Kayla Ford and her boyfriend, Josh Hickey, were together for three years before his life was cut short.

The tattoo on Ford’s back, a drawing of a bear, a moose and a goose, is an illustration she made for him shortly before his death. Hickey was an avid hunter and outdoorsman.

“It’s a happy memory, and every time I look at it I just smile,” said Ford, a sophomore health and exercise science major.

Ford had never been hunting before — the couple planned to go this past summer. Hickey bought her a pink camouflage shotgun and hunting gear, but they never had the opportunity to use it.

Hickey died in April 2014 in a snowmobile accident. He was 19.

Ford and Hickey met at the Ontario Hockey Academy, a boarding school. Between class, homework, hockey and working out, the two were inseparable.

“He was my rock,” Ford said. “He was always there for me. He gave me strength.”

Ford is from Eastern Ontario and Hickey lived in Newfoundland — a 38-hour drive between the two locations. However, over the summer and during school breaks, Hickey would make the drive to visit Ford.

It was hockey that originally brought the couple together.

“We were always competing against each other because we both played hockey,” Ford said. “We would always play against each other.”

After Hickey’s death, Ford said she channeled her anger and sadness and used it as motivation on the ice. In high school, Ford was constantly practicing and traveling to games on the weekends. She said she lived and breathed hockey.

Now, Ford currently plays on the Syracuse University club hockey team, and hopes to pursue a career working as an athletic trainer.

Ford said Hickey brought her out of her shell and made her a better person.

“If I had anything wrong, I went to him. If I needed advice or anything, I went to him,” Ford said.

Published on February 17, 2015 at 12:01 am

Contact Gigi: gantonel@syr.edu