Lindsey Rints only knew Dallas Tomniuk for six years, but they were six of the most wonderful years of her life.
“Dallas had such passion for life,” said Rints, Tomniuk’s widow. “Everything he did, he did 100 per cent. He’s an awesome guy and he’s really missed.”
Tomniuk, who worked as the assistant technical director at the University of Victoria’s Farquhar Auditorium for 13 years, is being remembered as a kind soul with an adventurous side following a fatal motorcycle accident in Tofino on May 22.
Rints recalled hitting it off with Tomniuk in 2010, after they were introduced to each other through friends. Shortly after, she became pregnant with their eldest son Ryder, now five, and later his brother Theo, 17 months.
In the last six years, Rints got to know Tomniuk as a lifelong Supermoto enthusiast and all-around outdoorsy guy who ran the audio for more than 1,500 events at the auditorium, ranging from concerts to graduations to dance recitals.
“I just thought he was the coolest ever because he rode bikes, he worked here, he got me tickets for shows,” said Rints. “He was a good guy.”
Cameron Northover, who worked alongside Tomniuk for six years at Farquhar, said they were a tightknit crew behind the soundboard. Tomniuk himself had been on hand for a total of 133 UVic convocation ceremonies and 14 high school graduations a year in his time with Farquhar, as well as countless music concerts, Chinese New Year celebrations, Diwali festivals and dance performances.
Outside of work, Northover said the two of them shared the same passion for the outdoors and grew as friends from the outset.
“In the past six years, he became a really close friend to me,” he said. “He was a really genuinely nice guy. He taught me a lot of stuff about sound and the auditorium.
“I ended up buying a motorcycle a couple months after I started working there. He loved motorcycling, dirt biking, ATVing. He had a gun collection and loved to take us shooting and go do that sort of stuff.”
Northover said Tomniuk’s sudden death was a shock to everyone who knew him, whether personally or in passing. About 250 people turned out for his memorial, including loved ones from North Vancouver, the Okanagan and Alberta who made the trek to Vancouver Island.
“It’s amazing to see the impact it’s made on so many people from different groups – the university, the Supermoto group, Pacific Audio Works – and how everyone came together to celebrate him,” said Rints of Tomniuk’s memorial. “It was overwhelming.
“We did an honorary ride into Cowichan Bay and back to the hall in Cobble Hill. It was a good day.”
Following the accident, Northover started a GoFundMe page to support Rints and her two sons. In less than two weeks, the campaign reached $15,000 of its $50,000 goal, serving as a testament to how much Tomniuk meant to so many people.
“It’s unreal,” said Rints. “I don’t know how I’d be doing this without the support. I think the two little guys are definitely giving me some strength.
“Dallas was pretty well loved. Hopefully he knows how many people he really did touch.”
To donate to the GoFundMe campaign, visit gofundme.com/265ekecc.
jacob.zinn@saanichnews.com