Logan Boulet Arena: Lethbridge renames centre after Humboldt Broncos player who donated organs
21-year-old's death inspired tens of thousands of Canadians to sign donor cards
Lethbridge city council unanimously voted on Monday to rename the Adams Park Ice Centre the Logan Boulet Arena, in memory of the Humboldt Broncos bus crash victim whose organs were donated after his death.
"Logan is someone who will be remembered and should be remembered as a remarkable young man," said Coun. Blaine Hyggen in an emailed release.
"His compassion and dedication to both hockey and to wanting to make the world a better place is contagious. It is my absolute pleasure to bring this resolution forward."
Reacting to the news of the arena name change, Boulet's mother, Bernadine Boulet, told the Calgary Eyeopener on Tuesday that is was both overwhelming and amazing.
"What an honour for our son," she said. "I'm sure he's probably saying, 'oh, I can't believe that.'"
Bernadine said her son wasn't generally one for the limelight, and he was known to be more of a background guy who would put in hard work to bring not just himself but his team accolades.
The rink soon to bear his name is the one he grew up using, first skating there as the only male ringette player on his sister's team.
"He played from the time he was four to the time he was 18 at that arena," said Bernadine.
The 21-year-old player from Lethbridge was fatally injured when his team's bus collided with a semi-trailer last year. Of the 29 people on the bus, 16 died.
Boulet had signed his donor card just five weeks earlier.
He was kept on life support immediately after the crash, and his organs went to six people.
His donation inspired tens of thousands of Canadians to register as organ donors in the weeks that followed.
"We're really proud of that because it means it's honouring Logan. But it also means that there are a whole lot of people out there, who are waiting for organ transplants, that there's more hope for them that that organ will come," said Bernadine.
The city said it will work to make the name change in preparation for next hockey season and is exploring the commissioning of an art piece in Boulet's honour.
The centre was originally named after a former mayor of the southern Alberta city in the 1960s.
With files from Lucie Edwardson and The Calgary Eyeopener