Hamilton man who died in workplace accident remembered as devoted dad, leader

The mother of 29-year-old Justin Smith, who died while on the job at a Hamilton industrial site last month, says he was a devoted father to two young boys, and was a leader at his workplace.

Barbara Smith says even as a child, her son Justin was always running around.

“From when he was a little boy, he never sat still,” said Barbara. “He was always on the go, doing something, always dirty, always working on cars.”

She says that was a trait he passed on to his two sons: 5-year-old Jaxson and 3-year-old Jacob.

“He was a very hands-on father,” said Barbara. “He took care of them a lot growing up, so the shock now of not having him there — he didn’t miss a thing.”

It was last Monday, the day after the historic snow storm in the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area, that Smith died while at work, just weeks before his 30th birthday.

He was removing snow around Hamilton’s Pier 14, when he fell into the water.

The Ministry of Labour is investigating the incident, and said they can’t comment while it’s on-going.

READ MORE: Worker dead after falling into Hamilton Harbour, police say

Smith had worked at Ontario Shipyards, previously called Heddle Shipyards, from the age of 21, working his way up to a supervisor role.

“He loved welding,” said Barbara. “He got into welding in high school, he had a really fabulous teacher who put him on the path for his welding career. He just excelled in it.”

Barbara says she was touched to see so many people from his team at work come to the funeral earlier this week.

“At 29 years old, I couldn’t even grasp that he had impacted so many people,” said Barbara. “We had one of his workers say that he literally changed his life — that he gave him a shot when no one else would.”

That leadership extended to supporting and mentoring the women on his team — working in a male-dominated industry.

While welding was important to him, Barbara says all of Smith’s hard work was to provide for his two sons.

“I am so so proud of my son,” said Barbara. “It’s incredible to see how many memories he’s created in just a short five years.”

A GoFundMe page has been set up to establish a trust for the two boys, with more than $42,000 having been raised so far.

“All of us together as a family will be there for them,” said Barbara.

Anyone interested in donating to the GoFundMe page can find it here.

WATCH MORE: GoFundMe raises over $200K for family of girl struck, killed by SUV in Oakville