TRURO - Ben Hare loved music, friends, family and was a perfect gentleman, people close to the young man said Friday.
Hare was killed early Thursday morning outside a Lyman Street apartment building.
"Ben was a great kid," his father Dennis told the Truro Daily News yesterday.
"He was a musical genius ... He could play any kind of music. He'd pick up a guitar and jump in with anybody."
Ben was well known for his ability to compose music, having deejayed local bars and at a recent skateboarding competition in Truro.
Mellissa Puslifer, who dated Ben for nine years, said he would wake up in the middle of the night with a beat in his head.
"He would work all night long until he got it the way he wanted," Dennis added.
More than 300 friends and family members visited the family's home Thursday and it was busy again yesterday as people showed up to be supportive and share stories.
"He's definitely one of the best friends a guy could have," said Matt Deuville, who has known Hare for 23 years. "He would do anything for you ... he is just simply awesome."
The two were nearly inseparable.
"All through school, all through life, that's how it was, I wouldn't go anywhere without him," Deuville said. "It didn't feel right."
Now Deuville plans on getting a tattoo of his friend so he will always be with him.
Ben, who was known to his friends as Laz (short for Lazlo) liked donair poutine, cooking, Halloween and was a big Toronto Maple Leafs fan, which is a family tradition. He played foosball, darts, skateboarding and a slew of other activities with his friends.
Ben played minor hockey in Truro for years and was known for always giving people a high-five, even to people he didn't know. It was part of his outgoing personality that drew so many people close to him. A Facebook group created late Thursday had more than 1,400 members by 7 p.m. Friday.
"He was automatically respected because he would respect you," Pulsifer said.
She remembers Ben packing a picnic and spending the whole day with her after her grandfather died two months ago.
"He wanted to help and he wanted to be there for everybody else," Deuville explained.
Ben was a low-key person, who didn't want any recognition, who had a quick wit and good sense of humour.
"He's a gentleman, big time," said Pulsifer.
Ben attended Alice Street elementary and Bible Hill junior high schools before going to Cobequid Educational Centre where he graduated from in 2002. He wanted to study recording arts.
The family started a snow sculpture gargoyle late one February night and didn't complete the project until the middle of the morning. Ben spent a few extra hours perfecting the sculpture, which was a hot topic in the east end for days.
His friends and family shared stories while sitting downstairs in the family home next to a drum set and upstairs where he worked on mixing the music.
"When Ben was on the record you couldn't see his fingers and hands they were moving so fast," Deuville said.
He even played a few of Ben's songs yesterday. The room got very quiet as Pulsifer sat on the couch clutching a cushion and friends remembered the man who brought so much happiness to their lives.
"We're a close family and all his friends are family," Dennis said.
Deuville said it's been "surreal," for the past two days. "For a lot of us I don't think it has kicked in," he said.
A celebration of Ben's life will be held Monday from 1 to 3 p.m. at Colchester Community Funeral Home. For his obituary, see Page 7.
jmalloy@trurodaily.com
