Gary Yemane was a nurse at the Misericordia Hospital before his death last week
Friends are remembering Gary Yemane for his selflessness nature and his role as an active member of the Edmonton Eritrean community.
Gary Yemane was devoted to keeping the city’s Eritrean youth from getting involved in crime and violence.
A nurse of more than 30 years, his death has left his community stunned.
On Friday evening, Yemane, 63, was walking blocks away from his home on Ozerna road between 69th Street and 165th Avenue when he was shot multiple times. When police arrived, he was found dead on the sidewalk.
Zedingle Ghebremusse of the Edmonton Eritrean Association has been friends with Yemane for 30 years. They met for dinner last week.
The two talked about ways to engage their community’s youth to stop influences of crime and violence.
‘He’s selfless. He always wanted to help.’– Zedingle Ghebremusse
“Over the past few years we have had three losses of Eritrean youth who grew up here who were involved in negative stuff and they lost their lives,” Ghebremusse said. “Our conversation was about how to prevent it and how we can mobilize our community to work hard on this issue.
“He’s selfless. He always wanted to help.”
Yemane spent the last 30 years in Edmonton working as a nurse. At the time of his death, he was an employee at the Misericordia Community Hospital.
Yemane was a nurse in Edmonton for 25 years.
After Eritrea was granted independence in 1991, Yemane spent weeks buying medical books from the University of Alberta. He sent them to his home country to help civilians through a period of violence and instability.
He was known for using his medical expertise to help with the city’s African community. Passionate about leukemia awareness, he once held a stem cell drive and encouraged Africans and Caribbean to donate stem cells.
Ghebremusse said last summer Yemane was at a wedding when he saved the groom’s life. The man collapsed due to a problem with his heart, and Yemane did CPR until an ambulance came.
Ghebremusse said he just hopes the person responsible for his friend’s death is arrested.
“I’m hoping this person comes to justice,” he said. “I hope there’s closure for the family and the community.”
Ghebremusse said he has no idea why his friend, a well-respected member of not only the African community but in Edmonton as a whole, was killed.
He said friends and family are concerned right now that a man who wanted to save lives is now dead.
“There is a lot of fear in our community now,” Ghebremusse said. “This situation needs to be changed before it gets worse. I hope this is a wake-up call to our community.
Police are now looking for a black, older-model Toyota sedan, possibly a Corolla or Camry, that they believe was involved in the incident. The vehicle was seen leaving the area heading south on Ozerna Road.
The driver — the lone occupant of the car — is described as an “East Indian” man in his late 20s to early 30s, with short dark hair, about 5’8″ to 5’10” and weighing between 180 and 200 pounds
An autopsy is scheduled for today.
