Family, friends and firefighters are still mourning the loss of 20-year south Etobicoke fireman, Duncan Gibson, who passed away two months ago leaving behind his wife and two young daughters.

Duncan was a son of Etobicoke and one of the youngest firefighter recruits ever called for duty. He followed in his dad Blair’s footsteps by working as a firefighter with the City of Toronto for two decades.

Having reached the rank of Acting Captain, Duncan most recently worked at Station 433D, at 615 Royal York Rd., where he was a valuable part of the crew.

Duncan was an upbeat and hardworking firefighter, who respected the role he played in his community, viewing his career as a firefighter, a privilege more than a job; just like his father did before him.
He and his wife, Kate, were the parents of two beautiful girls; Willow, 8, and Marigold, 4, who were the love of their lives.

Along the way, Duncan earned his Ontario Fire College Certificate of Achievement completing fireground operations and specialized in firefighter in the community modules by 2002.
He earned his Honours Bachelor of Science, Psychology and English double major, in 2005 at the University of Toronto.
And, in June 2007 earned a Certificate in Fire Leadership from Dalhousie University.

Like many, he was living a joyful and hectic life, balancing work and family.

Suddenly in the summer of 2018,  Duncan began experiencing relentless heartburn type sensations and difficulty swallowing. After medical examinations, he was given the shocking news that he had stage-four gastro-esophageal cancer.
He immediately began treatment and for the past two years had been battling the fight of his life. He would pop into the fire hall between chemo treatments to make sure his other “family” knew he was well and fighting with everything he had.

Unfortunately, while Duncan was fighting his own battle, he lost his dad, Blair, a 34-year Toronto firefighter, who succumbed to prostate cancer in January 2019.
Sadly Duncan lost his own battle with cancer last July at the young age of 40.
And even though Duncan dedicated his career to firefighting and as a first responder in his community, he has fallen short of the presumptive cancer legislation for firefighters by five years. The coverage  would have ensured his wife and children be taken care of financially when he died.

His friends and family members say the second-generation firefighter is being overlooked when it comes to the protecting and caring for his own family.
“We will never comprehend the amount of pain and loss that the Gibson family has experienced and will continue to face,” firefighters say. “We can step up when the governing bodies won’t and raise funds and let Duncan’s family know that his girls’ future education will be taken care of.”

A Go Fund Me page has been created by his friends and fellow firefighters to help raise money to pay for the education of his girls.

So far more than $115,000 has been donated by community members. If you can help please visit GoFundMe with a donation at the link below.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/firefighter-duncan-gibson?utm_source=customer&utm_campaign=m_pd%20share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link-tip&fbclid=IwAR3uoc5G2MuPHrnY3hC2-j0-jTmZpeVkwmZ84QW9Pm96luor6UzEgQm_in8