October 4, 2000 – March 31, 2017

Mykel Frank-Rothenburger began life with a passion that never let up. When he was three years old, he picked up his first medical book. It was a sign that this was a kid who was going to be above the ordinary.
He was shy, funny, kind, artistic in his own way and intensely inquisitive. He was, as his mom Edyn calls him, “the most beautiful soul this world had to offer.” And, as an early friend describes him, “a little weird, a little wacky and so full of love, that’s what made Mykel, Mykel.”
Edyn and Mykel would agree that he provided some challenging moments. “One of his greatest skills was testing the limits of his mother,” Edyn says, smiling as she remembers the joy of him.
As Mykel grew up, his interests were, to say the least, diverse. He loved trying new things. At five, he took up karate, a sport he remained devoted to his entire life, earning a third-degree black belt.
At Beattie School of the Arts, he began playing the alto saxophone, and kept at it. He even composed his own songs. And while it’s unlikely he was going to win a Juno or an Oscar (he “accidentally” got into drama in school), he liked to sing and act.
And from an early age he loved the water, whether it be in the pool or, for the past several years, on the sailboat owned by his ‘Nan’ Irene and ‘Pop’ Jon Buckle.
Oh, yeah, and there was snowboarding, and Rubik’s cubes, and video games and, of course, he knew much more about how computers work than most software developers and technicians. Seemed like it, anyway. By Grade 6 he was carting his laptop to school with him.
After Beattie, he attended Sa-Hali secondary, SKSS and the KOOL School. His shyness began to fade and self-confidence took root.
Mykel liked his hot chocolate with whole milk, not pre-mixed; he enjoyed posting funny videos, quoting random facts, almost anything to do with science, working with hand tools, researching his family history, spending time with his girlfriend Jasmine, hanging out with friends and volunteering at the SPCA. He grew his hair a foot long to donate to the Wigs for Kids program for kids with cancer. That’s the kind of guy he was.
One day last October, right after his 16th birthday, he proudly stuck his ‘L’ on his Nan’s car and began working towards his driver’s license. He was already looking forward to getting his own car and souping it up. “Watch out people of Kamloops!” he posted on Facebook.
As for those medical books, well, he decided early on he’d become a doctor, later adjusting that ambition to becoming a medical researcher.
We lost Mykel last Friday. We lost the complicated joy he brought to his friends, his family and most of all his loving mother Edyn.
His mom is joined by dad Mike Frank, gramma Laurie Frank, Aunt Beth, ‘Nan’ Irene (and Jon ‘Pop’) Buckle, grand-dad Mel (Syd) Rothenburger, great-grandma Kay Alaric, aunts Sunnie, Kelly and Aija, uncles Ryan, Jacob and Matthew and lots of cousins, his cat Leo and girlfriend ‘Little Egg’ Jasmine Bidwell in mourning him and missing him.
A service will be held at 1 p.m. on Friday, April 7 at St. Paul’s Cathedral, 360 Nicola St., Kamloops. In lieu of flowers, donations to the SPCA would be much appreciated. A scholarship will be established in Mykel’s name to benefit children with ADHD and mental health challenges.

Condolences may be expressed at www.schoeningfuneralservice.com

• Date : 2017-03-31
• Location : Kamloops, B.C.