Feel-good stories of 2024: Dramatic dog rescue, Guelph toddler gets transplant and lost letters returned

Before we say goodbye to 2024, let’s look back at some of the good news stories we brought to you this year.

Here are five that really stuck with us.

Dramatic dog rescue in Cambridge

A missing dog was reunited with her family in January thanks to Ground Search and Rescue KW and the Cambridge Fire Department.

The pet rescue organization leapt into action after they received a call about Frankie, a missing dog who had escaped from her owner’s backyard.

Multiple calls came in from people who had spotted the wayward canine, leading searchers to a stretch of the Grand River behind Cambridge Memorial Hospital.

“I was able to find her footprints in the direction the spotter said,” said Tina Daquano, vice-president of the organization. “We followed it step-by-step by blood, because unfortunately, she likely had sliced her paw being out on the ice.”

They finally managed to find Frankie, but before they could get their hands on her, she was on the move again.

She was tracked down a second time and volunteers attempted to safely rescue her, but Frankie became frightened and slid into dangerous territory.

“She jumped up and Tina and I jumped back and we were both like: ‘Ahh, nobody move!’” recalled Kathryn Burtenshaw, co-founder and president of the rescue group. “She slipped down the embankment thinking that she would be able to go around something. She was definitely scared. “

The group then contacted the Cambridge Fire Department.

“She was on a small little cliff, where she had slid down, and we had a really good volunteer sit with her and just keep her calm,” said Burtenshaw.

While there was a sense of relief, the rescue mission wasn’t over yet.

“Unfortunately, she slipped down the embankment probably about another 15 feet," Burtenshaw continued. "So now she was on the edge of the ice and when we heard they finally had control of her, we were all relieved.”

Despite being safe from the freezing water, getting Frankie back to the mainland posed another challenge.

“She probably weighs about 90 pounds," said Burtenshaw. "They couldn’t get her back up the embankment so they formulated a plan and they got the rescue boat and it launched from the river bluffs boat launch.”

She may have been cold and exhausted – but Frankie was finally safe.

“It was a huge sigh of relief and 100 per cent miraculous to see,” added Burtenshaw. “We were extremely thankful to the fire department.”

Frankie the dog following a dramatic rescue in Cambridge.

Kitchener man saves driver from burning car

A driver is lucky to be alive after a passerby stopped to help at a vehicle fire in January.

Cory Eldridge was driving home from Toronto when something on the side of Highway 8 caught his eye.

“As soon as I was coming around the bend and I saw the van, actually I had seen flames under the front side so I was like: ‘Oh, I gotta help,’” he told CTV News. “It just spread like wildfire, it was really fast.”

Eldridge hopped into action as the flames spread through the vehicle.

“I rushed over right away and, you know, being at the right time at the right place,” Eldridge said. “The tires were popping and going boom so I was like: ‘Okay, let’s step back a it more.’ But it was scary because we didn’t know what was going to happen, right?

“If someone is in need or in trouble, I want to help them out. Poor guy was just heading home from getting repairs done on his vehicle.”

Eldridge said he went into ‘fight or flight mode’ and just wanted to help a person in need.

“Adrenaline is going… what can I do?” he said. “You don’t think about the dangers, I just wanted to get in and help and make sure he was safe.”

Ontario Provincial Police said the driver of the vehicle was not injured and the incident was a result of a mechanical issue.

Eldridge said the gratitude he received from the driver was heartwarming.

“He was so happy, he gave me a hug and I dropped him off where he had to go and yeah, he was really happy,” Eldridge explained.

After reflecting on the ordeal, Eldridge said he would do it again.

“It makes me feel happy. It makes you feel gratitude… that’s the best thing in the world,” he said. “If I can help someone, I’ll do it again no problem.”

A vehicle fire on Hwy. 8 in Kitchener on Jan. 26, 2024. (Courtesy: Cory Eldridge)

Guelph toddler finally gets desperately needed live liver transplant

A Guelph toddler is looking at a bright future after getting a potentially life-saving liver transplant in September.

“Mighty” Myles Beaulieu, a 14-month-old from Guelph, was diagnosed with a rare and chronic liver disease, called billary atresia, when he was seven-weeks-old.

In July 2024, his family made a public appeal for a live liver donor.

Their prayers were answered when a stranger volunteered.

Myles’ mother said the surgery happened in Toronto last month at both the University Health Network and Hospital for Sick Kids. The recovery, she added, hadn’t been easy.

“We spent three weeks in the ICU where he remained intubated basically the entire time,” Emily Vokey told CTV News. “We tried to take the breathing tube out on the 24th of September, and he made it about 16 hours before he required CPR.”

Since then, the toddler has made slow but steady progress.

“[He’s] being weaned off his pain medication,” Vokey told CTV News. “His bright and happy personality is really starting to shine through again.”

Myles is also close to getting his voice back.

