Crash victim loved ‘being in the clouds’
Corey Mijac may have had his head in the clouds, but the St. Catharines teen was as grounded as they come.
The 18-year-old Brock University student and recent Governor Simcoe grad dreamed of becoming a commercial pilot and put himself on a path toward making that a reality at an early age.
But in a tragic turn of events, Corey was one of three young men from Niagara who died in an Oct. 16 plane crash in mountainous northern Pennsylvania.
Also killed were Ben Jeffries, 19, of Niagara-on-the-Lake, and flight instructor Rifat Tawfig, 25, of Niagara Falls. Their grieving families have not responded to requests for comment.
The trio were returning from a trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C., with the St. Catharines Flying Club when the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration lost radio contact with the plane.
Wreckage of the aircraft, a small Piper PA-28 Cherokee, was discovered by search-and-rescue crews the following day.
Luba Mijac finds comfort in knowing her son, a student at the club alongside Jeffries, died doing what he loved so dearly.
Corey’s passion for aviation began at an early age and never wavered.
“He was unstoppable in what he was doing. He knew that this was what he was going to do and that path never changed,” she said.
“It was always, ‘I’m going to fly planes, Mom. I’m going to be the best pilot.’”
In eighth grade, Corey began cleaning planes at the flying club. The following year, he signed himself up for ground school.
What Luba believes he loved most about flying? “Just being in the clouds.”
“Having that control. I think for him, it was just being able to do it, take on the challenge.”
It all began with trips to Niagara District Airport, where as a child Corey would go to watch planes take off.
He and his father, Wayne, often made similar trips in recent years to Toronto Pearson International Airport, where Corey “knew every plane on the ground and could identify every plane in the sky,” Luba said.
“(They) would go out at 2 in the morning to watch certain planes land.”
Corey had a particular love for Boeing aircraft and had set his sights on working for Alaska Airlines.
With his determination, it was a goal his mother felt was well within reach.
In recent days, with countless family members and friends stopping by the Mijac home, there was talk that Corey thought of delving into engineering.
“He wanted to be a pilot, but he also wanted to make his mark in some way, to make a difference in aviation,” Luba said. “That was kind of huge for me to hear the other day.”
“He believed in himself,” she said, adding she and Wayne did their best to provide a wealth of encouragement.
The pair also nurtured his love of travel.
Corey, a Brock geography student, would roadtrip with Wayne to New York City three times a year, taking in the sights and sounds of big city life.
“He just didn’t sit still. Wind at his tail,” Luba said.
“It was always, ‘Let’s go. Let’s get things done. I’m not wasting my life.’ That was his thing.”
When he went, “he would never forget you,” she said. He was always sure to bring home a thoughtful present for his mom.
“It wouldn’t be, like, a T-shirt. He would be going on Canal Street looking for Gucci or Rolex watches,” she said with a laugh.
“Every trip he went on, he’d pull out something. He was very giving.”
Corey was “chomping at the bit” to go on the flying club’s training trip, which he missed last year.
By the looks of it, it was everything he had hoped for, Luba said.
“The video, the footage and the photos he was sending me, he had a smile on his face the whole time. He had the best time on that trip,” she said.
“He was coming into his own. You couldn’t clip his wings.”
After learning Corey’s plane had disappeared from radar, Luba made the difficult decision not to drive out to Pennsylvania.
She feared missing him in transit and instead waited on edge
Just do things, don’t leave them. Don’t doubt yourself. Follow your dreams. You don’t want to have those types of regrets. I know Corey didn’t. I know he had no regrets at all.”
for further word from the flying club.
“My heart told me to stay put. He’ll be home,” she said.
She called the loss of her son “surreal.”
“I think nobody knows what to say and can’t make head nor tails of it,” she said.
“Why? There are whys and there are no answers. The people who know what happened are the people who are not with us.”
She’s hopeful that more clarity will be provided for all families involved once investigation by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board has been completed.
While she hasn’t been in touch with the families of Ben Jeffries or Rifat Tawfig, Luba hopes to connect with them in the coming days. She believes it may bring them each some comfort.
While Corey and Ben, also a Governor Simcoe graduate, didn’t know each other well, it’s been said the pair formed a bond and became inseparable on the recent trip.
Luba urged people to remember Corey for the many years he spent making them smile, rather than the “milliseconds that took him.”
There’s a lesson to be learned — to live every day to its fullest, she said.
“Just do things, don’t leave them. Don’t doubt yourself. Follow your dreams. You don’t want to have those types of regrets. I know Corey didn’t. I know he had no regrets at all.”
Corey’s funeral service will be held on Wednesday at 11 a.m. at George Darte Funeral Home, 585 Carlton St.
A private family burial will take place at a later date.
Family and friends of Ben Jeffries will also be welcomed to George Darte Funeral Home Wednesday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. A celebration of Ben’s life will follow at 4 p.m. in the funeral home chapel.
Luba Mijac