Scott Roche is so close to the Downey family he feels like he lost a son with Jacob Downey’s passing.
The 18-year-old from Downeyville, a first-year student at Queen’s University, died unexpectedly on Wednesday and while a cause of death has not been confirmed yet early indications point to natural causes.
Mr. Downey was the recipient of the Peterborough Petes Education Fund Minor Hockey Scholarship for 2020-21 and was a member of the Peterborough U18 AAA Petes the past two seasons. He was a graduate of Lindsay’s I.E. Weldon Secondary School where his father Peter is a teacher.
He was in his first year of studies in kinesiology in Queen’s faculty of arts and science with a goal of pursuing a career in sports medicine.
Roche coached Mr. Downey for six seasons first in the Kawartha Coyotes minor hockey program, then with the Central Ontario Wolves AAA U16 team and the past two years with the U18 Petes.
“It’s heartbreaking,” Roche said. “Not only was I his coach but a close family friend. He was almost to a degree like a son to me, too. It’s devastating. To be honest, I still haven’t really processed this yet.”
Roche, who will serve as a pallbearer at Mr. Downey’s funeral, said it’s sad to see someone with so much potential die so young.
“He was a brilliant kid on and off the ice and in every sport he played. He excelled not only in hockey but field lacrosse, box lacrosse and he played a lot of rugby, too. Off the playing field, he was an extremely motivated and smart kid in all walks of life and school. He had ambitions of getting into sports science and I know he would have been fantastic at that because of his sports background.”
You might be interested in
Roche said Mr. Downey was a quiet leader on every team he played on.
“He showed up every day and worked extremely hard and was always positive,” he said. “He never let the highs get too high or the lows get too low. One team we had a few struggles now and then and he never took part in any of the negativity. A few of the teams he played on that I coached were some of the best teams in the province at whatever level we played and he didn’t get a big head from it. He just showed up every day and did whatever we needed him to do as a player.
“He was ultimately a defenceman but there were times we put him up at forward and he never said boo. I always joked that he’d play goal if we need him to. He was the ultimate teammate.”
It’s left an impact on his former teammates.
“They were touched by him too. He was really, really well liked by all of his teammates,” Roche said.
Queen’s released a statement on its website about Mr. Downey.
“Jacob had many friends from his activities and had already developed a number of friendships with fellow students and residents of Jean Royce Hall,” read the statement. “Jacob will be deeply missed by his parents, Peter and Laurie, his extended family and friends.”
Queen’s has offered counselling for students who feel a need to speak to someone about their grief. Roche said his team will honour Mr. Downey at some point this season.
Visitation for Mr. Downey will be held at Stoddart’s Funeral Home, 24 Mill St. in Lindsay, on Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. A funeral mass will be held at St. Luke’s Catholic Church in Downeyville on Monday at 11 a.m. All guests are required to wear a mask and physically distance.
Anyone can read Conversations, but to contribute, you should be a registered Metroland account holder. If you do not yet have a Metroland account, you can create one now (it is free).
To join the conversation set a first and last name in your user profile.
Sign in or register for free to join the Conversation