Bowling alley attack victim remembered as loving father

“He was having fun with his co-workers and I was sending him pictures of my belly and then all of a sudden he stopped talking to me which I knew something was wrong because he never stops texting me,” she said.

Straughan was in Winkler, MB for work with a Saskatoon construction company. Hague said her partner hated being away from home.

“When he was home with me, his number one priority was to always make sure I was happy and he always wanted to do whatever I wanted to do and he’s always trying to please other people. He basically based his life around helping others,” Hague said.

Those comments were echoed on social media through his friends.

“When my life hit a real rough patch in 2011/2012 … you were the only friend from back in the day that would actually take the time of day to come out for a few drinks, or grab lunch… or go to the gym just to make a friend feel better… It’s the smallest acts of kindness that go the farthest distances,” a post from a user named Cory Scopis said.

“You didn’t deserve what happened! People disgust me you were truly the only one that was 100% real! You saved me when I needed to be saved all those years ago…. When everybody turned their backs on me you were the only one there. You hung out with me everyday and told me everything will be OK! You and I would skip school just to hang out! You introduced me to your family and called me a sister and for that I’ll forever be grateful You are my hero and I’ll never be able to tell you that… I love you!” a user named Kaylee Henderson wrote.

“Rest in peace to the man I was praying I wouldn’t be writing this about…. You were such a major support when I was pregnant with kaleb so young and then you found out you were having London not long after… You stayed in touch and always checked to see how things were going. Whenever we saw one another we would say our insider “zacks taxi”… Then you gave my boyfriend a job and became his friend and support system when he needed it too… I wouldn’t be where I am today… I wouldn’t be in this place I love so much if it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have gotten through school if it wasn’t for you giving Darren the job after he told you who his girlfriend was in the interview. I’ll always cherish our memories zack you will always be close to my heart” a Facebook user named Carriee Campeauu said.

Straughan has three other children from a previous relationship, ranging in age from two to six years old.

Hague said he loved his family very much.

“He was such an amazing guy and he would have done anything to help anybody and he sure didn’t deserve to get murdered like this,” she said.

The family set up two GoFundMe pages to help Straughan’s children and to pay for funeral costs.

Justin Leslie Bird, 29, is the man accused of the attack.

His next scheduled court appearance is on Oct. 11 at Morden Provincial Court.

Investigators are in discussion with the Crown’s office regarding the possibility of upgrading charges from aggravated assault.

Editor’s Note: The Facebook quotes used within this story were lightly edited to remove strong language. A second edit to this story at 2:55 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 27 added a link to a second GoFundMe page raising funds for Straughan’s children.

nmaxwell@panow.com

On twitter: @nigelmaxwell

by Nigel Maxwell

Bowling alley attack victim remembered as loving father

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