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Chris Friesen | BE THE BEST

  • May 29
  • 2 min read

Chris Friesen was a young man who had a bright future in sports. He grew up in Langley, British Columbia with an older brother, Max. The last person that Chris talked to was Max.


Growing up, Chris played sports and when he got older, he chose lacrosse, a sport that he excelled at. He had played both field and box lacrosse, played on numerous teams and played in countless tournaments. Chris was starting to look into universities and colleges and was excited about his options and was looking forward to that next step, the beginning of a new chapter.


Chris was hard on himself. He was his own worst critic. When he didn’t get a perfect score on his driving test, he used his punching bag that he used to exercise to let go of that frustration. He needed to be reminded to take a step back and breathe. He wanted to be the best. 


On the day that Chris passed away, an incident happened at school that left Chris devastated. He was driving home from school when he lost control of the car, causing him to hit a curb then a fence. There were no injuries and the car was still operational, but the people that knew Chris knew that this happening in front of friends and on school property was something that Chris wasn’t going to forgive himself for. Chris made a heartbreaking decision that wasn’t able to be reversed. 


At the age of 17, Chris Friesen took his own life, leaving behind his parents, Randy and Ingrid and his brother, Max. His parents were with him at the time of his passing. There was nothing that showed that Chris was thinking about suicide. He had everything to look forward to and had a bright future, but with Chris and his personality, something happened that left him with no other choice.  


In honor of Chris, his parents created “The Chris Friesen Memorial Award” at Simon Fraser University. It provides yearly recognition and financial assistance for SFU students demonstrating high standards of performance on the lacrosse field, as well as exemplary leadership and teamwork.


Chris' dad, Randy started a blog called "Best The Best" in which he talked about losing Chris. It was to help him with the grief of losing his son at 17 years old. He also posted vidoes on youtube which included the eulogy his family made that was played at his memorial service.


Chris may have left the world to soon, but the life he had and the person he was will always be remembered by the people that loved and adored him.




Randy Friesen's Blog: https://www.christianfriesen.com/

 
 
 

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