Tim McLean is seen in an undated handout photo with the daughter of his friend William Caron. About 600 people paid their final respects to McLean at a funeral in Winnipeg on Saturday. Canadian Press

Family and friends gathered Saturday afternoon to bid farewell to Tim McLean, 22, who was brutally killed aboard a Greyhound bus just over a week ago near Portage la Prairie, Man.

About 600 mourners packed a church in Winnipeg for the funeral service.

His uncle, Alex McLean, told them that his nephew was "friendly, kind, sweet and caring."

The young man, a travelling carnival worker, loved making new friends on his many journeys, his uncle said.

But "he never left behind the ones he made in high school," McLean said. "His love of his friends was easy to see."

McLean also remembered his nephew's tremendous sense of humour, recalling that the last time he saw him, he was shirtless and flexing his muscles.

"That was your trademark," McLean said.

Before the service began, John Jorgensen, 19, who lived in the same Winnipeg neighbourhood as Tim McLean, remembered him as an "uplifting, positive guy."

"If you were in a bad mood, he would make you in a great mood," Jorgensen said.

McLean grew up in Winnipeg and Elie, Man., with what his obituary describes as "more family than he could shake a stick at."

"From your first breath you were loved beyond imagination, and although you were taken from us too quickly, we will never say goodbye, but for now see you later," the obituary reads.

Since his death, friends have spoken out about how much he meant to so many people, and tens of thousands of people have joined a Facebook group set up in his memory.

McLean was returning home from a job in Edmonton when he was stabbed to death by a fellow passenger aboard the bus about 8:30 p.m. CT on July 31.

Vince Weiguang Li, 40, of Edmonton, has been charged with second-degree murder. At his latest court appearance Tuesday, the judge ordered a psychiatric assessment to determine whether Li is fit to stand trial.

With files from the Canadian Press