Austin “Auzi” Messett Walker, 25, was hit and killed on Warman Road while riding a shared electric scooter home from a night out on June 22.
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Chet Walker wants people to know that his son, Austin “Auzi” Messett Walker, was a good person who is terribly missed.
“I just want everyone to know how big of a heart he had, and how he loved everybody, especially his family,” Chet said, confirming his son was the 25-year-old man killed in an early morning hit-and-run on Warman Road near the Circle Drive overpass in Saskatoon on June 22.
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He said Auzi had a close relationship with his younger brother, sister, baby nephew and a niece who just learned to say “uncle.”
Auzi’s brother sent him his last text about three minutes before he was hit while riding one of the city’s shared electric scooters home from a night out watching playoff hockey, Chet told the StarPhoenix in an interview on Tuesday.
He said Auzi started out riding with a group of friends; they eventually parted ways and he was on his own. According to police, he was found on the roadway, and according to one of the charges he faces, the driver of the car that hit him had left the scene.
Later that Saturday morning, Chet said he heard his wife yell his name from another room. He thought one of his grandkids had fallen.
Instead, a police officer told him his son had been killed by an alleged drunk driver.
“It’s crazy. We’re a very, very close family. He’s my son but he’s also my best friend,” Chet said, breaking down in tears.
He described Auzi as an exceptional athlete who was “kicking ass” in his career as a salesman.
He grew up in Dalmeny and moved to Saskatoon after graduation. Chet said he took a year of commerce at the U of S before becoming an inside sales rep at Wajax — a Canadian industrial product provider.
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“Everybody kept telling (the company), ‘You gotta go get this guy.’ He’s that good,” Chet said.
He coached his son in competitive baseball and hockey for 15 and 16 years. Auzi played AA hockey in Warman and Martensville, and Junior B with the Saskatoon Westleys. There were a few years of senior hockey back home before work became his focus. Chet said he was considering playing this winter.
Auzi was also an avid fisherman. He had an annual trip with his friends at Tobin Lake, and any open weekends were spent at the family cabin at Weyakwin Lake.
Chet said he talked to his son every day, often about hockey. Auzi was a Toronto Maple Leafs fan. His hockey skates, helmet, gloves and jersey will be at the front of the church during Wednesday’s funeral service at Circle Drive Alliance Church.
People are encouraged to wear their favourite team jerseys. The service is also being livestreamed for those who can’t attend.
“If something good happened at work or in his life he would always come straight to my office and had to tell me in person. So that’s what I’m going to miss. I’m going to miss everything,” Chet said.
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Auzi lived with two roommates on Pendygrasse Road in the city’s Fairhaven neighbourhood. Chet said he’s dreading the task of clearing out his son’s belongings.
For the past week and a half, the family has been focused on celebrating Auzi’s life. Chet said he will eventually attend the court appearance of the driver accused in his son’s death.
Wade Scott Chaboyer, 38, is charged with leaving the scene of a collision, impaired driving and driving with a blood-alcohol level over the legal limit causing death. He was released on conditions and is scheduled to make his next court appearance on July 17.
“I want my son’s name to be out there. I want (the accused) to know what we’re going through, what he’s done to my family, and what he’s done to my son,” Chet said.
“We’re destroyed. Part of us died that day, too.”
In lieu of flowers, the family is accepting donations for a legacy fund at auzimemorial@gmail.com.
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