Rory Constant, Willis Head and Kynan Whitehead are three hunters who have accepted Sanderson's challenge.
Lori Whitehead sets out with some of Sanderson's bullets.
JAMES SMITH CREE NATION, Saskatchewan-Sometimes it just takes one person with a caring heart and a clever idea-and determination to act on it-to make a difference. And thanks to Tanya Sanderson, hunters are joining the team to make a difference for the James Smith Cree Nation.
When Sanderson heard that COVID-19 had hit Saskatchewan, she was concerned about the 3412 fellow members in the nation near the banks of the North Saskatchewan River. Even though Sanderson and her husband have jobs-she's a medical transporter for the community-and food security, she was worried about those who didn't.
The reservation in Northern Saskatchewan may not have popular restaurants, but the fields and forests in the area did. Deer, moose, waterfowl, game birds, rabbits, and even bear. What if hunters in the nation could go out and procure meat to donate to the needy families, she wondered.
So Sanderson went to social media with her idea and her goal to raise $400 to buy bullets for hunters. Immediately, people surpassed the goal and the donations continued to come in. Sanderson and her husband bought shells and distributed them to willing hunters.
"We just ask that they donate what they kill to those families that ask," she told journalist Ntawnis Piapot of CBC News.
James Smith Cree Nation Chief Wally Burns added that safety is a priority in the process. Hunters make sure the animals are healthy, and the animals are butchered and packaged properly before being given to those who have needs, especially as the pandemic worsens. One hunting family alone has already donated 600 pounds of meat.
"I hope [the meat being hunted] will feed a lot of families that are not as fortunate, and to remind the communities to look after each other-because we're going to need each other right now," Sanderson said.
