THUNDER BAY -- A former Lakehead University student who worked with Roots to Harvest and the Fort William Historical Park was among two teachers killed in a school shooting in La Loche, Saskatchewan on Friday.
Thrity-five-year-old Adam Wood Adam Wood was killed on Friday when a shooter fired at people at two locations, including a high school in the community of 3,000.. Nine people were wounded in the attack that also killed 21-year-old Marie Janvier and brothers Dayne and Drayden Fontaine.
Wood had moved to La Loche to teach at the beginning of the school year.
A graduate of Lakehead University's Outdoor Recreation program, Wood's Uxbridge, Ontario-based family called him calling him an adventurer with a passion for life who made people laugh until their stomachs hurt.
"Adam had just begun his teaching career in La Loche last September and was enjoying his time," their statement reads. "He was always up for a good challenge and lived each day joyously."
Saying the organization was "reeling and our hearts are broken right now," Roots to Harvest posted a touching eulogy for Wood on its facebook page.
"Adam was elemental in holding Roots to Harvest together on the front lines, for the students – where it mattered," it reads in part.
"Adam should have lived a long and eventful life. He was the best combination of qualities – he was a goofball, he was an old soul, a pioneer at heart, and a flippin’ hard worker. He was humble, enthusiastic, loyal and insightful. He approached his work from the standpoint of wanting to make a difference. Not for money or perks (there aren’t many), but because he truly saw himself as able to make positive change in the world."
"And he did – he did make positive change. Not in a grandiose way – that wasn’t his style. But one individual at a time."
The group also re-posted Wood's blog entry entitled, "The Final Night" in which he posts American poet and environmental activist Wendell Berry's poem, Closing the Circle.
The Grassroots Church also posted a tweet on Saturday afternoon, which read "Teacher and member of our community. We will miss him! Laughter, smarts, love of God."
Thunder Bay-Superior North MP Patty Hajdu also released her condolences.
“My heart goes out to the family of Adam Wood, a proud Lakehead alumni, and to all of those who lost loved ones in La Loche,” Hajdu tweeted on Saturday.
Police say a 17-year-old has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted murder.
The male can't be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
