‘Vibrant’ Carrot River teens laid to rest

The family of Carter Stevenson described him as a natural athlete, who was known for his “signature” big-toothed grin. They remembered his sense of humour and his “never quit” approach to everything.

“His love for his brothers and his family was limitless. He was a bright light that kept the house filled with love and laughter,” said John and Barb Stevenson in a statement.

“His love for his brother and his family was limitless. He was a bright light that kept the house filled with love and laughter,” the Carter family said in a statement. “He will be missed by the many whose lives he touched with his positivity, humour, kindness and love.”

Justin Gaja’s family is remembering a gifted athlete and honour student with a love of life. He is described as an avid, hunter, fisherman and trapper who loved the outdoors.

“His love for his mom, dad and sisters was endless. He was truly an inspiration to us all,” Orin and Crystal Gaja said in a statement, adding that Justin had the greatest sense of humour and touched the lives of all he met.

“Justin will be forever missed but never forgotten.”

The parents of Kristian Skalicky are promising to follow up and get to the root cause of the accident. His parents, Brad and Lisa, have been left with unanswered questions and they plan to learn of the consequences for the driver of the semi and the driver’s company.

“In the last few years there have been far too many incidents at road construction sites to innocent families. Perhaps the Province of Saskatchewan should adopt the same laws as in Alberta regarding shutting down road construction for weekends and resuming work on weekdays,” the Skalicky family statement said.

“We would like to see government install better rules and regulations for processional drivers so no other family needs to go through this senseless pain and no other prairie families need to bury their sons or daughters.”

All three families thanked the community for its support .

The town’s mayor, Bob Gagne, described the teens as “energetic and vibrant” in a statement. He thanked the community and those from other communities that offered their condolences and support for the families of the young men.

He also had a message for their families.

“We know that saying goodbye to Kristian, Carter and Justin will be the hardest sorrow to bear. We cannot remove the heartache you’re suffering but hope that the wonderful memories you have of them as well as the love and friendship you have around you, will support you through this difficult time.”

He also told paNOW he thinks the community will start to rally and start returning to a normal routine.

“I mean, last week, it was like, you know, a real shadow of sadness in town. And I think that you’ll find people will be a little more vibrant now and, you know, try to put this aside a little bit.”

-With files from Nigel Maxwell.

tjames@panow.com

On Twitter: @thiajames

by Thia James

‘Vibrant’ Carrot River teens laid to rest

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