Philanthropy matters for honouring loved ones
Outpouring of love for fallen athlete
On Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023, Erin Walter said goodbye to her only son, Owyn McInnis, as she headed to the Kamloops airport to catch a flight home.
After an incredible four-day visit, she was flying home to Guelph, ON, and Owyn insisted she stop by the house he shared with several other TRU WolfPack athletes to say goodbye. As they shared a final hug, Walter says Owyn seemed reluctant to let go. She asked him if he was okay and he replied, “Why does it feel like it’s going to be the last time I’m ever going to hug you?”
It would be their last embrace.
On Wednesday, Nov. 29 McInnis was killed in a multi-vehicle crash just beyond the campus border. Two of his teammates, Riley Brinnen and Owen Waterhouse, were also critically injured when the car they were in was hit from behind as they waited at a red light.
“Little did I know it was going to be the last time I saw him. It’s surreal to think about the conversations we had before he died,” says Walter. “It was such a great thing to be able to be out there and see all he was doing and be part of his world. The things that I really wished for him as a human being were for him to give back and fall in love and do great things — and he did — he was thriving.”
Within a few hours of hearing the devastating news, Walter was on a flight to Kamloops. One of the first people she saw upon landing was TRU Director of Athletics Curtis Atkinson.
“I looked at him and said, ‘I want a scholarship in his name,” she says.
“I want to raise $150,000. That way, I know that for as long as he might have lived otherwise, something connected to his name will continue helping other student-athletes.”
“I looked at him and said, ‘I want a scholarship in his name…”
His father, Sheldon, sister, Brielle, and fiancée, Amber, agreed and by Dec. 2, the Owyn McInnis Memorial — Men’s Volleyball Athletic Award was announced. Donations rapidly poured in.
Because of Owyn, Walter takes comfort knowing other athletes will have the freedom to explore opportunities away from home, buy books, afford groceries and perhaps visit their families a little more often.
“When something tragic like this happens, we lose faith in humanity and there’s all the things that we can find wrong. Let’s look for the good. Let’s look for the kindness. Let’s look for the ripple effect. We can’t undo what happened, but we can really help some people going forward,” says Walter, adding that shortly after Owyn passed away, she learned he had told people one day he wanted to have a scholarship in his name.
“And here we are today raising money knowing he will be remembered.”
As of March 31, 2024, the Owyn McInnis Memorial Endowment had received 422 gifts totalling $78,205.40. Donors from BC to Ontario and all points in between have come together to honour Owyn and continue to build the endowment in his name. In addition, at least two annual volleyball tournaments have been established in Owyn’s name, ensuring young volleyball players across Canada will continue to learn of his legacy for years to come while raising money to support fellow athletes.
Donations can be made at tru.ca/owyn.
