It has been one year since Jimmy Wiebe was killed during a robbery at the Shell gas station in Yorkton. In that time, friends and family have come together to bring good out of the tragedy, and on the one year anniversary approximately 50 people came to a candlelight vigil to remember the man and continue working in his memory.
Aaron Nagy, organizer of the event, says that in the year since his friend's death the goal has been to continue working towards preventing similar tragedies in the future. He also says that progress has been made towards protecting late night workers, and that he expects to see something rolled into upcoming labor legislation. While disappointed that the private member's bill didn't pass in the spring session, Nagy says that any steps toward improved safety are victories, and he hopes to see things like barriers in late night workplaces soon.
"In a sense, Jimmy's law will become a reality, it's just a matter of time... To me personally, the details don't matter much. As long as we get some kind of protection for late night workers. If we save one life, it's worth its weight in gold," Nagy says.
Another project started was a scholarship in Wiebe's name. The scholarship, which will be presented to a student at Sacred Heart High School and the Yorkton Regional High School, will go to the student who is most improved in math over the school year. Nagy explains that the goal was to reward the student who works hard to improve their abilities, rather than just the student with the best marks.
"Since Jimmy was so good with math and numbers, we thought we would reward some students," Nagy says.
The goal of all these projects, says Nagy, is to honor a good friend who was taken away too soon.
"For me, it's very important to keep his memory alive. He was one of the best friends I ever had, and it was sad to lose him the way I did. But, if I can honor his memory somehow, I will do it."
Those who want to support the Jimmy Wiebe Memorial Scholarship can visit ScotiaBank and make a donation.
