'He deserves this:' London Officer Cadet who died by suicide to be honoured with Sacrifice Medal

‘He was more than his military career’ A special medal ceremony will be held Friday honouring a local Officer Cadet who died by suicide. CTV London’s Reta Ismail reports.

It's been eight years since Angela Cameron-Jolly and Bill Jolly lost their son Brett Cameron to suicide at the Royal Military College (RMC) in Kingston.

Cameron-Jolly told CTV News her son knew at a very young age that he wanted to be a part of the military. He was able to get two pilots licenses through the cadets program, so it came as no surprise that he wanted to attend RMC.

"His first year, he loved it. He got along with everybody, and he was successful in his leadership. He struggled a little in the academics, but he made good friends," said Cameron-Jolly, as she fought back tears.

But despite all of that, she said her son was lonely and homesick. Towards the end of his second year at RMC, one of his close friends, Harrison Kelertas, committed suicide.

"He had to write three exams that day. The day they found out and he, he failed all three of those exams. And when you failed three exams at RMC, that comes with some consequences," explained Cameron-Jolly. "And unfortunately, he thought he was going to be kicked out and that is not what happens. But that was the rumor and that was what they were told, so he believed it and he ended up taking his own life, 10 days after Harrison."

A Board of Inquiry (BOI) was launched into their deaths after a third Officer Cadet died by suicide at RMC in the same year (2016).

Cameron-Jolly said a lot of recommendations came out of the BOI, something she said she's very proud of achieving.

"We made sure that those recommendations weren't put in a binder and on a shelf, and they made a lot of changes at RMC when it comes to how they deal with mental health, how they deal with campus and how they deal with those soldiers, and making sure that they had supports," she said.

On Friday, a memorial service will be held at Wolseley Barracks in London, Ont. to honour Brett Cameron with a Sacrifice Medal for the impact his death has had on mental health and the military.

"I think that's one of the reasons why we fought so hard for Brett to get this honor, because his death was unnecessary, and he passed. And when he did, it shone a light on everything that needed to be addressed," said Cameron-Jolly. "And I think that's the problem is that there's a lot going on that wasn't being addressed in the military as far as mental health and as far as support. And I think Brett helped bring about a lot of change, and that's why he deserves this."

Angela will be given a Memorial Cross at the service on Friday, something she has waited almost a decade to receive.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 988. Support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.