'He was my baby': Memorial service held for man who died in N.B. public washroom
'He was my baby': Memorial service held for man who died in N.B. public washroom
A crowd of around 150 people gathered at St. George's Anglican Church Wednesday to remember Luke Landry. The 35-year-old died last Monday inside a public washroom next to Moncton City Hall.
After overdosing in the afternoon, staff at Ensemble Moncton, an overdose prevention site, tried to find a place for him to stay the night.
After hours of trying, shelter couldn't be found for Landry and he left Ensemble with no place to stay.
Charlie Burrell, the founder of the Humanity Project, was in attendance at the service and said Landry's death didn't need to happen.
"It's preventable and more people are going to fall through the cracks so we shouldn't let him die in vain. A lot of people are out there struggling and need help and our system is failing them and people deserve better than that," said Burrell.
Landry had lived in Moncton for the better part of a decade. He was a devout Christian, and the father of two little girls in Truro, Nova Scotia.
Kim Spencer was a client of Harvest House shelter with Landry in 2014 and 2015 and said his old friend was quite the rapper.
"He could dance like nobody could dance. A very energetic individual and he loved people. Bottom line, he loved people and he tried to help somebody when he could," said Spencer.
CTV News spoke to Landry's mother Mary MacDonald from her home in Prince George, B.C. on Tuesday.
MacDonald talked to her son the day he died. She said he had gotten out of jail that morning and had nothing, so she sent him $100 for boots and clothes.
She knew he wasn't dressed properly for the weather and Landry wanted new boots and jeans because he had a lot of pride and didn't want to look like he was down on his luck.
MacDonald is aware front line workers at Ensemble Moncton tried to find shelter for her son, but none was available.
"He left there trying to find something on his own," said MacDonald. "I don't know what happened. I believe in what she [Ensemble staff member] said that he wasn't safe to go out... and he was let out."
She doesn't know for sure, but suspects her son died of a drug overdose.
"He was my baby and I had so much hope for him," said an emotional MacDonald. "I kept thinking he could turn this around. He had promised he would call me... the last thing he said to me when I talked to him was, 'I love you mom.'"
MacDonald was glad to hear there was a memorial service in Moncton for her son.
"It's a place for his friends to grieve and he had many friends in Moncton. A lot of the homeless people in Moncton were his friends as well," she said.
MacDonald is relieved to hear about a new emergency shelter in Moncton, but wants more for people coming out of jail, struggling with addiction and living on the street.
"People are going to die if some things don't change. My son deserves to be recognized for who he was. He's not a street person, he was so much more," said MacDonald.
She highlighted that Landry was not a bad person, just someone with a bad problem.
Her son's ashes will be sent to her in Prince George and a celebration of life for him will be held this summer in Cape Breton.
The federal government is seeking to delay the extension of assisted dying eligibility to people whose sole condition is a mental disorder until March 17, 2024. Justice Minister David Lametti introduced a bill seeking the extension in the House of Commons on Thursday.
A gay man is taking the federal government to court, challenging the constitutionality of a policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned.
Will we see six more weeks of winter, or an early spring? Here’s what some of the groundhogs (and one human) have predicted so far, from coast-to-coast.
Nestle Canada says it is winding down its frozen meals and pizza business in Canada over the next six months. The four brands that will no longer be sold in the freezer aisle at Canadian grocery stores are Delissio, Stouffer's, Lean Cuisine and Life Cuisine.
The United States has answered President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's plea for rockets that can strike deep behind the front lines of the nearly year-long conflict with Russia. Now Russian forces will need to adapt or face potentially catastrophic losses.
Australia is removing the monarchy from its bank notes. The nation's new $5 bill will feature an Indigenous design rather than an image of King Charles III. But the king is still expected to appear on coins that currently bear the image of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
The organization regulating medical care and services in Manitoba is apologizing for racism directed towards Indigenous people when accessing health care in the province.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall theft.
Ontario has released a new 'connected' and 'convenient' health-care plan aimed at shortening wait times and localizing access to care across the province.
Three Richmond Hill residents have been arrested after police seized $500,000 in fake gift cards from a “sophisticated forgery lab” while searching multiple local properties last month.
A polar vortex is descending over Ontario this week and some of the coldest weather is still to come. Wind chills will also reach dangerous levels, increasing the risk of frostbite.
Calgary's Scotiabank Saddledome was packed to the rafters with fans eager to take a look at Canadian phenom Connor Bedard and the 17-year-old did not fail to impress.
The next few nights are expected to be frigid in Montreal, with wind chill factors dropping to -30. In order to prevent anyone experiencing homelessness from ending up outdoors, the City of Montreal is announcing the opening of two emergency shelters.
A Quebec woman said she was very surprised to find her stolen Audi had been used in what’s being described as an “absolutely insane” Ontario mall theft.
Athabasca University's board of governors has replaced the president who resisted the government's demand to double the distance-learning school's number of employees who live in Athabasca.
The Nishnawbe Aski Police Service is investigating after a handwritten note containing a violent threat at an Attawapiskat arena was found during a hockey tournament prompting an armed response by officers.
Highway 11 in northern Ontario is closed Thursday morning from Highway 66 near Kenogami Lake to Matheson after a collision involving several vehicles, police say.
One person has died after a two-vehicle crash in south London Wednesday night. Police were called to the scene on Bostwick Road around 7:20 p.m. and say there were five people injured in total and all five were taken to the hospital with injuries ranging from serious to life-threatening.
Wiarton Willie has predicted an early spring! The groundhog in South Bruce Peninsula didn't see his shadow at 8:07 a.m. on Thursday morning, meaning spring is on the way.
The federal government is seeking to delay the extension of assisted dying eligibility to people whose sole condition is a mental disorder until March 17, 2024. Justice Minister David Lametti introduced a bill seeking the extension in the House of Commons on Thursday.
Ottawa ranks 45th out of 62 cities across Canada and the United States in a study on downtown recovery, with activity levels at 51 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
A former professional hockey player well-known for dropping the gloves is trying his hand at acting and will star in another season of the Canadian sitcom Shoresy.
B.C.'s Ministry of Health is continuing its multi-year trend of paying millions more dollars each year to private surgical centres for the delivery of public health care, CTV News has learned.
Paramedic logs from 2022 are highlighting some of the pressures Regina EMS workers have been facing for months including one instance where a patient died following offload delays at the hospital, the documents indicate.
Calgary's Scotiabank Saddledome was packed to the rafters with fans eager to take a look at Canadian phenom Connor Bedard and the 17-year-old did not fail to impress.
A pair of provincial parks are being considered in the B.C. government's treaty negotiations with the T’Sou-ke and Songhees nations on Vancouver Island.
A homicide investigation is underway on Quadra Island, B.C., after a 39-year old woman was found dead in what investigators believe was a targeted killing.
