Will's life
It is with profound sadness that we announce the sudden death of Will Donald Skopyk on July 24, 2018 as a result of a motor vehicle accident returning home from work. He is survived by his parents Rod Skopyk and Lisa Wilhelm-Skopyk, his brother Ryan, his grandparents Terry and Gerald Skopyk and Elizabeth “Beth” Wilhelm, and his Great Grandma Sarah Beaudoin. He is also survived by his Aunts and Uncles and cousins – Lori Ulriksen (Brian) with cousins Dylan (his special friend Taryn), and Hayley – Yvonne (Leonard) Denomy with cousins Connor (special friend Jo) and Sarah – Bradley (Paula) with cousin Anastasia – Bruce (Laura) Wilhelm – cousins McKenna and Graeme – Lauri (Todd) Patterson with cousins Nicklas and Ty.
He is also survived many great Uncles and Aunts and extended family and many friends and of course his special pets Max, Smokey and Buddy who he loved dearly.
He was predeceased by his Grandfather Donald Wilhelm and his great grandmother Agnes (Jean) Davidson and his great grandfather Walter (Chinny) Beaudoin.
Will was born on December 5, 2000 to Rod Skopyk and Lisa Wilhelm-Skopyk in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. He was anxious to arrive being 3 weeks early. He attended the French Program at Ecole Vickers School followed by the French Program at Carlton Comprehensive High School where this spring he travelled to France with the French Travel Club. He would have commenced Grade 12 this Fall.
Will was an excellent student whether in academics or the trades and had plans to study chemistry at University. He also had developed a keen appreciation of music whether it was rap, hip hop or classical and played the clarinet in the school band which he credited to his teachers Perry Acorn and Ms Bernath.
Will played hockey, soccer and baseball as a child and loved all sports including basketball, badminton and kayaking to name a few – but his passion was boxing training at the PA Boxing Club / Thomas Settee Boxing Club under the coaching of Bob Tichkowsky and Conrad Burns. Will was excited and honoured to become an Assistant Coach at the club. He won several provincial titles in his weight class. He looked forward to competing in the upcoming season.
Will loved the outdoors – fishing, Kayaking and just hanging out with friends or engaging in a rousing game of mantracker. In his young life he spent many hours at the Muller farm.
Like so many of his generation, Will loved video games and was incredibly tech savvy. It was not uncommon for Will and a group of friends to spend the day or weekend quadding, playing video games or basketball in the yard, barbecuing and having campfires. He always looked forward to camping trips with his buddies. He enjoyed a good game of Kaiser and other board games.
Will loved Waskesiu – camping there throughout his childhood and for the last two summers he worked at the Waskesiu Marina – a job he thoroughly enjoyed.
Will was generous to a fault – frequently chauffeuring friends who didn’t have wheels to and from school and even to the Doctor when needed. Including the Ditzel kids who he loved dearly.
Will was a great big brother to Ryan and, although they would spat from time to time, it always came back to them being thick as thieves. Whether it was sharing a laugh at their parents’ expense, playing practical jokes on each other, playing computer games or running into town to pick up Ryan, munchies and sometimes both.
He was thoughtful and had a profound sense of fairness. He was loyal.
Early on in his teenage years Will made a decision to live a healthy lifestyle eating healthy, training and avoiding smoking, drugs and alcohol. He was committed to this path despite the obvious pressures in his teenage years. His close friends accepted and respected this choice.
Will was a great cook – it was not uncommon for him to whip up a batch of cake donuts because he had a craving or announce he was making quiche. He loved popcorn – if you couldn’t find a large bowl they were probably all in his room with leftover unpopped kernels in them.
Like any boy his age he loved cars and was planning to purchase a project car he could work on with his buddies.
Will was an animal lover always up for dog sitting Clementine. He regularly advocated strongly for a beagle as he felt Max needed a friend and recently added a Norwegian Elkhound to the list. Even after you thought he’d forgotten it he’d bring it up again this time with a plan and timeline.
His trip to France and England was a turning point for Will. He was fascinated by the architecture. In particular he told us about a church that burned to the ground only to be rebuilt with the inscription of a Phoenix which said “resurgam – I shall rise again”. This deeply affected him and saw his own life reflected in it as he emerged from childhood to adulthood.
He will be deeply missed by all who knew him but maybe, in a way, he was on to something “I shall rise again.”