The parents of the young hockey player killed in the Humboldt Broncos crash who was originally misidentified as a survivor are telling their story for the first time in hopes of sharing more of who their son really was.
Parker Tobin, 18, was one of 16 people killed in the rural bus crash nearly one year ago. But for two days, authorities thought Parker was alive and that 18-year-old Xavier Labelle, who had a similar build and gold-dyed hair, had died on the scene.
As soon as they learned of the horrific crash, Parker鈥檚 parents rushed to hospital. They were told that their son was unconscious, but alive.
鈥淭hey brought us into the room and I do remember looking at him and saying like, that鈥檚 not him. And that鈥檚 not because it wasn鈥檛 him, but just because he was so badly injured it wasn鈥檛 anybody I knew,鈥� Parker鈥檚 mother, Rhonda Clarke-Tobin, told CTV News.
Because of the severity of Labelle鈥檚 injuries, the parents didn鈥檛 realize that a mistake had been made. Bandages covered his face and made it impossible for the parents to notice particular features, such as the telltale chicken pox scar above their son鈥檚 nose.
The family camped out at the bedside all weekend. They met with doctors, gave consent for surgery and tried to provide comfort for the teenager they believed was their son.
鈥淚t was just time talking to him, whether it was just trying to hold his hand,鈥� Parker鈥檚 mother said.
All the while, Labelle was not conscious or able to speak.
After two days, doctors told the parents that their son would be ready to breathe on his own. When he awoke, he didn鈥檛 recognize the couple.
鈥淢y first thought was he鈥檚 got a brain injury. And then Xavier just simply said his name and it was like, 鈥極h my, it鈥檚 not him.鈥� And that was it. Everything collapsed,鈥� said Parker鈥檚 father, Ed Tobin.
For Parker鈥檚 mother, the moment was overwhelming.
鈥淚 fainted. Finding out at that point that he didn鈥檛 make it was just -- my heart broke,鈥� she said.
Shortly after, their eldest son identified Parker鈥檚 body, confirming that he鈥檇 been killed.
Provincial authorities publicly acknowledged the mistake the following morning.
"I don't think enough can ever be said. All I can do is offer our sincerest apologies, our sincerest condolences and sympathies, in particular to the Tobin family on the news that they would have received,鈥� said Drew Wilby, a spokesman for Saskatchewan's Ministry of Justice, at the time.
The Labelle family had their own doubts after visiting the coroner, but those doubts were never communicated to the Tobin family.
鈥淚f that had been communicated to us, then those two days might have turned out to be a lot different,鈥� Ed Tobin said.
The parents said they had their suspicions that something wasn鈥檛 quite right. But the two boys shared a striking resemblance, and it seemed like there was a medical explanation for the physical disparities.
鈥淓verything where you thought, it doesn鈥檛 necessarily look like Parker鈥檚 hand, but then we鈥檙e told, there was so much swelling, his hands were swollen. Those things being explained, so there鈥檚 no reason to believe that it isn鈥檛 him,鈥� Rhonda Clarke-Tobin said.
Regardless, Parker鈥檚 parents said they aren鈥檛 angry or bitter over what happened. They spent time grieving with the Labelle family and say he has a 鈥渟pecial place鈥� in their hearts.
鈥淚t was really important that we spent time with them and for them to know that we weren鈥檛 angry about anything, that we were just, we wanted them to feel reassured 鈥� don鈥檛 feel guilty,鈥� Rhonda Clarke-Tobin said.
The parents decided to tell their story to share more about who their son really was and to move beyond the tragic mix-up.
鈥淓very time one of the boys gets mentioned, regardless of the topic, that little tag along goes with them: one of the boys who was misidentified. We don鈥檛 want that to be Parker鈥檚 legacy,鈥� Ed Tobin said.
Instead, they want people to know Parker for who he was.
鈥淲e just want people to know Parker the academic, Parker the athlete. I mean, he鈥檚 always going to be a part of the Broncos story, but he was more than that. He had plans to try to get an NCAA scholarship and go to school,鈥� his mother said.
鈥淧arker was a great kid. He really knew who he was and at 18, that always just impressed me so much. He was kind-hearted, he had lots of ambition.鈥�
The past year has been difficult for the family. Parker鈥檚 bedroom remains almost untouched, and whenever the couple travels, they bring their son鈥檚 ashes with them.
To honour their son鈥檚 memory, the family plans to establish an annual scholarship for a goalie in post-secondary education and host a goalie camp.
A memorial is being held Saturday in Humboldt, Sask. to mark the one-year anniversary of the crash and remember those who lost their lives. CTV News Channel and CTVNews.ca will broadcast the event live at 6:30 p.m. ET, 4:30 p.m. MT.
