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It was a highly emotional scene at the Calgary Muslim Cemetery, just east of Cochrane, on Wednesday afternoon.
Dozens of mourners gathered to pay their respects to Damilola Afolabi and his family, as they laid the 12-year-old boy to rest.
The family invited Global News to attend the funeral.
Damilola’s father, Jabreel Afolabi, was so overcome with grief he crumpled to the ground and was comforted by friends throughout the funeral.
Damilola’s father, Jabreel Afolabi (centre) was so overcome with grief during his son’s funeral that he had to be comforted by friends.
Global News
“This is a beautiful young family that came in from Ghana to find a better place for their children,” said family friend Patrick Adda.
“They came in here, they had no one, and all of us here were like angels that came into their lives to see how best we can help them migrate into the best place to live and work.”
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Damilola’s mother was too distraught to talk, so his father spoke for the family and recalled their joy of moving to Canada.
“When we board the flight, he said that this is my best ever life… until this untimely death appears and takes my son away from me.”
Sharing memories of his son, Afolabi said, “He loved to make friends, he loved people. No matter what they look like, no matter what they spoke, he wants to be with friends.”
On Sunday, Damilola ended up going to Mahogany Lake. Unfortunately, he couldn’t swim.
Around 7:20 p.m. EMS got a call that “a youth had gone missing in the water.”
The Mahogany Homeowners Association website says Mahogany Lake is about 25 hectares (64 acres) in size.
Global News
Paramedics, along with members of the Calgary Fire Department’s aquatics team, responded and after speaking with witnesses, CFD divers entered the lake, which is over seven metres (23 feet) deep.
The water was not only very cold, but the divers reported that visibility below the surface was also quite limited.
Divers eventually found the child at the bottom of the lake, brought him to the surface and transferred him to the care of EMS.
The child was rushed to hospital, where he later passed away.
A fire department spokesperson said from the time 911 was called until the boy was pulled from the lake, he had been under the frigid waters for 43 minutes.
First responders said, from the time 911 was called to when he was pulled to the surface of the lake, 12-year-old Damilola Afolabi had been under water for 43 minutes.
Courtesy: The Afolabi Family
A GoFundMe account has been set up to help the family cover the costs of “honoring his memory” and other expenses.
It describes Afolabi as “a humble and respectful soul gone too soon” but whose memories his family and friends “will carry forever.”
Despite the family’s joy of moving to Canada, Damilola’s father, Jubreel Afolabi, says it will not be the same without his son.
Global News
“The meaning of Dami (Damilola) is you are bringing the joy and the happiness — that is the meaning of his name,” said his father.
“But today there is no more. I never prayed that I will be the one to bury my son.
“Wherever you are, Dami, God bless and keep you and hold your soul. May your light never dim, whatever you are. As you see us.”
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
