FUNERAL FOR YOUNG HOCKEY PLAYER AN EMOTIONAL SERVICE

There weren't too many empty seats or dry eyes Friday morning at the
memorial service for Jason Ricciuti.

A crowd of about 1,300 mourners filled the main auditorium at Trinity
Baptist Church to celebrate the life of the young hockey player.

The 15-year-old minor hockey goalie and Rutland senior secondary student
died by suicide last Saturday while on a road trip with his team.

Both minor hockey and RSS were well represented in the crowd Friday morning.

Ricciuti's teammates wore their jerseys in his honour while his closest
friends gave personal tributes to him with awkward but touching poems and
funny stories about past escapades.

His team uniform number 37 graced the stage while a pair of video tributes
to his short life, one produced by his RSS classmates, played on screens
overhead.

The crowd heard how passionate the young man had been about hockey and how
an easy smile was never far from his face.

The one-hour service was followed by a reception hosted by a bevy of hockey
moms.

Ricciuti's death by suicide in a Lower Mainland hotel room generated a
storm of media coverage after it was revealed it had occurred after the
youth had been found in possession of marijuana and was facing suspension
from his team.

His parents have said publicly they do not blame his coach nor the Kelowna
Minor Hockey Association for his death but would like to see a review of
the suspension policy.

Neither the Kelowna Minor Hockey Association nor the provincial B.C.
Amateur Hockey Association have said if they will conduct such a review.

Requests for interviews with officials from both associations by various
media including the Capital News have so far gone unanswered.