Sept. 2nd, 2022. It鈥檚 1:00 a.m. Tracy Lenes鈥� doorbell rang.

鈥淢y daughter said there was a police unit out front,鈥� Lenes said. 鈥淚 thought 鈥榦h, I wonder if somebody broke into our garage, or something鈥檚 happened in the community?鈥欌��

When Lenes opened her door, she said a police officer was standing on her front lawn by her flower bed, waiting for her.

鈥淚 stick my head out the door and he goes, 鈥榓re you Tracy?鈥� and I said 鈥榶eah鈥� and he goes, 鈥榳ell it鈥檚 Calgary police and we have some sad news. Max was killed at worked today.鈥欌��

Max Paczulla was Lenes鈥� oldest son of four. The 27-year-old was a mechanic and had died while working at Gahcho Kue diamond mine.

Lenes said she didn鈥檛 go back to sleep that night and couldn鈥檛 believe what she just heard. Nearly two years later, she鈥檚 still looking for answers.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not necessarily getting any easier. I thought that year two would be easier but it鈥檚 actually a bit more of a struggle.鈥�

De Beers Canada owns Gahcho Kue diamond mine. Paczulla was working for a contractor partner company called SMS Equipment Inc. when he died.

SMS Equipment Inc. has been charged with 14 counts in relation to Paczulla鈥檚 death alleging violations of the Safety Act and the Mine Health and Safety Act.

According to the charging documents, Paczulla died after he was 鈥渃rushed in the head and neck area between the rail of the boarding ladder and truck guardrail toe plate鈥� on a Komatsu 830E haul truck while he was inspecting the vehicle.

鈥淚t feels like a state of limbo and we鈥檙e waiting for resolution, as if I could close the chapter, but we鈥檙e not there yet,鈥� Lenes said.

According to information documents from NWT territorial court, there is an appendix of offences SMS Equipment Inc. currently faces.

鈥淭he work of a contractor performed at the said mine, namely, SMS Equipment Inc., did fail to take every reasonable measure and precaution to protect the health and safety of employees of the mine and other persons at the time,鈥� the document reads.

SMS Equipment Inc. is also accused of failing to provide effective safeguards for dangerous moving parts of machines, according to the information document. The charge sheet states that Paczulla was not suitably trained to perform work safely.

Lenes said that even after nearly two years, she still doesn鈥檛 know much about what happened.

鈥淎ny time I鈥檝e asked to get more information, I鈥檓 told, 鈥榠t鈥檚 going through court, we can鈥檛 say anything鈥� and I just don鈥檛 even feel like I have anywhere to turn to get more information.鈥�

Lenes said she did get an apology from SMS executives, adding that it was comforting to talk them. Still, she鈥檚 got no shortage of questions left.

鈥淗ow did it all come about?鈥� Lenes asked rhetorically. 鈥淒id Max do something that brought this about, was it truly an accident in the truest sense of the word?鈥�

Lenes also said she isn鈥檛 sure if her son had received adequate training for his job. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 imagine that he would somehow put himself in danger,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 imagine he would take a shortcut.鈥�

She added that her son had been a mechanic for years, and was more than aware of the dangers of the job.

Lenes said her son鈥檚 body finally made it home after four days. 鈥淲e got to spend one hour with Max when he finally got to Calgary,鈥� she said, which is where Paczulla was born and raised.

One hour might not sound like much, but for her, Lenes said it was one of the most meaningful and healing times.

鈥淗e ended up being cremated, but I wanted time with him,鈥� she explained. 鈥淚t starts off highly stressful and it ends extremely peacful.鈥�

Lenes looked up to the sky when thinking about who her son was. She smiled, retelling stories of how much he used to read. 鈥淏y the time he got into school, his Grade 2 teacher informed me - she phoned me to tell me - that his reading comprehension was at a Grade 9 level.鈥�

Now, Lenes said she鈥檚 still working on finding resolution for her son. She鈥檚 working on his legacy too.

Back home in Calgary, Lenes said she is having a memorial bench made for a downhill biking area somewhere in Kananaskis territory. Lenes said Paczulla loved downhill biking.

She鈥檚 also starting to read more herself.

鈥淚鈥檓 reading lots of books, books that he recommended I read before he passed. So, I got a lot of them,鈥� Lenes said, smiling.

SMS appeared in court in late April and is expected to enter a plea on July 26.