Gibsons resident Judy Lynne diplomatically describes her late son Neil Falkner as "not the easiest teenager."
She says her son struggled after she and his father separated, which is when Neil began to act out. When Neil's behaviour didn't show any sign of improvement, Lynne and her now longterm partner decided a little tough love was in order and convinced the 16-year-old to take part in an Outward Bound Canada program in 1986.
Outward Bound programs are designed to teach youth how to meet challenges and find strength and courage through outdoor experiences, including hiking, kayaking and mountaineering. The courses, held in the heat of summer and chill of winter, include adventure training on oceans, rivers, mountains, lakes and forests. The goal is to teach youth about teamwork and respect, but more importantly about their own capabilities.
I was surprised to hear that back when Neil agreed to take part, the program was 25 days long. That's a long time for a teenager to be out in the wilderness learning new skills and, in Neil's case, a deep appreciation for the environment. Even today, courses can run as long as 21 days.
Lynne says that Outward Bound program pushed Neil beyond his limits.
"He came back feeling very proud," Lynne told me during a phone interview Monday afternoon from her Gibsons' home.
She believes it was the Outward Bound experience that inspired Neil to pursue careers as a ski patroller in Whistler and a motorcycle tour guide in the back roads of B.C. In his spare time, Neil was an avid alpine skier and mountain biker.
April 12 will mark the 10th anniversary of Falkner's death. He was 32-years old when he fell to his death in white-out conditions on the fifth day of a six-day ski trip. Neil fell from Mount Balfour in the Wapata Ice Fields while back country skiing with friends on the Alberta side of the Rocky Mountains.
Not long after his death, his family decided to honour Neil's legacy by creating an Outward Bound scholarship that provides annual funding to a Grade 10 student from Britannia secondary, where he attended high school, and for a Grade 10 student from the Whistler/Pemberton area. Scholarships are granted to at-risk girls and boys. To date, the family has paid for 15 students to attend Outward Bound.
Lynne laughs as she recalls those early fundraisers held at a Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»Legion, on a weeknight, with no liquor license. "You could buy a bag of chips and a bottle of water," she recalls. "But there was always a live swing band. Neil's sister is into swing dancing."
Today, the family is a little more savvy when it comes to fundraising. While there's still a live swing band, the fundraising parties now also include a cash bar, food sales and dance performances during breaks. As well, an online silent auction runs now through March 23. (I checked out the silent auction and there are a lot of great items still up for grabs.)
On the Neil Falkner Legacy website (neilfalknerlegacy.ca), Lynne writes about her son's death and her final goodbye to her middle child in a story simply titled Raven. "I read to him a card I'd written, a last bedtime story, and laid it in the box [coffin] with the leftover trail mix from this last journey," she wrote.
Ten years later I can still hear the grief in Lynne's voice as she speaks of Neil, and the pride in the man he became.
Lynne has been asked if she regrets sending Neil to Outward Bound, seeing as how it launched his love for adventure and the outdoors, a passion that eventually led to his death.
"But I tell them, it's what gave him the life he had," says Lynne. "I could never regret that. He became a remarkable person."
The eighth annual Swing Dance Fundraiser for the Neil Falkner Outward Bound Legacy Fund takes place March 24 at the Russian Hall, 600 Campbell St. Go to neilfalknerlegacy. ca for more information.
Twitter: @sthomas10
