QUEBEC CITY - Mourners filled a stately Quebec City church to capacity on Saturday to pay their final respects to Cpl. Jean-Francois Drouin, killed in Afghanistan Sept. 6.
The military funeral service for the 31-year-old soldier took place in the century-old Saint-Louis-de-Courville church in the borough of Beauport.
Drouin, known as 'Big Drou' to his friends and remembered as someone who liked to make others laugh, was born in the province's capital.
He died in roadside bomb blast southwest of Kandahar City, along with colleague Maj. Yannick Pepin, both members of the 5 Combat Engineer Regiment based at CFB Valcartier, Que.
He went to Afghanistan for the first time last April.
The soldier's family says he was a veteran soldier who relished his leadership role.
Pte. Simon Trudel, who worked with Drouin in Afghanistan, says the attendance of so many family, friends and colleagues at his funeral serves as a testament to his life.
"He was positive, always there for others and proud of his job," Trudel told French-language CBC on Saturday.
"The last tribute we can pay to him is right here."
The body of another Canadian soldier is also on the way back home.
The brother and sister-in-law of Pte. Jonathan Couturier, 23, said the soldier lost his life for a cause he himself considered hopeless. It's reaction that comes amid a debate over whether the mission in Afghanistan has any hope of success.
Couturier died Sept. 17. when his vehicle hit an improvised explosive device while returning from a mission in the Panjwaii district, southwest of Kandahar city.
The plane carrying his body was due to arrive in Canada Sunday afternoon.
