The Shine On Foundation was started in the fall of 2013 to honour and give forward the generosity that friends, family and community members showed Chantelle Desmarais and her family, during their battle against Chantelle’s cancer.

For almost a decade, the Shine On Foundation had the opportunity to help more than 45 Saskatchewan families with once in a lifetime trips, medical expenses, and child care costs. In late 2022, Shine On Foundation founder, Blair Ledingham, made the difficult decision to cease operations and gifted Hospitals of Regina Foundation with $100,000 in support of priority needs benefitting cancer care in southern Saskatchewan. This generous gift will be used to match donations from the community, in support of cancer care in our hospitals.

“Chantelle cared deeply about her family and those around her, and we believe that this donation will help build on her legacy of caring for others,” says Blair. “Having volunteered with HRF in the past, I know the Foundation will honour the commitment to helping others upon which Shine On was originally founded. They will use our donation in the most impactful ways to ensure that those fighting a cancer diagnosis will get the best care available to them in Saskatchewan. As a family we were so blessed to receive such incredible support from our community,” recalls Blair. “Chantelle would take comfort knowing that other families facing similar circumstances will also feel that support, helped in part by this donation.”

Last year, almost 3,900 patients received cancer care at Pasqua Hospital through our Oncology Inpatient Unit, and Prostate and Breast Assessment Centres. On average, more than 5,600 people a year are diagnosed with cancer in Saskatchewan.

“Hospitals of Regina Foundation is honoured to have been selected to, in some small way, carry on the legacy of the Shine On Foundation by investing in cancer care in our hospitals”, says Dino Sophocleous, president and CEO, Hospitals of Regina Foundation. “We believe patients dealing with cancer should receive the best care possible, right here at home. The Shine On Foundation’s willingness to match donations from our community, up to $100,000, will allow us to invest in priority needs to help our health care teams continue to deliver the best cancer care possible to the people in southern Saskatchewan.”