High-achieving Windsor teen had stellar future before fatal fall
CBC
A Windsor teen who fell to his death from a cliff in North Vancouver had a dream of becoming an astronaut — and those who knew and loved him believe that he would have achieved it.
Marco Kurepa, 17, an alumnus of Vincent Massey Secondary School, was set to begin the engineering program at the University of British Columbia, where he was the beneficiary of a $100,000 scholarship.
"He was always very ambitious. And he never gave up on anything," said Daniel Kurepa, Marco's father.
"Everything basically was going in the right direction, and he had a great chance to really reach his goal."
On Aug. 25, Marco visited Lynn Canyon Park with some fellow students to celebrate the start of the academic year. They climbed a fence and entered an off-limits area.
Daniel Kurepa said his son had a love for nature.
"He was very adventurous... He wanted to take a picture," Kurepa explained. "It was a spectacular view. And he's 17 years old, and there was excitement to be in nature."
Daniel Kurepa said RCMP told him there had been rainy weather and the terrain was mossy. Investigators believe that Marco tried to stabilize himself by holding onto a tree, but slipped and fell from the 50-metre ridge.
Marco's remains were returned to Windsor, and a private cremation was held at Families First funeral home.
Marco was the only child of Daniel and Zora Kurepa. The couple emigrated to Windsor from Croatia in the 1990s. Marco was born here, and attended Bellewood Public School before Vincent Massey Secondary School.
In the obituary the Kurepas composed for their son, they thanked Marco's many teachers, classmates and friends.
Daniel said his son's gifts were apparent even as a small child.
"[In] 2012, we took him to Kennedy Space Center, and I saw that spark," Daniel recalled. "He knew everything about the planes, each and every one. Like an encyclopedia."
When Marco was in Grade 7, he underwent testing that determined his IQ to be 145 — considered high enough to be a Mensa member.
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