“We've had little soft cries here and there and little soft bits of laughter,” Vokey said. “He really is very expressive. And when he smiles, he smiles with his whole being.”

In total, Myles spent almost 200 days in the hospital.

Emily is happy with Myles’ progress so far.

“He is doing well and he’s happy and has a lot more energy than he did going into the transplant.”

Myles’ new liver came from a Guelph mother who didn’t know the family.

The first time they met the donor was right before the surgery.

“[That] they’re able to take time out of their life and press pause on their life entirely, their social life, their family life, their career, and do something for strangers? It’s such a beautiful thing,” Emily said.

Dianne Ritch-Schaffer met Myles before the surgery and felt a bond right away with the young boy.

“That was one of the best hugs,” she told CTV News. “Just being able to hold him and having that beginning step, we were so close to this transplant, it felt really good.”

It was a big decision to donate her liver, but Dianne called it an easy choice.

“When you donate to a child, it's a smaller portion. [There’s] less lobe that's donated. It's somewhere in between 20 to 25 per cent of the liver,” she explained. “The costs to us were very minor in comparison to the benefits that it could give to Myles and his family.”

Purolator truck drivers from Guelph save man walking in Highway 407 lanes

A pair of Purolator transport truck drivers from Guelph were being hailed heroes for their efforts in helping a person in crisis.

On April 29, at around 10:30 p.m., a man was spotted walking in the middle of Highway 407 by the Highway 410 on-ramp near Brampton.

“It was very last minute that I saw him, then I had to act quickly,” line haul driver Melinda Olah recalled.

She pulled over and began yelling at the man as she tried to get him out of the live lanes of traffic.

Olah quickly realized the man was in distress after he looked directly at her and didn’t respond.

“Quite a few people came very close to hitting him as well. So the visibility of him was next to zero,” she said.

Olah called police, but knew she couldn’t wait for them to arrive.

“I decided to pull out onto the highway with my four-way [lights] on and drove behind him. I gave him a little space in case I did get hit or something,” she said.

Without blocking traffic completely, Olah followed the man from lane to lane for approximately 20 minutes as other vehicles sped by.

Then, some unexpected backup arrived.

“Another transport truck was coming up and it just happened to be Manohar,” she said.

Manohar Rehal , a fellow Purolator driver who is also from Guelph, arrived at that time only by chance. He was running behind on his current route.

Rehal asked why she was driving so slow with her hazard lights on. She pointed ahead and he realized what they were dealing with, so he jumped into action too.

The pair drove alongside each other on the highway. Olah’s truck was slightly ahead, while Rehal’s was staggered behind to create a barrier and alert other drivers until officers got there.

“It was a relief for me. It was raining and it was dark and the cops show up and we are like: ‘OK, I did my responsibility,’” Rehal said.

Both Olah and Rehal were recognized by the Ontario Provincial Police Highway Safety Division for their decisive actions that day. Police also sent a letter to Purolator indicating they were looking to formally recognize the duo in the near future.

Manohar Rehal and Melinda Olah, transport truck drivers for Purolator, on May 24, 2024. (Spencer Turcotte/CTV Kitchener)

Lost letters returned to 103-year-old Guelph woman

It’s been nearly 80 years since Alfred King wrote a letter from a London hospital to a girl in his hometown of Guelph.

Alfred had just returned from Europe where he served with the Canadian Army in the Second World War.

His letter was addressed to Carmel Fontinato.

“He just lived down the street from me and we got married [later that year],” Carmel King, now 103-years-old, recalled.

At some point over the next 79 years, Alfred’s letters were lost.

But in November, they found their way back to Carmel with the help of a young military history enthusiast.

“Ever since I was a little kid, I was always collecting little antique things, and like my parents always said, I was an old soul in that sense, I always loved history,” explained 18-year-old Brinley Vogt of Goderich.

He has a growing collection of military uniforms, helmets, medals and letters. More than just collecting, Brinley said he tries to learn about the person associated with the item.

“I love the story behind it,” he explained. “It tells you about the person and it tells you what they went through.”

Earlier this month, Brinley said he bought a package of letters and documents in an online auction featuring items from the Second World War.

“We noticed that all of the letters were addressed to the same place in Guelph,” said Brinley, who then tried to track down the family.

“We did some research and the obituaries of Carmel's sisters came up,” he explained. “Through that we were able to basically track down this whole situation.”

Connecting the dots on the other side was Alfred and Carmel’s daughter.

“It was amazing, I feel like it's a hallmark moment,” Judy Riddolls told CTV News, adding that the family was blown away by the gesture. “It really renews your faith in the young people of today, to decide to do something so kind and generous and we thank him so much.”

Brinley said he’s happy a small investment paid off so well.

“I think it ended up being like $10.60 for all of it, which is pretty cheap considering how rich the history is.”

Brynley Vogt, Carmel King and Judy Riddolls on Nov. 27, 2024. (Jeff Pickel/CTV News)