The mother of a 12-year-old girl killed in the school shooting in Tumbler Ridge says her family is struggling to comprehend the loss as the small northern B.C. community mourns the victims.
Sarah Lampert spoke to reporters Thursday about her daughter, Ticaria, who was among eight people killed in the attack that also left the shooter dead and dozens injured.
“We now have to figure out how to live life without her, and there’s nothing and no one that can fill that gap,” Lampert said. “Our family is shattered, and it is going to take immense amounts of time to get through this.”
Lampert, a single mother of eight children, described her household as deeply interconnected. “I’m a single mom and every single one of us matter in my family. Our truth is that we have learned to become a functioning cell together. Every one of us mattered. Her absence in our family is not going to go unnoticed,” she said, fighting back tears.
Lampert described her daughter as a larger-than-life presence in their home. “She was a blazing light in the darkness. If you didn’t see her, you definitely heard her,” she said, adding that her daughter “just wanted to bring sunshine to everyone and everything she ever touched.”
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“She loved her family fiercely … her friends were her everything,” her mother said.
Lampert said everyday routines now serve as painful reminders of her daughter’s absence.
“Simple things like going and getting in the van and turning around and not having a full head count is going to be hard. Everything is hard right now.”
Ticaria, known to family and friends as Tiki, is being remembered as a vibrant and loving child.
“Ticaria (Tiki) was such a loving, courageous, humorous, one-of-a-kind kiddo and her life was cut short at only 12 years of age,” reads a GoFundMe page set up by a Tumbler Ridge resident to support the family with funeral expenses.
The page says Lampert “could use some help with funeral costs to lay her baby girl to rest the way Tiki deserves,” adding that Ticaria “left behind seven other siblings and a mother who loved her so much.”
Lampert thanked the community and addressed her loved ones. “To my family and my friends and everybody else, just know that I am going to get there. We are going to get there,” she said.
“This has been the hardest pill to swallow. I still am in disbelief. To accept that my daughter is gone is impossible. I don’t know what else to say. Thank you everyone.”
A community vigil is scheduled for Friday. Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to attend as residents gather to honour the victims.
–with files from Amy Judd and Uday Rana
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