A Manitoba resident is buying coffee for his community this Sunday in honour of his daughter.

James Cooke of Oakbank made the charitable decision after being overwhelmed with support in the aftermath of his daughter, Kiiya Desmoulins', passing last year.

In response to the tragedy, management at the Tim Hortons where she worked offered coffee and tea to the family. In addition, Desmoulin’s co-workers raised money and presented it to Cooke and his wife.

Cooke expresses amazement for the response, especially considering that his family was relatively new to the area.

"The support was for my daughter," says Cooke. “It was just overwhelming because we didn’t realize how many people actually, truly, knew our daughter.

The Cooke-Desmoulins family moved from Ontario and had lived in the community for eight years.

"That sense of community and support was really admirable," explains Cooke, "because we had just moved to Oakbank a few years before."

Kim Rittolls, General Manager at the Tim Hortons, attributes the support to being in a small community and just plain old common sense. “The great thing about living in a little town is exactly that,” she agrees, "there was no thought or question about it."

Cooke admits that he was not comfortable receiving the money because of all the support that he and his wife had already received from the community. So, after wrestling with it for a while, a conversation with his neighbour sparked the idea to pay forward the kindness with coffee.

The reciprocation has already been felt, as many members of the community have reached out to Cooke and commended him for his genuine gratitude in the face of loss. "They were very appreciative," Rittolls confirms with a personal anecdote. "The first time I saw Kiiya’s mom after, she hugged me and just said thank you."

The family held a four-day sacred fire as per the customs of their heritage. The fire was attended by many members of the community as it blazed for those four days. “It was like a highway in our backyard, people coming in, sitting around and sharing stories," remembers Cooke. "We were just very thankful."

Reflecting on the number of people that attended their sacred fire for Kiiya, Cooke says, “You know how you always wonder if you’re doing a good job raising your children, well for me, that was a real, true reflection of that”.

Despite the pain of losing his "best friend," Cooke takes solace in the wide-scale and positive impact that his daughter had on the community.

That impact continues to resonate as, after Cooke’s announcement, an anonymous member of the community purchased a gift card and let the restaurant management know it was "for the wonderful Kiiya." The fund now will be able to supply over 200 cups of coffee for residents of the town.

"As her parents, we want to thank everyone for their generosity and support," came Cooke’s response to the news on Facebook.

"So, come to Tim’s, and get a coffee on Kiiya."