Jason McKinnon was born in Sussex on March 8, 1982 and was the son of the late Brian Douglas (Spook) McKinnon and Iris (Drane) McKinnon-Justason. Jason arrived in this world on March 8, 1982, approximately 3 weeks early. His Dad, "Spook", was very clear on what he would be called, Jason (I never did find out , why the name Jason, a name found in Acts 17, meaning healer; William (named after Spook's father) McKinnon. Jason was a wonderful, happy, active ,little boy, whom his father doted on. Spook, started taking Jason to work with him on the milk truck, on occasion, at a very early age, and to the ball fields and who knows where else. What happened on the milk truck, stayed on the milk truck. I never felt the need to know. Spook wanted Jason to share in his love for playing hockey and also baseball, but that wasn't to be Jason's path. Jason was very athletic, taking after his Dad but also after his Mom, a little known fact. Once I started having children, my love for sports, had to take a back seat, but just like Jason's Dad, I had an intense craving for competing in sports. It's little wonder, Jason's desire for sports manifested itself. However, early in the going, it was fairly clear to me, that although Jason wanted to be active in sports, he did not necessarily like contact sports. Jason's first try at hockey, at the age of 5 or 6, ended with him having a slight concussion and thus he was not interested in hockey until he was about 12 or 13, when he use to go to the outdoor Sussex Corner rink to play a friendly game of hockey with the McLean boys. As fate would have it, we lived in the same neighbourhood as the McNairs, who introduced Jason to snowboading and later skateboarding. I'll never forget the day that Jason came home begging me to give him money to buy a snowboard from one of the McNair boys. At that time, my mind could not comprehend what a snowboard was, but I agreed to finance his first snowboard, only shortly thereafter to be bombarded with, "Mom, now I need snowboard boots" . Back in those days, when Jason was only 10 years old, there was very little snowboard equipment or clothing, let alone in his size, but he drug me to Canadian Tire and we bought the smallest size snowboard boots available, which happened to be 2 sizes too big for Jason, but he insisted, that it would be ok and it was. I was not sure about all this, but Jason was very sure. Next stop Poley Mountain, I thought to myself, "does this every end". Oh, little did I know, that this was just the beginning and before it was over, I would have driven many, many kilometers to many, many competitions all over this great country and parts of the USA for Jason to compete in snowboard competitions. He loved Poley Mountain and after a few years of being a regular, somehow, he got Bill to take him up in the groomer, he just had to experience everything. His exuberance for whatever took his attention seem to attract it to him and he was able to achieve, what might seem the unachievable to some. He seized opportunities. He was game for anything that kept him active and involved in life. In his late teens, Jason went to work for Poley Mountain as a snowmaker. It was late night, cold, hard work, but that rarely mattered to Jason, because he was being involved in his wonderful Poley Mountain. Even before being employed at Poley Mountain, Jason was employed at various jobs from a young age and at the age of 23 began his career as a heavy equipment operator in Whistler, BC. He thrived on that type of work and like the things that Jason settled his mind on, he excelled at. He even worked as a cook a few times throughout his life. At Wendy's and Smittys in Canmore, AB back when he was 17 and then more recently for his friend Matt Rideout. He was always after me to help him with his resume and as the years went by, Jason's resume grew to be quite impressive. That resume will remain a tribute to him. Jason competed in snowboard competitions on our side of the country, from the age of 12, and then in the summer of 1998, at the age of 16, Jason and I drove across Canada so that he could attend a snowboard camp in Whistler, BC . The first of many trips across Canada for Jason and I. The following winter we travelled to Nisku, Alberta, so Jason could compete in the Canadian Nationals. 1998 was the year that Jason decided that he had to go West. Just shy of his 18th birthday, he decided he was heading to Canmore and was going to drive there alone, but his good friend, Shawn Hendry, could not see him drive there alone so he insisted on making the trip with him. Shawn returned home fairly soon, but Jason stayed in Alberta for 4 months, rooming with his friend, Dave Stevenson and hanging out with his good friend, Ryan Monahan, before returning home. Jason continued to compete in snowboarding during the winter months and played at skateboarding during the rest of the year. He was as passionate about skateboarding as he was about snowboarding. It is beyond my comprehension, how people practising those type of skills can fly through the air with the greatest of ease….most times. Time past and Jason met Sara, in Sussex, and fell in love. When Jay met Sara, she already had a little boy, Brian Tyler who was not quite 2 at the time . Jason accepted Brian as his