Capt. Jennifer Casey was killed when the snowbird in which she was riding went down in a Brocklehurst neighbourhood on May 17 (Image Credit: Royal Canadian Air Force)

By Chad Klassen

SNOWBIRDS MEMORIAL

City council unanimously approves memorial for snowbirds Capt. Jennifer Casey

Jun 16, 2020 | 5:34 PM

KAMLOOPS — From the moment Capt. Jennifer Casey died in the tragic Snowbirds crash last month in Brocklehurst, city residents rallied around her and the entire Snowbirds team.

A memorial was set up at the airport to honour Casey and was draped with Canadian flags and loving messages.

“It was nice to see, not suprising to see, everyone just rally around and show love and support for Capt. Casey and the snowbirds and everyone involved,” said Kamloops resident Giancarlo Briglio.

Shortly after the accident on May 17, Briglio proposed renaming Airport Road to Captain Jenn Casey Memorial Way. As of Tuesday afternoon (June 16), Briglio has shut down the petition, which received more than 45,000 signatures online.

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According to Kamloops Mayor Ken Christian, there are “many ideas” being discussed at city hall, but the only certain thing is the City is going ahead with a memorial for Casey at what will become Observation Park. The memorial will be part of the city’s Tranquille Gateway Corridor project.

Council unanimously approved moving ahead with the memorial Tuesday.

“We find already a number of people use that space, so we’re just going to capitalize on that, so our park planners will consult with the RCAF (Royal Canadian Air Force) and come up with a memorial that would be fitting,” Christian told CFJC Today.

Some people, however, like our own Mel Rothenburger, have come out and argued the public should have been consulted as well.

“Consulting with Capt. Casey’s family and the Snowbirds is, of course, entirely appropriate and there was never any suggestion otherwise,” he wrote in his Armchair Mayor editorial on Monday. “The family and the Snowbirds should know what the Kamloops public thinks as well.”

Critics online have questioned putting taxpayer money towards the memorial. Mayor Christian says the City will utilize some of the money provided by Trans Mountain for work being done in the area.

“We do have a $750,000 community benefit agreement with [Trans Mountain] that we can use, as well as I think there will be a lot of support for something like that. We’re not talking a huge amount of money.”

Briglio is all for a memorial, and hoping one day for a street to be renamed, to honour Capt. Jennifer Casey.