Days after the death of her fiancé, Gabrielle Lance-Brumsey said she’s trying to stay strong for their three young kids.
“I can’t let it affect them,” she said.
“It’s hard, but I’ll take my time by myself, but for the most part I’m just trying to stay strong.”
Her fiancé Jeffrey Knowles died Monday night around 9:30 p.m. after he was hit by a car. He had just turned 30 years old earlier this month.
“He was really big on family I’m just glad I was able to give him the children and he got to spend as much time as he could with them,” Lance-Brumsey told CTV News Toronto.
Police said Knowles was hit while crossing at the intersection of Queen Street West and Mississauga Road in Brampton. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
His loss will be a big adjustment for his family.
“I met him when I was 17, so I never had to worry about doing anything on my own. He took care of everything,” Lance-Brumsey said.
“But now I have to move back in with my mom, get rid of the house… I will have to work out a job and daycare… finances aren’t good.”
Knowles was the sole provider for his household, including his mother Susan Knowles, who lives with the family.
“He did everything in his power to take care of us,” Lance-Brumsey said.
Knowles’ family still don’t know the circumstances that led to his death.
His fiancé was told by police that it could be months before they have all the answers. What she does know is that he was travelling along Queen Street on his longboard in an area that has heavy construction when he was hit.
Lance-Brumsey told CTV News Toronto that she and Knowles never liked walking there with their kids because it was dangerous.
“It’s pretty bad, if anything they should have more lights so that it’s more lit up so that if there are pedestrians at night they are more visible,” she said.
“There should be an area like a sidewalk or an area where people can walk instead of being on the road. We almost got hit a couple of times.”
Lance-Brumsey said the night Knowles died, he was heading to the convenience store to “pick up a few things for the kids” around 9 p.m. When midnight rolled around she began to wonder why it was taking him so long. Normally the trip only takes 45 minutes to go there and back, she said.
That’s when she decided to go outside and saw cop cars blocking the road nearby.
“I asked them what happened and they said a pedestrian was hit and instantly I got a gut feeling,” Lance-Brumsey said.
Police soon confirmed her worst fears.
“Another cop came up to me and said, ‘I don’t know how to tell you this but Jeffrey’s died,” she said through tears.
“I was thinking before he said it, (maybe it was) severe injuries but I never thought that he would have died.”
She came back home to deliver the devastating news to his mother.
“When Gabby came back and she came in the door and said, ‘mom calm down,’ and then she said, ‘Jeff’s dead’ and that’s when I lost it. I haven’t been the same since,” Susan Knowles said.
“It’s just so tragic. He was a great son, he looked after me. He was my one and only. That’s what’s so tragic about it because I just don’t know how I’m going to go on without him.”
Lance-Brumsey and Knowles got engaged in 2013 and wanted to get married in the coming months.
“They loved each other so much. They were soul mates. I was going to buy him a suit for the wedding and the sad part is now I have to buy him a suit for his funeral,” Knowles said through sobs.
“It’s so tragic, I can’t wrap my head around it. He was such a good man.”
The family has set up a GoFundMe page to raise funds for their three young children.
