Family and friends of Cameron Downey collect to share tales, fireplace off some rubber chickens and bash one another with padded weapons
It’s what Cameron Downey would have wished – rubber chickens flying by way of the air, household and associates bashing one another with padded weapons and slightly Bizarre Al Yankovic taking part in within the background.
That was the scene on Saturday throughout a celebration of life in honour of the Guelph man who was killed on the job final month whereas working at an industrial website in Mississauga.
“He was a glorious weirdo, glorious,” mentioned Charlene Downey, Cameron’s mother, from a stage at Rockmosa Group Centre in Rockwood. “You all kind of know Cameron to be weird, and you know him to be a protector, and you know him to be a fabulous, incredible person.”
Cameron, who graduated from John F. Ross highschool after being dwelling schooled in his youthful years, was crammed with compassion for others and was at all times fast to lend a serving to hand to anybody he thought wanted one.
“He was a very special person. He was uniquely giving, to the point of a fault,” buddy Garett Hendricks mentioned of Cameron. “He would routinely feed anyone and everyone he could. It was his passion in life to make sure people were fed and happy with what they were fed.”
Not solely did Cameron volunteer about 10,000 hours on the Royal Metropolis Mission soup kitchen, Hendricks mentioned he primarily catered about 30 dwell motion function play gatherings – often known as LARPing – that attracted between 20 and 200 members.
“He stood and he protected. And one of the ways he did that was by cooking. So if he cooked for you, it’s because he loved you,” mentioned Charlene. “That was his love language. That and a massive, great big pair of bear hugs.”
Cameron was wanting to assist throughout joint household journeys, recollects household buddy Judy Witty.
“He would always watch out for the little ones and was always in there helping out with everything we could ever need,” she mentioned. “What kid offers himself up to everybody, all the time?”
Witty and Charlene used to do vendor reveals all through southern Ontario to promote hats they made, and Cameron was at all times proper there to assist with setup and extra.
“Cam had a really strong sense of who he is, what he wanted and what he liked … even at a young age,” mentioned John Martin-Holmes, who was Cameron’s youth chief at Kortright Presbyterian Church from 2008 to 2011. “He operated out of his Cam coronary heart moderately than everyone else’s expectations.
“He had a wonderful heart and a quick wit.”
As a younger teenager, Cameron “found his people” when he found the world of LARPing. Quite a few individuals from the LARPing neighborhood, together with some from as far-off as Sudbury and Ottawa, turned out for the celebration of life.
A lot of them attended with their armour and associated apparel on, able to battle in reminiscence of Cam.
Amongst these within the LARPing neighborhood, Cameron was often known as a “quirky person,” famous Chase Tymstra, who met Cam when he lived in Guelph for a number of years.
“He never wore shoes … despite how much we protested and insisted that he wear shoes, regardless of where we were doing our LARPs, whether it was at a park or in a forest or in a field somewhere,” Tymstra mentioned of Cameron.
“I think it started as a character thing – he wanted to be similar to a hobbit when he first started. … Then it kind of just became his thing.”
Through the celebration of life, skilled and first-time LARPers armed themselves with padded weapons and examined their talents in battle.
“He was a massive part of our game and our community, and one of my dearest friends. I miss him very much,” mentioned Hendricks. “I hope I can do him proud by giving back to the game the way he did.”
Through the celebration of life, individuals had a possibility to write down down their favorite recollections of Cameron – tales to be compiled and put in a guide for his household.
Guests additionally had an opportunity to play board video games with Cameron, utilizing cube that contained a few of his ashes.
Donations for Royal Metropolis Mission have been additionally accepted and leftovers have been taken to the mission so, as Charlene put it, Cameron might feed extra of his associates yet one more time.
The Ministry of Labour is investigating the circumstances surrounding Cameron’s dying.
Peel Regional Police responded to an industrial accident at Dundas Avenue East and Wharton Approach in Mississauga at about 6 p.m. on Oct. 10.
“The industrial accident was not deemed suspicious and the Ministry of Labour took over the investigation,” mentioned Const. Michelle Stafford, public data officer with Peel Regional Police, beforehand advised GuelphToday by way of electronic mail.
Charlene mentioned she’s in touch with a lawyer and should take authorized motion in an effort to make sure the individuals answerable for her son’s dying are held accountable.
