Calgary family finds comfort in birdwatching after losing son to brain cancer

Amanda Moppett-Beatch begins each morning with a cup of coffee and the sound of birds chirping, a quiet ritual that helps her feel close to her son, Easton, who died on June 12 at age 12 after a three-year battle with brain cancer.

Easton discovered a passion for birdwatching and photography after his diagnosis in June 2023, when grueling treatment forced him to give up hockey. "When hockey was taken from him, he was like, 'You know what? I guess I like birds,'" Moppett-Beatch recalled. "He picked up my old camera and we just started. It gave him a new sense of purpose and something to work towards."

Just weeks after Easton's death, his parents and nine-year-old sister, Ellie, have continued birdwatching, using it both to honour his memory and help navigate their grief. "It's so hard to pick ourselves up. There are days where you just want to stay home," Moppett-Beatch said. "Birding has been a way that we can just pick ourselves up, and a reminder to look up. It's giving us a purpose now to keep taking steps forward when all we want to do is cry."

One of the ways they're honouring Easton is by completing his 2026 "Big Year" — a birding challenge to identify as many bird species as possible in a calendar year. After surpassing his goal of spotting 250 species in 2025, Easton set his sights on reaching 300 birds in 2026. He spotted 136 species before his death. In his final days, his younger sister promised they would finish the challenge for him.

"It's been a bit of a blessing to try and continue to achieve this goal for Easton," Moppett-Beatch said. "It's like, we got to get out there and see more birds. We are choosing to have this be part of our grief process as a way to not let cancer ruin the rest of our lives."

Easton was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer in June 2023. After a relapse in July 2024, doctors gave him just a 10 per cent chance of survival and estimated he had three to six months to live. He lived another 23 months — a testament to his resilience. On Wednesday afternoon, Moppett-Beatch arrived at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary with her camera, ready for another outing in the hopes of adding more birds to the list, carrying in her backpack a hardcover book created by Easton's uncle, filled with hundreds of bird photographs Easton captured during countless hours spent outdoors.