Alejandro Duque wanted to make a difference in the world by advancing cancer research.
But the 25-year-old University of Toronto grad won’t get the chance.
Toronto Police say they were called to Queen St. E. near the water treatment facility around 5 p.m. Sunday for a male who was having trouble swimming.
Officers and paramedics arrived and found people standing around an area with rocks who said a man was in distress.
Alejandro Duque.
Arbor Memorial
“The friends he was with in that area saw his board went into the water and he went after it,” said police spokesman Katrina Arrogante. “Unfortunately, he was having trouble being in the water because of the conditions of the weather and eventually, he had struck the rocky area.”
Paramedics located Duque and rushed him to hospital where he died.
Alejandro Duque.
LinkedIn
According to an obituary on Arbor Memorial’s website, Duque had recently graduated from U of T’s sciences program and just began a masters program in biomedicine at the university. He was “keenly interested” in his research to develop treatments/research for cancer.
Duque was a research and development intern at ImmunoBiochem Corp., according to his LinkedIn page. He also attended Birchmount Park Collegiate Institute.
“Alejandro was a sweet young man who loved his dog, Pepper, lacrosse and travel. Above all, he loved his many friends and had a passion for cooking and more recently, gardening,” according to the obituary.
Alejandro Duque.
University of Toronto Varsity Blues
“I was fortunate enough to meet Al through the University of Toronto Aerospace Team,” said Katie Gwozdecky. “He was always so warm and welcoming, and when we had meetings he would show up with a smile.”
“I was so grateful to have him for his expertise in biology but more importantly because he brought enthusiasm and energy to our challenging work,” she said.
U of T’s Varsity Blues lacrosse team issued a statement on Wednesday.
“The Varsity Blues men’s lacrosse program is saddened to learn that Alejandro (Al) Duque has passed away. Al played with the Blues from 2011-15 and also worked with the team as an assistant coach,” the statement read.
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