‘He was always my hero’: grieving mother remembers son

The mother of a fallen Glace Bay soldier says he was more than just a hero – he was her best friend.

Sgt. Jimmy McNeil died in Afghanistan in June and relatives held a memorial service on Sunday to mark the start of Remembrance Week.

McNeil’s mother, Velma, tells CTV, she’s still grieving the loss of her only child.

“I know he was a hero to these people now, but he was always my hero, from the day he was born,” she said. “His smile, his big hugs, his laughter, he was just the best thing I could ever ask for.”

McNeil died days before he was due to return to Canada, where he’d planned to get married and start a family.

His relatives are hoping to establish a permanent memorial in Glace Bay in the form of a school or sports field named after McNeil.

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