Foundation launched in memory of Alex Hutchinson, Ethan Reilly

For both the Hutchinson and Reilly families of western P.E.I., it has been a terrible year.

Their sons Alex Hutchinson and Ethan Reilly were killed in a boating accident last September. But nearly a year later, the community is rallying to create a foundation in honour of the boys, who were both known for their kind-heartedness before they died at only 17 years old.  

The A&E Legacy Foundation will put on events to memorialize each of the young men, tailored to their hobbies and passions, while also raising money to help pay for youth sport in West Prince — for other families who otherwise could not afford it.

"When Alex had his accident, one of my biggest fears was that Alex would be forgotten," said his father, Darren Hutchinson. "It was on my mind a lot."

The families were then approached by Joey Dumville, who coached both Ethan and Alex in hockey and knew them well. With the blessing of the families, Dumville and fellow coach Nathan DesRoches took on the task of co-chairing the foundation's newly struck committee.

"Not one person said no," Dumville said. 

"They all wanted to be a part of it. And now we're looking forward to doing some events here in the next little bit to be able to to honour the boys and keep that memory alive."

'It does take a village'

The first event — the Hutch Cup — will be held on Sept. 11. It's a competition to see who can catch the biggest lobster and take home the trophy in honour of Alex.

"Alex loved being a fisherman. Alex fished with my brother-in-law and myself for years, like since he was 12 years old, and he was the third man in the boat, which is usually a job for an adult," Darren said.

"He was always competitive. He always liked catching a big lobster. He never liked hearing about a catch that was better than ours."

The foundation also plans to host the Rufus Run this year, an all-terrain vehicle event in honour of Ethan, who loved anything and everything to do with motors.

"We had to come up with a name for it, and at the rink he's just known as Ethan, but around the neighborhood he's known as 'Rufus'," said mom Kim Reilly. "He's a character in his own right."

From there, the board plans to continue hosting events, including some hockey-related ones in the winter. The goal is to eventually raise an amount of money in the six-figure range.

"If it takes us five years, it takes us five years and if it takes us 50 years, it takes us 50 years, right? That's something that we're going to really push hard and do," Dumville said.

"We're hard, working-class families up here. We're resilient folks.... There's not a lot of money around in certain places in time, so if we can help relieve some of that debt on people, then that's a great way to honour Ethan and Alex."

Dumville has dealt with his own tragic loss, after his own mother died in an accident when he was a child. An annual award is also given out in her honour.

"This Legacy Foundation was an idea to give the parents something to look forward to, you know, in their darkest days, something that they can find some positivity in both families," Dumville said.

"I feel like I am a product of my community. It does take a village to raise a child."

'They're connected through their willingness to give'

DesRoches is the foundation's other co-chair. He said the goal is to keep alive the charitable spirit that both boys embodied.

"They're connected through this tragedy, but probably more importantly, they're connected through their willingness to give to others.… Essentially our mandate is to give back to the youth in western Prince Edward Island," said DesRoches, who coached Alex's hockey team.

"This is a tremendous opportunity to memorialize and honour two great young men."

For Ethan's mom, the warmth behind the legacy foundation is something she saw in her son from the time he was a child.

"Whether it be with me, helping me around with my blindness, whether it be the neighbours locked their keys out of their house and needed someone to fit through the window to get in ... whether it be putting in wood, whether it be just being friendly at the gas station ... that's just who he was," she said.

"If Ethan was here to see it, he'd be a member on the board, both him and Alex."

Everybody can say it's going to get better, but it really doesn't. What gets better is memories. That's all we have left now.— Kim Reilly

Darren Hutchinson also remembers his son as a boy who felt a strong connection to his community.

"Alex would travel around the harbours and he'd talk to older fishermen that he didn't already know, strike up a conversation. He was just that kind of a kid. He knew every boat, knew the captain, knew what was in the boat for an engine," Darren said. 

"One day he was going to be a fisherman, his own captain."

Growing on their legacy

As the first year without their sons draws to a close, both families say that they have received an outpouring of support from the people of West Prince, and that the foundation feels like a natural step.

"Everybody can say it's going to get better, but it really doesn't. What gets better is memories. That's all we have left now, it's memories. Taking what they did when they were here and growing on that," Kim said.

"Tragedy can bring you down, and it's not going to change anything as far as bringing the boys back, which everyone wishes they could, but everybody feels they want to do something."

Said Darren: "It's just so different without him. Alex was our life and it's tough, but the legacy fund is something that gives us a purpose, it gives us, you know, something to have to keep Alex's memory alive."

"I want it to be for kids down the road to ask who Alex Hutchinson and Ethan Reilly [are]," he said. 

"And for their parents to tell them about Alex and Ethan."

More from CBC P.E.I.