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Grieving father organizing art/photography show as tribute to daughter

An upcoming art/photography show promises to be a fitting memorial to Calista Fleming, whose untimely death might always remain a mystery.
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CALISTA FLEMING'S DEATH has left family and friends wondering what happened.

An upcoming art/photography show promises to be a fitting memorial to Calista Fleming, whose untimely death might always remain a mystery. The 20-year-old, who had recently moved to Courtenay where she attended North Island College, died suddenly May 17."There's a lot going on here," her father Bryce said Thursday."The autopsy results haven't shown anything. As far as the pathologist was concerned she was perfectly healthy. She literally just stood up and dropped dead. They don't have any answers." Calista had attended a barbecue where Bryce said she might have had one drink too many but was not partying excessively. She and a friend decided to stay the night. The next morning she complained it was too early to get up."She got up and next thing you know she was on the floor dying," Bryce said. "They don't really have an answer. I don't know that we (he and wife Veronica) will ever get one either."He notes his daughter was into yoga and swimming, and had just completed a boot camp in Powell River. "There was no sign of any disease whatsoever," Bryce said, noting one of Calista's friends tried to revive her through CPR. Calista was born in the Yukon but raised in Regina, Sask. She worked about six months at her father's veterinarian clinic in Powell River before moving to Courtenay about eight months ago.Her goal was to be an artist. Acting on a recommendation from her mentor and wildlife artist Jack Cowin, Calista enrolled in the photography program at NIC. Bryce said Calista had a "Texas big" personality."That's my daughter," he said. "She was always large and in charge."Her friends are gathering stories on a Facebook page dubbed In Memory of Calista."A lot of people loved my daughter," Bryce said. "A lot of people thought there was something there. She filled the room when she was there."She always did what she wanted to do. She didn't care what other people thought of her. She was always the leader of the pack and never the follower."The art show is slated for June 16 at a teacher's studio. It will feature work of Calista's friends and of the tattoo shop she frequented. Bryce is also collecting money for a scholarship fund, established in Calista's name through the college, to support aspiring photographers.