A 16-year-old boy who died after trying to rescue a mother and her son in distress in the water at Woodbine Beach last week has been identified as a student at Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts in Scarborough.
The Toronto District School Board identified the boy as 16-year-old Kyle Howard-Muthulingam.
Howard-Muthulingam was one of a number of people who jumped into the water at the east-end beach at around 2:30 p.m. on Friday after hearing a mother and her son calling out for help, police said.
Emergency crews rescued five people from the lake following the incident and three people, including Howard-Muthulingam, were transported to hospital.
Howard-Muthulingam was pronounced dead a short time later.
The TDSB said the school is open Wednesday for anyone who wants to pay tribute to Howard-Muthulingam, who would have been going into Grade 12 next month.
Grief counsellors will be on site for students and staff.
“He was always one (who) wanted to help out other people. I mean when I used to be upset and stuff, Kyle was one of the first people there. So it sounds like something he would have done,” one student said at the high school on Wednesday.
“He was such a good person. You would never think that someone you walked by in the hallways every day and said hi to all the time just isn’t going to be here anymore,” another student said.
Staff said dance was Howard-Muthulingam’s specialization at the performing arts school.
A Go Fund Me page has been set up to help raise money for the young man’s family.
Aly King, the organizer of the Go Fund Me, said Howard-Muthulingam left “an imprint on so many” lives.
“His dashing personality, kind spirit, loving soul and charming smile will forever leave a lasting memory for his family, friends and anyone who had the opportunity to have met him,” the organizer wrote.
“The untimely passing of Kyle has left his entire family feeling heartbroken and empty.”
