VICTORIA — The family and friends of Canadian teenager Piper James who died in Australia last month remembered her as “curious, bold and alive to the world” during a celebration of life held Saturday in Campbell River, B.C. on Vancouver Island.
The 19-year-old was working on K’gari, formerly known as Fraser Island, when she went for an early morning swim on Jan. 19. Her body was found a short time later surrounded by a pack of dingoes near a popular tourist site, the SS Maheno wreck.
An autopsy uncovered evidence of “pre-mortem” dingo bites but said drowning was the most likely cause of Piper’s death.
Piper’s parents delivered the eulogy during a service held at Campbell River Baptist Church and mother Angela James says that the ache of missing her “doodlebug” and “sweet, sweet girl” is something that she carries with her every day.
“Some moments, it’s quiet,” she said, as she stood next to her husband, both visibly fighting to hold back tears. “Others, it takes my breath away, but woven through the pain is gratitude — gratitude that I got to be your mom, that I got to love you, that the world got to know, even for such a short time. You changed me forever. You changed everyone who loved you.”
Piper James rode motocross bikes and her father, Todd James, says that Piper took him and his wife on the ride of their lives, as he thanked his daughter for her love and for being their daughter.
“Some of my most memorable times would be lying in bed with you, and Piper would come in, like just weeks before she left for Australia, and we would just wrestle together til it drove you nuts, get the dogs barking,” he said. “I loved that with you, Piper — I am going to miss that.”
Todd James said he has been taught to never say goodbye, ending his part of the eulogy, with a simple “’til we meet again.'”
Taylor Stricker, who travelled with Piper James to Australia, said her friend lived with intensity and heart, and loved fiercely. “She taught me how to be brave and to lean into life instead of just standing on the edges of it,” Stricker said.
While Piper’s time “was far too short,” her impact will last forever, Stricker said.
“She will live on every road that calls for adventure, every song turned up too loud, every wave that rolls in, and every moment I choose to be fearless because of her, I will carry her with me for the rest of my life.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 28, 2026.
Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press
