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Farewell: Tree planted to honour consummate Maple Ridge volunteer

Tom Cameron was remembered Saturday with a celebration of life at the Albion Fairgrounds.
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Tom Cameron will be going along on the Cops For Cancer ride this fall – sort of.

Few who knew Cameron, thought he’d ever literally be part of an 800-km law enforcement bike ride, even though he helped raise more than $50,000 for the cause during the past four years.

Nevertheless, it was announced during Cameron’s celebration of life on Saturday that Vancouver police officer Dayne Campbell – who’s participating in his ninth annual ride to help kids living with cancer – is taking Tom along in his heart. But, moreover, he’s taking some of Cameron’s ashes on this year’s ride.

Cameron, 74, died of leukemia in December and a community blood drive was held – as per his request – in February.

This past weekend’s celebration of life included a more formal tribute from Cameron’s peers at the Royal Canadian Legion’s Maple Ridge branch in the former of the honour guard, a musical tribute offered by some of his favourite local artists, and a tree planting.

A few hundred people who were touched by Cameron’s countless volunteer efforts joined family and close friends, some of whom came from as far away as the Okanagan and Williams Lake, Vancouver Island, Illinois, and even England to be part of Saturday’s gathering.

“We are all here because we know him for the person who has given more to the communities of Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows than most,” said his best friend Lorraine Bates, who lead the brief and informal ceremony.

“He never thought of himself as anything more than a volunteer, but in fact, to many, he was a local hero,” she added.

Cameron was the father of three, and he had two grandchildren. But he “emotionally adopted many outside of his close family,” Bates explained, thanking all those who joined the celebration of a man who she described as “an amazing human being” to so many.

“He gave of his heart and soul until it hurt, and with no expectation for anything in return,” Bates said.

Among the efforts he donated so much of his time to through the years were the Country Fest and the Maple Ridge & Pitt Meadows Christmas Hamper – both based out of the Albion Fairgrounds, where the celebration of life was held.

He was a lover of music, and one of his favourite parts of the annual Country Fest was the stage entertainment, which until recent years Cameron organized and emceed.

It seemed only fitting, Bates told the crowd, that a memorial tree planting be part of the ceremony, and that his requested tree be planted next to the very fairground’s main stage where he spent so much of his time.

Bates shared the story of how Cameron, when he spoke with her about his celebration of life, asked that a tree be planted.

When Bates asked what kind of tree he wanted, Cameron was quick to pick the mountain ash. He explained how beautiful the tree was – complete with berries - but he laughed when he recalled watching birds feast on the berries, then fly around as if completely intoxicated.

The story drew one of many chuckles from the crowd.

“Ultimately, we are all here today because Tom touched our hearts in some way,” Bates concluded. “He couldn’t help it. It was in him to give, so he did.”

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Roxanne Hooper

About the Author: Roxanne Hooper

I began in the news industry at age 15, but honestly, I knew I wanted to be a community journalist even before that.
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