Killed by unanchored soccer goalpost, Saturday marks first anniversary of Garrett Mills’ death

On Saturday May 12, family and friends of Garrett Mills will gather at the park where he grew up playing with his friends, and the site of a horrific and unexpected accident.

One year ago, Garrett was playing with his friends when the soccer net he was hanging onto fell on top of him, killing him instantly.

Garrett’s father David Mills says the net was old and due for a replacement. The family found out in the coroner’s report that the net was expected to be replaced just two days later.

“Even though we are here in 2018, somehow in your head, you’re back in 2017, and you can’t do anything to stop what’s going to happen,” Mills said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Even though we are here in 2018, somehow in your head, you're back in 2017, and you can't do anything to stop what's going to happen," Mills said.

Since the day of the tragic incident, his family has been finding different ways to honour him and carry on his legacy.

Mills says he is trying to get a bill passed that would ensure all soccer nets in the province are anchored down. That way, no families have to go through this sort of unnecessary tragedy again.

According to Mills, the bill has the support of both the Liberals and the Conservatives, but has been put on the shelf due to the current provincial election.

The family has kept Garrett’s room the exact same and has held on to mementoes such as his high school locker door that has messages of love from his classmates.

To this day, the memory of Garrett lives on, not just at the soccer field where the tragic accident happened, or in his family home, but also in an annual music festival called GarrettFest that raises funds for a $1,500 scholarship.

Mills says the award goes to a local graduating student who shows the same generosity and caring mannerisms he saw in his son.

“There was this very unique quality to him. He just lived to please us, to make people happy, to put smiles on people’s faces and to us, that’s the legacy we really want to leave.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "There was this very unique quality to him. He just lived to please us, to make people happy, to put smiles on people's faces and to us, that's the legacy we really want to leave."