in 2017 and another earlier this year.
"With my son passing, I moved to Fort Saskatchewan in April of 2017," said Stefanyk. "I stayed at that [Fort Saskatchewan] residence for a year."
Stefanyk stayed in that first place for about a year, and it was during her second move to another apartment in the city, that she learned of another development.
"I was told by child welfare for me to pick up my two grandsons, I had legal guardianship of them," said Stefanyk. "I've had them in my care since about 2019."
Though retired, she now manages the building she lives in and raises her two grandsons.
"They are absolutely wonderful little boys, I am absolutely blessed to have them," said Stefanyk.
In May of this year, news of the passing of another of Stefanyk's sons hit, making things harder than ever.
"It's bad enough going through one [death], but I had to go through another," said Stefanyk. "It has been a struggle for me with the boys."
Throughout all the hardships, the support of the community has been one constant. Through the help of the food bank and kind strangers, the struggles that Stefanyk faced were eased.
One of the things that stands out to Stefanyk is a gesture that Our Lady of Angels Catholic School did for her in the first month of her having her grandsons.
"They put my name into the fire department to get a [food bank] hamper delivered to my place," said Stefanyk. "I didn't know anything about the Fort Saskatchewan Food Bank."
"The fire truck came, Santa came, I was blown away by that...absolutely blown away."
This support is what prompted her to post a lengthy thank you to the community on Fort Sask Informed, a local Facebook forum.
The reception to the post has been nothing short of amazing, gathering over 700 likes and 70 comments in just a few days.
"That post has made me so emotional; I was just blown away by the fact that the people of Fort Saskatchewan heard my story," said Stefanyk. "I didn't want to make it anonymous; they had a right to know where that story was coming from because I truly and sincerely wanted to express my gratitude to the people of Fort Saskatchewan for being there for me in a time when I needed it."
Stefanyk said it best in her post:
"I would not move from here ever, because this is my home."