son and loved him, yet respecting the fact that Brian,s Dad and family needed to be in the picture, also. Within a few years, in 2004, Savannah Sky McKinnon was born. He was very proud and glad that he had a daughter and it surprised me how well he took to being a Dad to now 2 children. To back up a little bit, here, when Sara was pregnant for Savannah, in the fall of 2003, Jason decided it was time to head West to look for work and try to become established in Whistler, BC. so they could make a life there. The 2010 winter Olympics were coming and he wanted to be there. There would be lots of work and fun. He was anxious to get going with his life. Jay and his sister Melissa and her friend Dave roomed together for a few months in Whistler, BC trying to live the dream, but after a bit, they woke up from the dream and decided it was time to come home, so one by one they left Whistler. Jason came home to Sara, in Sussex, so he would be there when Savannah was born. He had only come home temporarily, by the time Savannah was 4 months old, he was ready to continue persuing his dream in Whistler. His friend, Greg McFarland, was heading West and wanted some company and Jason was happy to oblige him. They landed in Whistler in early July and found work fairly soon as heavy equipment operators. In September, I flew to Whistler with Sara and the kids to reunite them with Jay. Unfortunately, this was a false start because by January 2005, the rain came instead of snow , work slowed and financial restraints brought them back home and I was happy to see them all home. Jason was not about to give up on Whistler, though. As soon as work started up the following summer of 2005, we loaded a minivan and headed for Whistler. Jason was hired back at his old job and the dream started to come together. It wasn't easy, but I think they were living the life. Jason and Sara were able to survive in Whistler for 4 years before returning home for a visit in 2008, but returned back to Whistler to continue with work and life as soon as work resumed in the spring. They came home again in the spring of 2009 for a couple of months during his off time from work, but returned to Whistler again. Jason continued to progress in his career and life was pretty good. He was in the year leading up to the 2010 Winter Olympics and getting lots of work and really enjoying life. He was working hard and playing hard. The Olympics came and went and it was special to be a part of it. Jason was doing some snowboard filming for Douglas Stanley in Whistler and loving every minute of it. Wonderful videos that will always give us joy. However, Jay, being a little too exuberant , wrecked his knee and had to have surgery on his knee in Squamish, BC in the summer of 2010. Jay, Sara and the kids came home to Sussex to recuperate. The Olympics were over and Jason found work in NB and I felt he would have liked to have made Sussex his home again, but by March 2012, Jason was back in Whistler, living with his friends Randy and Rene Graham looking for work, however, things were slow in Whistler and so Jason and Randy and Rene left for Edmonton where work was plentiful. Jason lived with his sister, Belinda, in Devon, AB, went to work every day and looked forward to the day when Sara and the kids joined him in Edmonton. Work ended in February 2013, due to the bitter cold and no snow in Edmonton, so Sara and the kids took the opportunity to visit her family in BC and Jason came home to Sussex where he headed straight to Morgan and Colleen Gibsons to reconnect with old friends. Jason found work, as an excavator operator, in St John, NB and was having fun creating earth works. He was looking forward to getting life back to a normal family life with Sara and the kids, but as we all know, that was not to be. Like I mentioned, at the beginning, Jason arrived in this world early and he left this world early. He definitely did accomplish a lot in his short life. He did live life to the fullest without any pretension. He was just "Little Jay" and he appreciated all that God provided for him. Jason is survived by his common-law wife Sara (Penton), his daughter Savannah and step son Brian of BC, two brothers: Ronnie King and Tyler McKinnon of Sussex Corner, two sisters: Melissa McKinnon (Dave Cullinan), Belinda King (Tibor Skaling) all of Alberta, his mother Iris, step father Dr. Stephen Justason of Sussex Corner, his grandparents; Callie Drane of Sussex Corner and Donnie and Hazel Justason of Pennfield, as well as several aunts, uncles and cousins. Mr. Jason William McKinnon of BC and Sussex Corner passed away at the Moncton Hospital on July 12, 2013 at the age of 31. He is predeceased by his father Brian (Spook) McKinnon in 1990 by his paternal grandparents William and Edna McKinnon, his maternal grandfather Michael Drane and by his uncles Andy, Stephen and Shawn Drane. The family will receive relatives and friends at Wallace Funeral Home, 34 Sunnyside Drive, Sussex, (506-433-1176) on Sunday from 6-8 and Monday 1-3, 6-8pm. A service celebrating Jason's life will be held from Salvation Army Community Church on Tuesday, July 16, 2013 at 2:00 pm. The interment will take place at Wards Creek Cemetery followed by a time of fellowship with the family immediately following the service.