No, those are not a sequence of numbers uttered by a football quarterback.
Those are jersey numbers Chris wore and was known for.
#2 in Langley.
#32 for Burnaby Mountain Selects
#41 proudly representing the great province of British Columbia
Tomorrow, March 25, is quite a day.
One year ago we lost our son.
Not a day or hour goes by without a thought of him. Most hours the thoughts continue minute by minute.
We have found a place for people to come and remember Chris.
His ashes will remain forever at the Langley Lawn Cemetery at 208 and 44th.
It’s a beautiful place with 6 granite memorial walls in a stand of trees near 208th avenue.
When we went to view the walls, we found that two of the six walls were dedicated to individuals and four to couples.
One was called Maple and one was called Dogwood.
Wouldn’t you know it, Maple 32 was available as was Dogwood 41.
Maple 32 is amazing because the BMS logo is a Maple Leaf.
Dogwood 41 is amazing because Dogwood is the provincial flower and 41 was the number Chris wore for the province when he played at the Nationals in 2009.
Because of a few logistical reasons, we’ve chosen Dogwood 41 as the final resting place.
It’s a beautiful place to go.
Our family will be there tomorrow, joined a bit later by a few of Chris’ friends. We wanted to show them personally where they can go to remember Chris so that they in turn can show others.
The journey continues, but this is a huge step for us.
I know my Dad in the ICU in Vernon is with us in spirit as is my Mom from Vernon and other family that can’t be with us personally. (health update: Dad is inching forward…very slow, but steady right now which is good)
Although tomorrow is a day for family and Chris’ close friends, we welcome anyone over the next weeks and months to stop by and spend a few minutes in thought about how passionately Chris lived his life and how he was determined to Be The Best.
I’ll never forget him writing down the goal of making the A1 Langley Thunder Lacrosse team.
I’ve never seen a kid so driven to achieve that goal. He made it. It was amazing.
Thanks for your continued support and all the thoughts and prayers coming our way this week.
We feel it!
PS
At 2:32 and 41 seconds, we will be looking up at the sky and saying hi to Chris.
If you want to take a quick look up at the sky at any time tomorrow and say hi to Chris, please do! I know he would love it. Dad…that’s you too!! I know you can see the sky from your hospital bed!!
PPS
This blog has never been about money and never will be, but some people have asked what else they can do. We will continue to give to Chris’ fund every year via Simon Fraser University’s giving program. It’s a way to remember Chris and also challenge a new athlete every year to Be The Best. The University has just set up a direct link for Chris’ fund. They handle all donation receipts etc directly. Here’s the link.
Be The Best. 