BONNYVILLE – STARS is looking to strengthen its funding partnership with both the Town and M.D. of Bonnyville as the air ambulance service continues to respond to dozens of critical calls across the region each year.

Representatives from Shock Trauma Air Rescue Service recently appeared before both councils, outlining local mission numbers, rising operating costs and the role municipal funding plays in keeping its helicopters in the air.

For the Town of Bonnyville, STARS is requesting $10,000 in funding for 2027, a fixed contribution equivalent to approximately $1.50 per capita.

STARS representative Jackie Seely told Town Council on Sept. 8 that the organization values the financial contribution, but also sees municipalities as important partners in helping residents understand the service.

“Partnership is very important to us at STARS,” Seely said. “The opportunity to keep council well informed of what’s happening in the area” is also part of that relationship.

More than 200 missions in five years

The numbers presented to the Town show how frequently STARS is being called into the Bonnyville region.

Between 2021 and 2025, STARS flew 207 missions within the M.D. of Bonnyville area, averaging about 41 missions annually. Of those, 109 were critical inter-facility transfers from the Bonnyville Health Centre and another 72 were transfers from the Cold Lake hospital.

By July 21 of this year, STARS had already flown another 18 missions, including 10 transfers from the Bonnyville hospital and eight scene calls.

“When you look at that number, though, 207, that’s 207 lives that had the best chance that may not have had that chance without STARS,” Seely told Town Council.

Looking further back, STARS reported to M.D. Council that it has completed 521 missions in the district since 2012.

The organization asked the M.D. to consider a graduated increase in its annual contribution through 2029, recognizing the municipality as one of STARS’ regional leaders.

M.D. Council accepted the presentation as information and directed the request for increased funding to its 2027 budget deliberations for consideration.

STARS must fundraise majority of operating costs

STARS receives government funding, but much of the cost of operating its Alberta bases still has to be raised through donations, lotteries, businesses, communities and municipal partnerships.

Its 2025-26 presentation listed direct Alberta operating costs at $36.6 million, or about $12.2 million per base, with $15 million provided by the provincial government. Donations, fundraising and lotteries were needed to cover the remaining 59 percent.

During the Town presentation, Seely said those costs have since climbed to more than $38 million.

“Partnership is what has made it possible for over 40 years,” she said. “As missions increase, as costs increase, it’s partnership that we hope will help get us through the next 40 years.”

STARS said 95 percent of Alberta municipalities currently contribute to the organization, with 80 percent considered regional leaders contributing at least $2 per capita.

The Town’s requested $10,000 contribution is below that $2 per-capita level, something Seely acknowledged during her presentation.

She explained STARS had previously approached the Town about a $2 per-capita contribution but returned this year with a fixed $10,000 request in hopes of building a sustainable partnership.

When CAO Quinton Wintfley asked whether $10,000 was a minimum requirement, Seely said the final amount remains up to council.

“Council could arrive at an amount that is satisfactory to them,” she said.

The Town did not approve the funding during the Sept. 8 presentation. STARS submitted the request through the Town’s grant process for 2027 funding consideration.