P.E.I. paramedic Jenna Croucher, 23, remembered as 'rare beacon of light' after ambulance crash

Jenna Croucher, a 23-year-old paramedic from Prince Edward Island, is being remembered as a loving daughter, trusted co-worker, and dedicated healthcare provider after her death Tuesday in an ambulance collision with a transport truck on a New Brunswick highway west of the Confederation Bridge.

Her father, P.E.I. Education Minister Robin Croucher, who once worked as a paramedic himself, described his daughter as a "rare beacon of light" with an ability to connect with people across all ages and backgrounds. "It wouldn't matter if it was a crowd of dignitaries or if it was a homeless person on the street, she could find a connection," he said Friday. "That's just what made her so special."

Robin Croucher also characterized his daughter as a "mother hen"—a protective older sister and role model for her younger siblings, Lesley and Evan. Jenna possessed a mature appreciation for life's small moments: sharing meals, enjoying nature, and stopping to appreciate her surroundings. She owned a sailboat with her fiancée Morgan Roggeveen, whom she planned to marry in September.

Co-worker Priscilla Currie paid tribute to Croucher's reliability and friendship. "I never had to ask Jenna to be a great friend – she just was. I never had to ask Jenna to love my kids – she just did." Corey Frizzell, a town councillor for Cornwall, P.E.I., noted her "deep devotion to service, providing care and support to those in need in her role as a paramedic." He wrote: "She genuinely loved people and had so much to offer this world."

On Friday, Robin Croucher led a procession of vehicles, including fire trucks, returning his daughter's body to P.E.I. from a hospital in Saint John, New Brunswick. The coffin carrying her colleague Mike MacKenzie, who was driving the ambulance, was also part of the procession. MacKenzie was recently recognized for 20 years of service with Island EMS. The third person who died in the crash—a patient in the ambulance—has yet to be identified. Paramedics in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have volunteered to backfill roles on the Island to allow their P.E.I. counterparts to attend funerals and services.