The Steinbach Fire Department is a family and, as is said, if one part suffers, every part suffers with it.

Assistant Deputy Fire Chief Mike Penner says it's been a trying time for the department, especially for members who were closer to Dale Wiebe, a 39-year old firefighter who has been living with brain cancer since 2008 and has recently had all treatments stopped and put on palliative care by his doctors.

"It is a family," notes Penner. "We have to work together, we have to get along together. We're getting woken up in the middle of the night and, if you're a little grumpy, you still got to get along with people. Basically, we have to be able to show up to a potentially chaotic scene and do our best. So, we have to trust each other and we have to work well with each other."

Penner says in 2008 when Wiebe was first diagnosed, he had surgery to remove the tumor and things looked well. He adds a couple years later the tumor came back and a second surgery was required, though the doctors were not able to remove the entire growth and, as a result, Wiebe started treatments. The third time doctors operated on the tumor Penner says they removed what they could and then gave him a new kind of chemotherapy. He notes this chemotherapy was shrinking the tumor and looking successful for awhile, but when it started growing again, the chemotherapy was stopped and Wiebe was put on the palliative care program.

"Dale's close to me," says Penner. "We got hired at the same time, 16 years [ago] now and we hang out a bit. He worked for me at the greenhouse for the last two years and we got to know each other even better [there] than at the fire hall. So it's a trying time."

Penner says due to the effects of the brain cancer, Wiebe's speech and balance are suffering, but he continues to have a good attitude.

"At this point, Dale and Jenean are spending time together. She's taken a leave from her job so she can spend time with Dale and, down the road, we'll work with him and help him out. But, I was there the other day and they're in the garage doing a project together, which was kind of cool to see."

He notes because Wiebe was not with the fire department for a minimum of ten years, the Provincial Government's legislation does not cover his absence and grant him any financial compensation through his work and time on the department.

There have been a couple fundraisers for the couple and Penner says the fire department members have planned to help them with a house project this weekend.

"On Saturday we're going to be painting their barn, they have a small barn on their yard. So, I guess Dale will be supervising and we'll be doing the work. There are some people that are closer on a personal level than others, but we work together well on the fire scene. We're just trying to be there for them."

The Steinbach Firefighters Association will be holding a fundraiser on Saturday, October 15 at 7 p.m. where funds raised will go to Fire Prevention, CancerCare and Dale Wiebe. The comedy night will feature Big Daddy Tazz along with Jon Ljungberg, Andy Noble, and Gerry Barret. Tickets are available at Sunshine Greenhouse and Frantz Inn.