Outpouring of grief bringing comfort to singer’s family
TORONTO (CP)— The outpouring of public support in the days since Gord Downie's death has brought comfort to the Tragically Hip frontman's family, his brother said Friday. “It helps with the sadness because it's so uplifting,” Mike Downie said through tears during an interview in Toronto.
“But it actually makes you a little sadder too because you realize there's a lot of people who are really hurting.”
Shortly before the filmmaker and “Secret Path” collaborator left for a private family gathering to honour the singer, he spoke about his struggle to comprehend a week of heavy grief and complex emotions.
Downie died Tuesday night at age 53. Nearly two years ago, he was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an invasive brain tumour with one of the poorest survival rates of any cancer.
Within hours of his family announcing his death on Wednesday morning a memorial started forming in the Hip's hometown of Kingston, Ont. Candlelight vigils were organized that night in the city's market square and hours away in Bobcaygeon, Ont., a community immortalized in one of the Hip's most popular songs.
Fellow musicians spoke of Downie's talents in reverential tones, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau broke down while talking about his legacy, and Indigenous leaders spoke about his push for progress on reconciliation.
Mike Downie said the outpouring of messages left his family stunned and he's still processing it all himself.
“It was on a national level and on a personal level at the same time,” he said. “It’s a weird combination.”
He said the family is considering a public memorial though it’s too early to say for certain what would happen.
“We’ll pull something together in the coming days, I guess,” he said.
“It’ll be something that Gord would like and appreciate, so we’ll just have to figure that out.”