Article content continued

Maguire and a friend would routinely read the morning announcements over the school’s intercom, throwing in a few inappropriate inside jokes and calling out the principal for not standing up during O Canada. He was involved in student council. He got 80s on his report card. Friends describe him as an upbeat joker, always up-to-date on current events both local and global. He had “a bit of an attitude towards authority,” says one former classmate.

Former classmate Evan Massey recalled being kicked out of class with Maguire — known to his peers as “JMag” — who teased him when he struggled to read something aloud during Grade 11 English.

But Maguire also played his cards close to his chest. “He kept to himself about a lot of things that were either important or things that bugged him,” Massey remembered. His parents divorced when he was in his early teens, when his love for punk rock flourished.

The young man pushed boundaries, but also laughed about those who pushed too far.

“The really punk thing to say was ‘Anarchy, maaaan,’” Massey remembered. “He would make fun of that almost on the daily.”

But when their senior year began, “JMag” was nowhere to be seen. He just disappeared.

Few who’d gone to school with him heard anything about him until Postmedia News reported the RCMP was investigating his presence in Syria.

His path there had many stops since Kemptville: In Grade 12 he was living with his grandparents and attending Hillcrest high school in Alta Vista. Classmates say his exit from Kemptville was abrupt and unexpected. “(Maguire) just got rid of everyone on Facebook and kinda disappeared,” says one former classmate. “He never told us why.”