'A great friend, daughter, sister, granddaughter': The memorial bench honouring Jordyn Reimer's memory

The family of a Winnipeg woman killed by an alleged drunk driver last year is honouring her memory with a new walking trail bench in Transcona.

24-year-old Jordyn Reimer was killed in May 2022 when the driver of a pickup truck crashed into her vehicle while she was driving in Transcona. Reimer grew up in the neighbourhood, graduating from Transcona Collegiate before going on to MacEwan University in Edmonton, where she played on the women's hockey team.

Dozens gathered on Saturday to remember Reimer as her family unveiled a bench dedicated to her memory.

Her father Doug Reimer was honoured by the high attendance. "It buoys my faith that there's so many good people in this community," he said. "Very surprised at the number of people in the community that showed up to support … very surprised, very moved."

The concrete bench is located at the corner of Hoka St. W and McMeans Ave. W, around the midway point of the roughly 7-kilometre long Transcona Trail. It includes a photo of Reimer, the dates she lived, and an inscription.

Doug said the bench will now be a permanent memorial for his daughter so people walking by will know who she was. "And we hope that other people that knew her - whether they were a friend, a classmate, a teammate - they can walk by and they can remember her too," he added.

"Like the inscription says, 'what a great friend, sister, daughter, granddaughter.' This is our way to honour her memory."