Saskatoon man carries on Star Wars tradition after father’s death

Aaron Peters has been at the opening showing of every Star Wars film in his lifetime. Every time, his father Tim was by his side. 

But on Thursday, Peters will have the help of his sister to carry on the family tradition after they lost their dad to cancer in April. 

“I don’t even know how to put it into words,” Peters told 650 CKOM in an interview. “It’s sad but happy all at the same time.” 

Peters and his dad bonded over the science fiction franchise. Tim saw the first Star Wars in theatres when he was 13, and he took Peters to see the first prequel, The Phantom Menace, when his son was 15. 

It then became a ritual to purchase tickets to the first available show of a new Star Wars film, and for Peters to dress up and go with his father to see what the newest instalments of the space opera had in store. 

“Ever since I could walk my dad, both my parents would play the movies for me,” Peters said. “It’s been a family thing for my whole life.” 

When Episode VIII, The Last Jedi, was released in 2017 Peters was finally able to convince his dad to dress up as a character from the films. The pair went as Kylo Ren and the elder version of Luke Skywalker.  

Tim Peters (right) dressed as Luke Skywalker, while his son Aaron donned a Kylo Ren costume for the first showing of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in Saskatoon on Dec. 14, 2017. (Chris Vandenbreekel/650 CKOM)

Peters said it was a special memory to share with his father. 

“Especially at 55 it’s hard to convince him to geek out that much,” he said. “It was pretty special to be able to do that with him.” 

While Peters won’t get the chance to see the final film with his dad, Rise of Skywalker will still be connected to his memory because of their final moments together. 

The night Tim died was the same day the first trailer for the new film was released. 

“I heard in the car that there was a trailer, so I pulled over and quickly checked YouTube,” Peters said. 

“I said ‘I want to save this, I want to watch it with dad.’ I got the call that night that he was fading out pretty bad, so I went rushing back to the hospital. I saw him and he had just enough left in him to watch the trailer. It was intense,” he said. 

Hours later, his father died. 

“That was one of the last things I got to do with him.” 

Peters’ son was born a month before his dad died, and in the future he’s hoping to start a new Star Wars tradition with the next generation. 

But in the meantime, he’s focusing on convincing his sister to don a costume like their father did for their last trip to a movie premiere.