Page 343 - Reason To Sing by Kelita Haverland
P. 343

Epilogue


               We saw a lot of each other in the ensuing years, whenever
            I was singing in Alberta. This made me very happy.
               When Gord and I moved from Toronto to Vancouver, I
            was really excited about getting back ‘west’ to my roots and
            family ties. Although not my home province, BC was close
            enough. We had been settled for about six months when Billy
            informed us he was coming for a visit. But first he was going
            to Vancouver Island to see Frankie and his wife. The dates
            were perfect as I would just be finishing up a little tour around
            the Toronto area. A catch-up with Billy was something I had
            been so looking forward to. It had been a few years since we’d
            seen each other.
               I had one last concert to give in Ontario when I got a call
            from Frankie’s then-wife. She told me that Billy had fallen
            into the river on the edge of the property. He was missing.
            Search and rescue were out in full force along with a crew of
            volunteers. They were doing their very best.
               The news stunned me. All I could think of was,  “Not
            again! Not another one. Please God, no!”  Of course, we were
            all hopeful that Billy would come walking through the back
            door alive and well at any minute.
               I performed my last concert that night. Only the grace
            of God got me through. I caught my flight to  Vancouver
            early the next day and then immediately travelled by ferry
            to the Island to be with Billy’s kids (who had already arrived
            at Frankie’s). For several days we all waited and prayed. And
            prayed and waited some more. Then search and rescue called
            off the mission and said there was nothing more they could
            do.  We had to accept the fact that Billy was gone. It was
            unbelievably surreal.
               Six weeks later, a fisherman found Billy’s body miles away,
            downstream. They needed dental records to identify him. The


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