Almost six months after a young woman was killed in a motorcycle crash in Abbotsford, her grieving mother is speaking out.
Bree Kinnee of Maple Ridge said she wants people to know that her daughter Megan Kinnee, 19, was the victim of the crash on July 13 on South Parallel Road. (Police do not release the names of accident victims.)
Megan was on the back of a motorcycle being driven by her boyfriend when an SUV in front of them slowed down to look at another collision involving a motorcycle on Highway 1.
The bike that Megan was on then rear-ended the SUV. The impact threw her and the driver from the motorcycle. Megan was killed instantly, and her boyfriend was taken to hospital in critical condition, but survived.
Megan was the firstborn of Bree’s four children and her only daughter. Her sons are ages 9, 10 and 12.
Bree said it’s important to her that people know that it was Megan who died that day.
“The only story I got to see was her on the ground being worked on, and I just can’t let that be the last thing people know about Megan,” she said.
At the time of the crash, Megan had just graduated from the John Casablancas Institute – a fashion, makeup, hair and beauty school – in Vancouver.
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Bree said her daughter had been having a good summer, which included working at a local spa.
Megan had been living at home with her family in Maple Ridge for the last year, but had been staying with her boyfriend in Abbotsford just prior to the crash.
She loved animals and the outdoors, and had a large group of friends, including her best friend, with whom she had been inseparable since elementary school.
“Megan was the most amazing little girl and was just coming out of her shell as a young woman,” Bree said. “She was so full of life and looking forward to her future.”
Bree said Megan’s boyfriend did not have a motorcycle licence at the time of the crash – he was borrowing a friend’s bike – but she holds no anger towards him.
“He loved her and she loved him … This wasn’t on purpose … I do want to see this boy held accountable and that is for the courts to decide come the new year,” she said.
A roadside memorial at the site of the crash includes a cross and a Christmas tree.
Bree said she has visited the site at least 10 times since Megan’s death. She said that although she travels the posted speed limit of 80 km/h in the area, she is often passed by people going much faster.
“I am no saint and have definitely been guilty of speeding myself, but if the site of Megan’s cross can make someone slow down just a little bit, then my job is done here,” she said.
Bree said she is grateful for the support her family has received since Megan’s death, including from the Meadow Ridge Football Association, the AA Club, customers of her cleaning business, and donors to a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for Megan’s funeral.
