The Beckett Project
The Beckett Project
by Ann Robson
Beckett Smith
Allow me to tell you about my son. As a toddler, instead of playing with traditional toys, Beckett's favorite thing was a vacuum. He would spend hours playing with the attachments and cords. This evolved into taking anything and everything apart and putting it back together again. He built his first computer at age 11 and became "tech support" for many family and friends.
When Beckett began secondary school, joining the robotics team was a given. He even began mentoring an elementary school team himself. He was so proud when that team won a provincial competition.
He loved sharing his knowledge and had a gift for inspiring others. He was recommended for and accepted a consulting position at Western. After only three months, he was asked to present to area educators (keep in mind he was only 17). He had so much potential and an exciting future ahead of him.
But this is not what I'm most proud of. My son loved his family deeply, especially his little brother. He was patient, kind and respectful, with a wicked sense of humour. He was wise beyond his years – an old soul. Those are the qualities I miss most, and what I am and always will be so very proud of.
Unfortunately, Beckett put pressure on himself to be perfect. He accepted unnecessary blame when things didn't go as planned. He cared about others' opinions and took comments to heart. Despite all his gifts, he was still a teenager just trying to find his way and his place in the world.
Beckett knew he was loved beyond words, yet he still hid his struggles from his family and friends. We never had a chance to try and save him. We were all blindsided when he died by suicide on April 26, 2018.
To continue to share the many gifts he would have given us, we've created The Beckett Project – a fund that will support local educational and community initiatives that reflect Beckett's passions and ideals.
His name alone speaks for what he believed in and what The Beckett Project is simply about:
Because
Empathy
Creates
Kindness &
Education
Teaches
Tolerance