Earlier this year, Canada suffered its worst military tragedy in over a decade, when six servicemembers were killed in a helicopter crash.

Every news outlet covered it.

None of them covered the amazing thing that happened afterwards.

A thread.

(it’s about the meaning of love)

On April 29th, six Canadians serving on a @NATO peacekeeping mission were on board a Cyclone helicopter when it crashed into the ocean off the coast of Italy.

All of them were killed.

Among them was Sub-Lt Matthew “Matty” Pyke.

Matty was born in Truro, a small town in Nova Scotia.  It’s a part of Canada famous for its fishing, cold winters, and warm maritime tradition.

Matty played guitar, was a volunteer firefighter, and in the military’s words “As East-Coasters are known for, he loved a good time.”

The crash was a national tragedy.  Canadians woke to images of caskets draped in red and white.  Flags were lowered to half-mast.

The pain cut deep, but there was someone who was hurting the most: 

His fiancée, Helen.

His last message to her was the morning of the crash.

Helen and Matty had known each other for years, before it became romantic.

He was the first to say “I love you.”

It’s the kind of simple, ordinary romance that never makes headlines, but often leads to the best kind of love.

They didn’t plan it.  It just happened.

This is how Helen described their relationship.

It's a single, heartbreaking sentence.

Before deploying, they did what they call a “pre-engagement”

They knew they were getting married and were planning to buy a house.

They didn’t set a date, and like many military spouses/partners, Helen knew she’d have to be strong while he was serving overseas.

If you spend a lot of time with servicemembers, you know it can be rare for them open up emotionally on deployment.  If you admit you’re missing your wife/gf, it can make you look weak.

Not Matty.

He didn’t care. He couldn’t stop talking about Helen.

Everyone knew about her.

During his repatriation, Canadians lined highway overpasses to pay their respects.

For his Navy family though, it was a different grief.

They’d lost a friend and a brother, and it hurt to know Helen would never see him again.

That’s when they decided to do something special.

During his deployment, Matty told everyone he was going to give Helen a ring.

Even the most senior ranking officers on his ship knew about it.

So to honor his life, they made a decision:  They decided they were going to buy the ring in his name.

And guess what?

They did!

This is what it looked like.

For Helen, it was an emotional time.  To lose your loved one, someone you’d known for years in the blink of an eye, can be the most painful thing in the world.  All you want is to know that things will be okay.

The Navy wanted her to know that, too.

For some people, rings are just bling.

But for Canada's Navy family, this was much more.

It was their way of telling her she’s not alone.  That they’ll always be her family.  And that Matty would always be in their hearts.

When I asked her what it meant, this is what she said:

Helen doesn’t have many photos with her wearing it, but she did send me this.

Today, if you walked past her, you’d never know the story behind it – the love, the memories, or the nation filled with gratitude for their sacrifice.

Sometimes a ring can be more than a ring.

[END]

Update:

If you want message Helen directly, she's on Twitter at @hjosephineh.

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