'Bigger than life': The almost unspeakable loss of 3 young people in Fredericton crash
Leo Hayes High School community reeling, support being offered to students, principal says
Families, friends and fellow students are mourning the deaths of three people — two high schoolers and a young father — who died in a car crash in Fredericton on Sunday.
The victims have been identified by their families as Layla Rodgerson, 14, Owen Fairweather, 17, and Kyler Hunter-Astle, 22. Two other teenagers, whose names have not been released, were injured in the crash, one seriously.
Rodgerson and Fairweather attended Leo Hayes High School on the north side of Fredericton, one of the city's two anglophone high schools.
Hunter-Astle was the father of two young children.
The crash, which happened on Douglas Avenue at about 1 a.m. Sunday, is still under investigation by police, who have said speed was a factor, but they have not said who was driving or how the crash happened.
The deaths have rocked the community, prompting support for affected students and public condolences from local MLAs and Fredericton Mayor Kate Rogers.
Layla Rodgerson
Rodgerson will be remembered as an energetic, gregarious teenager, who had a strong sense of independence, her mother, Becky Arseneault, said in an interview.
"Layla was bigger than life. She was brave and she was brilliant, and she was bold. And she loved big and she hurt hard, and anybody that was special to her, you knew that you were special to her."
Arseneault said her daughter was born and raised in Fredericton and was just finishing her first year at Leo Hayes High School as a Grade 9 student.
Older and more mature in spirit since she was a child, Arseneault said, Layla couldn't wait to get to high school and had already been looking ahead to getting her driver's licence.
Arseneault said her daughter was also driven to be as independent as she could be, pushing to get her first job at Dairy Queen at just 13 years old. More recently, she worked at Mary Brown's Chicken on Douglas Avenue at Brookside Drive, where Arseneault said she was loved by her co-workers.
"Layla was driven. She certainly let us know what she wanted and, yeah, I have no doubts that Layla could have been anything that she wanted to be."
Owen Fairweather
Fairweather will be remembered as an intelligent kid with a passion for motorcycles and mechanics, his parents, Donald Fairweather and April Thorne, said in an interview.
"He was more mature than what he should have been for his age," Fairweather said.
"He just turned 17 a month ago, but he seemed far more advanced for his years."
Thorne said her son was a Grade 11 student at Leo Hayes and was already aspiring to go into the trades once he graduated.
"He was so creative, so smart, so mechanically inclined," she said.
Owen's original plan had been to go to college in New Brunswick to become a mechanic, his father said.
Later on, he decided he'd instead move out west after graduation and work to save money so he could come back to his home province and buy a house and he and his girlfriend could get married.
"He was a good kid. He was smart," Fairweather said. "He had a bright future, for sure."
Kyler Hunter-Astle
Hunter-Astle is being remembered as a kind-hearted individual who cared deeply about his two children, Elle and Malcom, said Julia Patterson, the mother of his children.
Patterson said Hunter-Astle never missed a chance to tell her he loved her and would do anything to protect the people he cared about.
"He was always doing kind things for people, especially those he loved. He had so many goals and things he wanted to accomplish," said Patterson, in a statement she shared with CBC News.
She said at one time in his life, Hunter-Astle wanted to become a barber and would combine the craft with his generosity by offering free haircuts to homeless people.
But aside from becoming a barber, Patterson said, his biggest goal was just being there for her and their children.
"Being a dad, having a family and growing old with us was all he ever wanted. It was his dream."
School community 'reeling', says principal
Aside from the two teenagers who died, two other teenage victims in Sunday's crash were also Leo Hayes High School students, said principal Kendra Frizzell.
According to police, a 15-year-old boy was critically injured and airlifted to the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, where he's in serious but stable condition. A 14-year-old girl suffered minor injuries and is in stable condition at the Dr. Everett Chalmers Regional Hospital.
"As you know, our school and the entire community is reeling from a tragedy involving four of our students," Frizzell said, in an email statement.
"Our hearts and our thoughts are with them, their families, friends, and everyone else involved and impacted."
Frizzell said the school set up a "central care centre" on Monday to support students from Leo Hayes and neighbouring schools. She said it was planned to stay open throughout the week.
Frizzell also thanked school staff for creating a nurturing environment for students and thanked first responders for their work and for offering support to the school following the crash.
"Furthermore, I am deeply moved by the solidarity and empathy displayed by our students towards one another.
"Witnessing their supportiveness and kindness fills me with immense pride and hope for the future."
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