An emotional memorial was held Friday for Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau at their old high school in Gloucester City, New Jersey.
The ceremony came a week after the two brothers were killed while riding their bikes in Salem County, N.J., the day before their sister’s wedding.
The event was attended by members of the Gaudreau family, friends, former classmates, fans and a variety of Gloucester Catholic High School staff members who shared a few stories about the two brothers, who continued to support the school long after graduating according to an article by Steve Keeley of Fox29 Philadelphia.
“They went on to play (hockey) globally, but they never forgot their roots,” said Patrick Murphy, who was the Gloucester Catholic athletic director when the Gaudreaus attended.
“They came back to Gloucester Catholic,” he said. “They gave up their time, their talent and their treasures to give back to Gloucester Catholic.”
“Matthy was a coach,” he added, “and John ran the golf tournament, which I helped with him for six years to give back, to help with scholarships for the school.”
School principal Tom Iacovone said, “We did this tonight just to give people a chance to come together to mourn, to really give each other a hug and to hopefully start the healing process.
“It’s gonna be a long road for a lot of people, including myself,” he added, “but we want to do everything we can to support the family and to just continue John and Matt’s legacy. To keep it alive.”
Former Calgarian Joel Elvres, who moved to New Jersey a decade ago, was among those in attendance.
“When he left Calgary for Columbus it was really quite upsetting for us (Flames fans),” Elwes told Keely in an interview posted on X, “but really showed that he valued family even over money, because he took less money to go to Columbus, and it just shows what kind of character he was. Family first.”
Mourning fans have created memorials at arenas in Columbus, Ohio and Calgary, where Johnny played his first eight NHL seasons for the Flames.
A private memorial for the Gaudreau family and close friends will be held Monday. It will be livestreamed on the Calgary Flames website at 10 a.m. MST and noon EST.
A memorial service for Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau scheduled for Monday, Sept. 9 at 10 a.m. will be livestreamed by the Calgary Flames on their website. (Photo: X@NHLFlames)
