In memoriam #2: Justin
Today marks four years since Justin passed away.
I met Justin in grade 9 Keyboarding class. Colin sat to my left, Farah to my right, and Justin two to my right (though we usually just ignored Farah). Since we spent 95%+ of the class just practising our typing on wonderful Unisys Icons, the three of us (Justin, Colin and I) would talk through the entire class. We talked about a lot of stuff. Perhaps the coolest thing I learnt was that Justin was related to Jeff, the mannequin on "Today's Special". I was so jealous of him when I found that out!
Typing was scheduled weirdly. It was scheduled for the first half of the term as a half-credit, and then we took a half-credit in Career & Life Skills, which was supposed to be a course on study skills but was really just an excuse to give everyone in the class a mark in the 90's. Colin, Justin, and I sat in the same row and talked whenever we were supposed to be doing our work (not that there was any real work to be done in that class).
One assignment that we had to complete was to create a song to help us remember the six steps to effective studying. The song that we created (which was really just grunting and mumbling) sounded pretty bad. Justin hated the song, so Colin and I would sing it to him. A lot.
We stayed friends throughout grade 10, but in grade 11 we drifted apart. We had 12A Physics together, but we didn't talk much there. I will always remember him for being technically inclined and loving to work with computers and technology. He was a bright kid.
And then, on October 26, 2001, I was in a Tri-M (Music Council) meeting afterschool. All the teachers had gone to the staff room for an emergency meeting, and they came back looking a bit saddened. Mr. Wriggs told us that a student had been killed in a car accident, though they didn't know who it was. He suggested that on our walks home that we check in the driveways to see if any cars were missing. Laura D was hysterical because she thought that Matt "Sticky" was the victim because of his tendency to drive recklessly.
And then, on Saturday afternoon, I received this email from my high school's university-bound students mailing list. My eyes didn't even read the email; they just jumped right to the student's name:
Hello Folks,
It is with great sadness we inform you that Justin *** an OAC student lost his life in a car accident Friday afternoon on *** Rd. This is a tragic loss to his family, friends, students and staff at ***.Our deepest sympathies go out to all who knew Justin.
On Monday the Career Centre in Guidance will be open to all students who may need to talk to counsellors, or simply share their grief with others. Please come in, as always we will be happy to help you.
Guidance People
The first Monday back at school was an awkward day all-round, and it seemed like no one wanted to do any work. _shewalks, in particular, was upset at the events since she had known Justin since pre-school.
Justin's parents started a scholarship fund in his name, which grew to over $50 000 in its first year. Tri-M ran a fundraising concert for the fund in June 2002, and I was honoured to not only help put on the show, but to meet his mom and talk with her a fair bit. She's a wonderful woman!
At commencement the following November, Justin's mom gave a speech to the audience. The room had been quite talkative before she was announced, but when the emcee called her up the entire room went dead silent because everyone was feeling uncomfortable with bringing up the memories of Justin. However, she delivered a wonderful speech (I have a transcript of it, I think), and at the end everyone stood and applauded her. Justin was posthumously awarded his high school diploma (he had completed OAC English and all of his other required courses in grade 12). Although he wasn't able to begin his post-secondary studies, he finished what he had set out to do in high school.
Justin was a great friend back in grades 9 and 10, and my biggest regret with him is that we didn't spend more time together during his last three years in high school. He will be missed.
I met Justin in grade 9 Keyboarding class. Colin sat to my left, Farah to my right, and Justin two to my right (though we usually just ignored Farah). Since we spent 95%+ of the class just practising our typing on wonderful Unisys Icons, the three of us (Justin, Colin and I) would talk through the entire class. We talked about a lot of stuff. Perhaps the coolest thing I learnt was that Justin was related to Jeff, the mannequin on "Today's Special". I was so jealous of him when I found that out!
Typing was scheduled weirdly. It was scheduled for the first half of the term as a half-credit, and then we took a half-credit in Career & Life Skills, which was supposed to be a course on study skills but was really just an excuse to give everyone in the class a mark in the 90's. Colin, Justin, and I sat in the same row and talked whenever we were supposed to be doing our work (not that there was any real work to be done in that class).
One assignment that we had to complete was to create a song to help us remember the six steps to effective studying. The song that we created (which was really just grunting and mumbling) sounded pretty bad. Justin hated the song, so Colin and I would sing it to him. A lot.
We stayed friends throughout grade 10, but in grade 11 we drifted apart. We had 12A Physics together, but we didn't talk much there. I will always remember him for being technically inclined and loving to work with computers and technology. He was a bright kid.
And then, on October 26, 2001, I was in a Tri-M (Music Council) meeting afterschool. All the teachers had gone to the staff room for an emergency meeting, and they came back looking a bit saddened. Mr. Wriggs told us that a student had been killed in a car accident, though they didn't know who it was. He suggested that on our walks home that we check in the driveways to see if any cars were missing. Laura D was hysterical because she thought that Matt "Sticky" was the victim because of his tendency to drive recklessly.
And then, on Saturday afternoon, I received this email from my high school's university-bound students mailing list. My eyes didn't even read the email; they just jumped right to the student's name:
Hello Folks,
It is with great sadness we inform you that Justin *** an OAC student lost his life in a car accident Friday afternoon on *** Rd. This is a tragic loss to his family, friends, students and staff at ***.Our deepest sympathies go out to all who knew Justin.
On Monday the Career Centre in Guidance will be open to all students who may need to talk to counsellors, or simply share their grief with others. Please come in, as always we will be happy to help you.
Guidance People
The first Monday back at school was an awkward day all-round, and it seemed like no one wanted to do any work. _shewalks, in particular, was upset at the events since she had known Justin since pre-school.
Justin's parents started a scholarship fund in his name, which grew to over $50 000 in its first year. Tri-M ran a fundraising concert for the fund in June 2002, and I was honoured to not only help put on the show, but to meet his mom and talk with her a fair bit. She's a wonderful woman!
At commencement the following November, Justin's mom gave a speech to the audience. The room had been quite talkative before she was announced, but when the emcee called her up the entire room went dead silent because everyone was feeling uncomfortable with bringing up the memories of Justin. However, she delivered a wonderful speech (I have a transcript of it, I think), and at the end everyone stood and applauded her. Justin was posthumously awarded his high school diploma (he had completed OAC English and all of his other required courses in grade 12). Although he wasn't able to begin his post-secondary studies, he finished what he had set out to do in high school.
Justin was a great friend back in grades 9 and 10, and my biggest regret with him is that we didn't spend more time together during his last three years in high school. He will be missed.