Farmer who found space junk donates to Ituna arena renovations

One farmer hopes the donation he is putting towards Ituna’s new rink will make a bigger impact, than space junk did when it crash landed into his field.

“It literally fell out of the sky,” Barry Sawchuk said. “It’s a good opportunity to pass it on.”

The 60-year-old rink built in 1961, started renovations in 2022 and is nearing completion.

Sawchuk first came across the pieces of space junk in April while checking the crops in his fields, southwest of Ituna.

The six-by-four-foot piece with fraying carbon fiber edges was determined to be a part of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, with the help of astronomer Dr. Samantha Lawler.

As other farmers completed seeding, more pieces of the aircraft were found in farmers’ fields. Five farmers found eight pieces of an aircraft spanning across a 30-mile radius.

Barry Sawchuk, second to the right, stands with some of the other farmers who found pieces of space junk near Ituna. (Gillian Massie/980 CJME)

In June, two members from SpaceX came to Saskatchewan to retrieve the pieces in a U-Haul truck.

Behind closed doors, the two negotiated a compensation price for the pieces with Sawchuk, which he calls a fair deal.

“I mean you always want more, but you never get what you want in life,” Sawchuk said.

Sawchuk wouldn’t reveal how much he donated but said his grandkids will make good use of the rink when they are old enough.

“Anybody can use the money themselves, but I mean, it’s nice to leave something from it,” he said.

SpaceX has not answered 980 CJME’s multiple requests for comment. Both SpaceX employees declined to speak to the media.

Two members of SpaceX loaded up the chunks of space junk into a U-Haul truck in June 2024. (Gillian Massie/ 980 CJME)

On the brink of opening the Ituna rink

Jack Shymko, chairman of the Ituna Community Arena Building Committee, said every dollar counts.

He said Sawchuk’s donation was greatly appreciated as construction on the rink nears its end.

“It is significant, and to us, everything is significant because this is how we built this arena,” Shymko said.

Construction on the rink began in May of 2022, seven years after fundraising efforts began in 2015.

The old arena built in 1961, served Ituna for 60 years. A leaky roof that was difficult to fix helped fuel the need for an upgraded arena.

“Had we not started it, when we started it or started fundraising,” Shymko said. “I can almost say with certainty that that rink would have been condemned almost about this year or next year.”

Shymko said the project will cost about $5.6 million in total. About 1.4 million dollars has been raised through donations and fundraising so far, according to Shymko.

Right now, $100,000 more is needed to complete renovations on the kitchen.

The arena has been almost completely rebuilt, and Shymko said it will be more energy-efficient and cheaper to operate.

“All the good memories, all the good times, that I received from the old rink, this will be transferred on to future generations for hundreds of years because this building is all steel and concrete,” he said. “If a wooden building lasted us for 60 years, this is going to be good for hundreds of years.”

Shymko said kids in Ituna still have the chance to skate during construction, partnering with nearby village, Kelliher’s rink.

Mayor René Dubreuil said the rink is where everyone meets up in the winter.

He has taken a tour of the recent renovations, calling them “amazing.”

“It’s mind-blowing,” Dubreuil said. “I can’t believe the workmanship that they have put in there and the brightness.”

Once the grand opening happens Dubreuil said once “the community gets the chance to actually come in and see this building, they are going to be blown away.”

Shymko said he hopes the grand opening will happen this fall, depending on when harvest wraps up.

The Ituna arena is nearing the end of renovations with hopes to have its grand opening this fall. (Jack Shymko/ Submitted)