Tyler Barton Memorial | Obituary | Condolences | Toronto | Mount Pleasant Cemetery, Cremation & Funeral Centres

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Tyler Barton

July 10, 1982 - September 14, 2013

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<div itemprop="description">Tyler Mc Cleery Barton, 31, was tragically killed in a rock climbing accident September 14, 2013 in North Cascades National Park in Washington State, north-east of Mount Vernon. He and his climbing partner had successfully summited the West Ridge of the 8,815 foot mountain known as Forbidden Peak and were descending via a series of rappels when the accident occurred around 5:30 pm. The two experienced climbers were confident of their success and teamwork on a very technically challenging but not overly difficult route that gained notoriety when featured in the climbing guidebook “Fifty Classic Climbs of North America.” Ironically, the difficult part of the climb was completed. It was not until the second stage of the descent, when Tyler had unclipped himself from his anchor to begin a simple horizontal traverse to the next rappel, that he was hit on the head by a falling boulder – a random, freak act of nature. He fell 300 feet into a rock/glacier moat and rangers recovered his body by helicopter the following day. Fortunately, his climbing partner Florian safely completed the descent with assistance from another climbing party, but had been left not knowing what had happened to his friend for over two hours. Tyler, a resident of Seattle Washington for the last nine years, was an avid adventurer, hiker, back country skier and mountaineer who loved the mountains and was passionate about climbing. The pictures Tyler took on his last climb were recovered from his camera and photos of him taken at the top of the peak by his partner show a happy, smiling young man beaming with the pride of accomplishment, and a breathtaking panorama of the surrounding mountains that he loved so much. Rock climbing is a high risk sport that challenged and excited Tyler; unfortunately he paid the ultimate price. As with everything he took on in life, Tyler pushed himself to excel and very quickly worked his way into more and more challenging climbs. He was constantly perfecting his technical skills as a climber. He researched and explored many mountains throughout Washington State and met an ever-widening circle of very fit, like-minded climbing enthusiasts who became trusted friends and climbing partners. He was greatly respected by members of his Seattle-based climbing club and was a preferred climbing partner for many because he knew his stuff, was trustworthy and they always felt safe with him. His family takes comfort in the knowledge that Tyler died doing something he loved - something he did well, and that he did not suffer. Tyler is survived by his mother, Patterson Lynn Fardell, currently residing with her partner, Arnold Sturm on a farm in Northumberland County, Ontario; his father, Rodger McCleery Barton, who lives in Vancouver, B.C. and his sister, Linden Jacqueline Barton, 25, now in London, Ontario. He is also survived by his maternal grandparents, Roy and Beverly Fardell; his aunts and uncles - Dave and Jane Fardell, Debbie Barton-Moore and Tom Moore, Bill and Cathy McTavish, all living in Toronto; Ted and Diane Barton, in Vancouver, and Jill and Jeff McTavish, currently residing in Newfoundland. He will be sadly missed by some adoring cousins who were really just getting to know Tyler - and each other - as successful young adults: Ashley St. Hilaire (Ottawa), Rachelle St. Hilaire (Guelph), Chris, Geoff and Ryan Fardell (Toronto), and Erin and Laura McTavish (Toronto), Jesse Moore ( Nairobi Kenya), Dana Dineen (Moore) (Toronto), Katia Barton (Vancouver); and second cousins Leo Moore and Rowan Moore - who sadly never got a chance to meet Tyler. Tyler was an intelligent, accomplished, fun-loving guy with a great sense of humour and a big heart; he was really an all round gem of a person. Always fair, he was a caring and compassionate and young man who loved people, was overly generous and made lots of friends. He worked hard and played hard, lived on the edge and always enjoyed life to its fullest. Greatly respected and admired in the workplace, he will be sorely missed by superiors, team leaders, mentors and co-workers at Microsoft, Redmond WA site and by friends from many circles in Seattle, Ontario and around the world who shared his diverse interests - rock climbing, mountaineering, back country and downhill skiing, basketball, fitness, technology, travel, debating, public speaking, electronic music, dancing and partying. Tyler will remain forever in the loving heart of his girlfriend in Seattle, Elizabeth Johnson. September 21, 2013 a special gathering honoring Tyler was held at his Seattle climbing club where slides of his last climb were presented. This was followed by a truly extraordinary celebration of Tyler’s life staged in Seattle by his closest friends, his father and sister. The multi-media slide presentation created for that truly awesome tribute to Tyler Barton will be shared here in Toronto at Mount Pleasant Visitation Centre on November 9, from 2 to 5 pm. To view pictures posted by his Seattle friends, readers may follow the following link: https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=bb93e02a00d76dea&idi=BB93EO An open invitation is extended to this informal gathering which will be hosted by his mother, Patterson Fardell with great deal of help from her sister-in-law, Jane Fardell. The Fardell family would like to welcome Ontario friends, former teachers and fellow students at Montcrest, Del and University of Waterloo- as well as all those fine people who knew Tyler or his parents at different theatres where they worked over the years, especially at Shaw, Stratford and Young People’s Theatre. They hope to include people who are interested in learning about the extraordinary young man Tyler became. Sharing stories, remembrances and photos on this web site or at the event will be greatly appreciated, as this will become part of a permanent memory book for the family. Tyler always climbed the highest peaks in all areas of his life. He is an inspiration to us all. IN LIEU OF FLOWERS… In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider a donation to a bursary and awards program set up in Tyler’s name at De LaSalle College “Oaklands”, Toronto. Funds raised will be used to assist future students who, as in Tyler’s case, would otherwise be unable to afford to attend private school and yet deserve the quality education that he received there. The Barton family wish to thank De LaSalle College for their generous assistance that allowed both Tyler and his sister, Linden to benefit from the school’s excellent teachers and programming from grades 7 to 13 (Tyler) and grades 5 to 12 (Linden). “DEL” provided a solid educational foundation that prepared them to do well at University, helped them become great communicators, debaters and public speakers and helped shape their characters as confident, kind and compassionate people. Thank-you DEL, and in particular, Brother Dominic – Tyler’s first teacher, for opening up the doors to their success in life. Envelopes for donations will be available at the Nov. 9 event or cheques can be mailed to: The Tyler Barton Fund, De La Salle College “Oaklands”, 131 Farnham Avenue, Toronto, ON M4V 1H7 or if you prefer you can be linked directly to the Tyler Barton Fund by the copying the following link into the internet explorer address bar. https://www.delasalleoaklands.org/page.cfm?p=1667&LockSSL=true</div>

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