Chris Joseph always knew what to say and when to say it his sister. That along with the time they spent biking around town is what Shauna Joseph said she’ll miss the most about him.
Chris passed away in a car crash on June 2. He was 26.
Chris was involved in a single vehicle rollover on Old Babine Lake Road, near Hynes Road, at around 3:30 a.m.
Chris, who was a passenger, and his girlfriend Kristen Helin were ejected from the vehicle in the crash.
Both of them were taken to Bulkley Valley Regional Hospital. Chris’s girlfriend survived while he succumbed to the injuries he sustained in the accident at the hospital.
Shauna said she needs to keep busy or she’ll fall apart.
“Once I sit down I just start crying,” Shauna said. “”It’s been a really long hard few weeks for me and granny — we’ve barely been sleeping … I still can’t believe it, it feels like he’s working or something.”
Chris was born and raised in Smithers. He attended the now-closed Lake Kathlyn Elementary School.
He spent a lot of time at the Dze L K’ant Friendship Centre, which his great grandmother Mary Joseph helped co-founded, as a kid.
As an adult he moved all around B.C. He lived in Prince George, Kamloops and Williams Lake.
Chris had three sisters: Shauna and Michelle are his elder sisters and Jolene is his younger sister. He was also very close with his grandmother.
Chris would go berry picking with her as a child, and as an adult always made sure to check up on her. He would mow the lawn, call to see how she was doing and even take her on trips.
“He would always phone me and ask me if I’m doing anything,” Chris’s grandmother Helen Joseph said. “ ‘Want to go for a drive?’ One time we went up to Dease Lake.”
Chris had recently returned to Smithers after completing an alcohol treatment program in Abbottsford.
Chris had turned his life around according to Shauna. He quit drinking, got engaged, and started attending gospels meetings.
“It was really nice to see him change like that,” Shauna said. “You could see it physically, just a healthy glow.”
The RCMP is still investigating the cause of the crash and the results may not be known for a few months.
The Ramona Wilson Walk was cancelled after Chris’s death. It was to be rescheduled.
