Weyburn senior and community advocate facing eviction from care home

Aishwarya Dudha · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 15, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

A 71-year-old lodging advocator successful Weyburn is present being denied a attraction location of his own.

Fred Sandeski says helium volition nary longer person a attraction location furniture starting Wednesday. He suffers from COPD, epilepsy and ocular impairment.

Sandeski was awarded the Queen Elizabeth Platinum Jubilee Medal past twelvemonth for his enactment to assistance the unhoused. It was presented to him by then-Weyburn MLA Dustin Duncan. Now Fred is asking for help, for himself.

Fred said helium is being denied an hold to stay astatine his existent facility.

"I'm successful the last stages of COPD. I person occupation walking 10 feet without having to beryllium down and drawback my breath," Sandeski said successful an interrogation with CBC's The 306. "They're conscionable telling maine to usage location care, spell home, and die."

Fred's wife Teresa Sandeski, herself successful a wheelchair and paralyzed from the waist down, said she is physically incapable to attraction for her husband.

The mates initially placed Fred successful the attraction location temporarily portion Teresa recovered from large surgery. Since then, they person been paying retired of pouch for continued respite care.

Teresa said assessments by the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) person failed to instrumentality into information Fred's analyzable aesculapian history, including a anterior open-heart country and earnestly debased lung capacity.

"We're not looking for a handout, we're looking for a manus up," she said. 

The Ministry of Health and SHA said successful a connection Monday that they are "in interaction with Mr. Sandusky to sermon due services." 

Fred said the lone options he's been fixed are to trust connected constricted location attraction services oregon wage $3,000 up beforehand to participate a backstage attraction location — a outgo the mates simply can't afford.

"It's conscionable a tally around," Fred said. "They'll springiness maine a subsidy for it, but I person to archetypal wage the $3,000 up front." 

Community members person organized a rally connected Wednesday astatine 1 p.m. CST successful Weyburn to amusement their support. Teresa said it's not a protest, but a amusement of solidarity and a telephone for assistance and compassion. 

"Fred, he's worked successful the assemblage for 20 years arsenic an advocator for radical with disabilities, enactment barriers, escaped income taxation [filing]. He's done each of that free, nary wealth from the government, and they can't adjacent person the decency to springiness him a furniture truthful helium tin walk away," she said. "That is not integrity astatine all."