We met Clement in 2009 as he was turning 19 years old. He passed away last month after a long hospitalization. Below are some fond memories of time spent with Clement over the past 12 years. We remember Clement as a curious explorer of the community, always collecting information and enjoying time with people. Our condolences to his family.
Andrei spent the most time with Clement: “I started working with Clement in Jan 2011 alongside with Jazz and many other workers, I witnessed a huge change in his life. We have been together through many critical moments, first love, his everchanging interests and activities, a huge amount of social encounters and a few LTRs. We visited lots of places, within transit reach. There were many awkward and difficult movements. Some of the interactions, we experienced, were uncomfortable. Yet, there were lots of fun, adventure, as well as love, care and warmth from some of the people we crossed our paths with. Many times I felt like an anthropologist seeing people from all world regions, professions, and social classes.”
Sterling managed Clement’s community inclusion service and says:
Clement will always hold a special part in my life as Clement and I discovered the community together back in 2009. It was a brand new world for both of us back then.
Patrick did a practicum with Spectrum last year and shared these memories:
Often we forget the impact people have on our lives.
A little over a year ago, while on my Douglas College practicum, I worked with a young man, “C”. He loved dancing and singing “Puff the Magic Dragon”; carrying huge piles of library books; collecting; counting, cutting and hole punching magazine pages; and his favourite playing hide and seek. We would play hide and seek around his parent’s house for hours and he would howl hysterically when he found me. C also LOVED water… mostly drinking it. Often he would sing out his name in a sing-song way, I can hear him now.
Today, I found out C passed away over the weekend, due to a long-standing heart issue.
It’s funny I was just telling a friend about him the other day. Even though we didn’t spend a long time together, C has remained in my heart and mind.
“C”, at 31, captured my heart and is certainly part of the reason I am where I am today, supporting adults in Community Inclusion. He is a reminder to me of how we impact lives each and every day, and it’s not all in the grand gestures; sometimes it’s the small things, the connections we make, a smile or a laugh.
“A dragon lives forever, but not so little boys
Painted wings and giant’s rings make way for other toys
One gray night it happened, Jackie Paper came no more
And Puff, that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar
His head was bent in sorrow, green scales fell like rain
Puff no longer went to play along the cherry lane
Without his lifelong friend, Puff could not be brave
So Puff, that mighty dragon, sadly slipped into his cave
Oh, Puff the magic dragon lived by the sea
And frolicked in the autumn mist in a land called Honah Lee” – Peter, Paul and Mary
Here are some more of the remembrances of Clement that the team shared:
“The first day I spent with him was the best day at work I have ever had”
“Clement is part of why I am working in Community Inclusion instead of in Schools”
“Underlying joy in all that he did”
“I remember first meeting with Clement and his family it was clearly expressed that relationship came first for Clement”
“Being around him showed me that he had so much love in his life.”
” He would hug people. Most people would love it and sometimes it was awkward…but I would say…”you must be such a great person if he wants to hug you, he is the best judge of character”.
“He had his own jokes with each of us. I have a memory of sitting beside two British women on the bus and by the end of the ride they were all singing “Yellow Submarine” together”.