Darren Fitzpatrick always loved being part of a team.
He learned early on in his life that when others needed him to come to their defence he was always willing to do the job, and it gave him confidence. It was a role he relished as a young teenager playing minor football in Prince George, where his actions taught his teammates the value of sticking together to overcome adversity.
Football developed the leadership qualities that enriched Fitzpatrick's life and when his sporting career ended he looked to the Canadian army as a new challenge to showcase the same attributes that made so popular with his teammates.
Tragically, he never got to finish the job he started.
Cpl. Darren James Fitzpatrick died Saturday in Edmonton of injuries he sustained March 6 when a improvised explosive device detonated while he was on a foot patrol in Afghanistan, near Kandahar City.
"He was a leader, somebody who always gave it their all and made everybody feel good," said Aaron Barnett, 22, who first met Fitzpatrick when they were 12-year-olds playing junior bantam team in the Prince George Minor Football Association.
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