Slain soldier's brother to carry Olympic torch
Last Updated: Thursday, November 5, 2009 | 12:16 PM ET
CBC News
A 15-year-old Windsor, Ont., boy whose older brother was killed while serving in Afghanistan has been selected as the city's official torch bearer.
Mathew Charbonneau will carry the torch for 300 metres and light the cauldron at Riverfront Festival Plaza on Dec. 23.
"It is truly a great honour," Charbonneau told attendees at a special dinner at Caesars Windsor casino on Wednesday night. "I could not have had a better brother."
Mathew Charbonneau, 15, was announced as Windsor, Ont.'s official Olympic torch bearer at a special dinner Wednesday night. (Sean Henry/CBC) Cpl. Andrew Grenon died on Sept. 3, 2008, after the armoured vehicle he was riding in during a security patrol was attacked by insurgents.
For Theresa Charbonneau, the pair's mother, the torch relay "brings a whole new sense of pride to a mother's heart.
"As much as I miss Andrew immensely, I am fully cognizant that Mathew is a person in his own right," she said. "It's a joy to see."
Charbonneau is a Grade 10 student at St. Joseph's Catholic high school and an avid hockey and soccer player.
He also exemplifies the same "values, passion and love of community and country" as his brother, Mayor Eddie Francis said in announcing Mathew's selection.
But Charbonneau, who is also a fan of the Ontario Hockey League's Windsor Spitfires, said he will also be carrying the torch for Mickey Renaud, the team's late captain, who died suddenly on Feb. 18, 2008, at the age of 19.
"When I light Windsor's cauldron, there will be one angel on my left, one angel on my right," Charbonneau said. "These angels are Mickey Renaud and Andrew Grenon.
The torch last passed through Windsor on Jan. 1, 1988, the year Calgary hosted the Winter Olympics.
