Dorsa Ghandchi, Daniel Ghandchi, Faezeh Falsafi

Despite her young age, 16- year- old Dorsa Ghandchi was a talented artist who had a large online following for her vibrant animation videos released under the name Maxie. She was returning to Canada along with her brother, Daniel Ghandchi, 8, and mother, Faezeh Falsafi. They had been in Iran over the Christmas break to visit family.

Dorsa was a student at Jean Vanier Catholic Secondary School in Toronto, where she was recently given the top visual artist and highest marks in the grade 10 awards. Her Youtube channel attracted more than 36 million views.

“We talked almost every single day, she was such a caring girl and always tried to help out in every possible way,” said her friend Lautaro Ybañez. “She was an incredible artist and she inspired so many people on the internet to develop their artistic hobbies.”

Falsafi, 46, was known as Fran and was a real estate sales representative in Thornhill, Ont. She earned three degrees in Iran before immigrating to Canada and recently completed the Immigration Consultant program at a Toronto career college. She had a master’s degree in mechanical engineering and another in business administration after finishing a bachelor’s degree in engineering.

Falsafi was enthusiastic about living in Canada, posting numerous Canadian flags and greetings for Canada Day on social media, as well as celebrating her Iranian culture and jigsaw puzzles. She also gushed about Dorsa and Daniel and their accomplishments.