Service in Brandon celebrates the life of Las Vegas shooting victim Tara Roe

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This article was published 14/10/2017 (3304 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Rather than dwell on the evil that took Tara Roe’s life, loved ones instead chose to celebrate her 34 years of life during a public service on Friday afternoon.

The service was held at the Victoria Inn Hotel and Convention Centre in Brandon, where more than 500 people came out to celebrate a life that was cut short by a lone gunman who fired on a crowd of people attending a country music festival in Las Vegas on Oct. 1.

Although the family requested that media not attend the service, Roe’s parents, Mark and Brenda Smith, offered a prepared statement to afterward, which shed some light on what transpired during the two-hour celebration.

“We shared, with laughter and tears, her happy times, her accomplishments, our memories of her and why she was loved so much, by so many,” Mark said, sharing a statement that was prepared by Roe’s family, which also includes Tara’s husband, Zach Roe, and sister Tami Spiropoulos.

She was a daughter, sister, aunt, wife, “and a wonderful mother to her greatest treasures: Louis and Lennon,” Mark said.

While Mark paused to collect his emotions a few times while reading the statement, he made it to the end with wife Brenda at his side and a large photo of their daughter looking over them.

Recent years found Roe settle with her husband and two young children in Okotoks, Alta., where her family became big supporters of the local sports community.

During the days that followed the tragic events of Oct. 1, this sports community has turned it around and come out in support of them, with the Okotoks Minor Hockey Association setting up a fund that will go toward purchasing groceries for Zach and the couple’s two young children.

The Okotoks Oilers’ Friday night hockey game was dubbed the Tara Roe Memorial Game, at which fans were encouraged to wear purple in remembrance.

In addition to occasional work as a model, Roe worked as an education assistant, and Mark said she “took pride in the achievements of her autistic students and was keen on further her education in child development.”

“Tara loved life,” Mark said. “She wanted to experience new adventures, taking up wave surfing and kayaking just this summer. She loved to do things with her family, enjoyed camping, Clear Lake time, biking and quiet game nights. She wanted her boys to be active too, and did so much to support them with their hockey and lacrosse.”

Mark said the family has joined others who had a connection with Roe by forging a path forward and that although they will find a way to live their lives with her, she would never be forgotten.

“We are very grateful for all the outpouring of love and support during this incredibly difficult time,” he said. “It is very much appreciated and we are very thankful.”

Friday’s celebration of life was described as a highly emotional affair, at which Roe’s sister offered a tribute that was relayed to media afterward.

Roe relocated to Alberta after spending her formative years in Brandon, but Spiropoulos said that distance did not tear them apart.

“We were always close, but distance made us appreciate each other even more,” Spiropoulos’ statement read. “Today, as we say goodbye to Tara, that distance is even further. And with all of my memories, and all of my heart, I will keep her closer to me than ever before, because distance means so little, when someone means so much to you, like Tara does to me, and to all who knew her.”

Although the celebration of life was just that, a celebration of Roe’s life, guests were invited to sign a petition to support gun control.

Beside the petition, a sign read: “One heart is worth more than all the guns on earth.”

By the end of the celebration, more than 500 signatures were counted on the petition, indicating that everyone, or at the very least almost everyone, in attendance had signed it.

After Mark finished reading the statement, Brenda took a moment to thank those who have supported the family during the past several days.

A gofundme.com fundraiser called “Expenses for Zach and the kids” had raised more than $163,000 by press time on Friday. Brenda said the money would help Zach afford to stay home with his two young children.

Roe was one of four Canadians killed in the Oct. 1 mass shooting, which left at least 58 people dead and more than 500 injured.

» tclarke@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB