James Frederck Allan FORBES

My head is still reeling in disbelief at hearing the new. My deepest & most sincere condolences go out to Jay's parents, family and friends at this most difficult of times and to the men of the 173rd crew who I'm sure are in a place right now no one wishes to be in but everyone inevitably does I also wish to extend my sincerest sympathies. I'll miss our long & numerous conversations about the profound, sublime and the utterly ridiculous-all of them great fun. It is difficult in this age to find many people with the motivation, dedication and devotion that Jay had for a cause, his craft and his country, things Jay possessed in great abundance. Much is the greater sorrow that society will no longer be able to benefit from Jay's passion to learn, teach and inform but it can take solace in the achievements he has left with us-much to respect and admire indeed. Society has benefited much from Jay being with us but is now on this day just so much the lesser with his passing. I will miss you my friend, rest in peace trooper, your TAB is complete, Utrinque Paratus

Our sincerest condolences go out to Jays family and friends. He will be sorely missed and dearly remembered.

Diane, Sandy , Heather Very heartbroken to read of Jay's passing. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all.

Jamie, I will always remember chasing sheep together when we were young, and playing hide and seek for hours in your parents house. Very sorry for your loss Sandy, Diane and Heather. Thinking of you all.

Deepest condolences from the Marr family.

Jay, I will definitely miss your posts on FaceBook, the questions you asked about how did this go, what did you wear, where did you...
You truly did my old Nam unit well but as a person I truly will miss you, the talks, the emails. You'll have great company where you are, a lot of paratroopers stand waiting for you. Good bye my friend

My condolences to the family, Jay was a stand up man, a true patriot and a helpful friend. Rest easy brother.

We are so sorry to hear of Jays passing. My mom and I worked with Jay many years ago and our thoughts are with his family and friends.

My condolences to his family, NCdt Forbes was very bright and funny, he will be missed.

You will be missed more than you could ever know Jay. Rest in peace my friend, my comrade, my brother.

I was deeply saddened to hear of this young man's passing. As his Commanding Officer, I had the honour of swearing him into the Canadian Armed Forces at HMCS HUNTER. James had a bright future ahead of him - we are all diminished by his absence. Hearfelt condolences to the family.

You'll be sadly missed by us, and mostly by our son, who thinks of you as a mentor.

Godspeed Jay - missed seeing you in the last few years, but kept up with your thoughts and interests on different sites. To Diane, Sandy and Heather - our hearts ache for you. The Michaelis Family

Sincere Condolences to all of Jay's family and friends May and Irene Power (Jonathan Brignall's Aunt and Grandmother)

Jay, you will be sadly missed. We had such great times through the military re-enacting. I know this year, I will be looking for your silly grin in the barracks at Ft. George (and your snoring!). Wont be the same without our loud Hawaiian shirt competition.
My sincere condolences go out to your family. My prayers are with them and you, my Brother in Arms!
We will meet again!

Very sorry. Rich & Maria Floberg

Walk peacefully friend.
Rag Tag Crew / Sweden

in a day i spent with you, is a day easy to remeber. Thank you Jay for all the great times we had and the times we went through. I don't know how my life would be if i never met you. You are someone who had a great outlook on life, passion, a man who stuck to his guns but wasn't afraid to see another outlook from someone else's eyes. your endless care for people will be hard to mimic. until we met again Jay you will always be a part of the greatest times I've had. R.I.P Jay

I have known Jay since public school. Although Jay and I were never close, I always thought of him as being a very kind and smart. I was deeply saddened by the news of his passing. My thoughts have gone out to Jay and his family ever since. He'll be missed.

I only just met him last summer at TimeLine in Niagara On The Lake, I saw a special person in him. He will be missed.

So deeply saddened by your loss . Jay was a lovely young man and dear friend to our Britt. He will be greatly missed.

So heartbroken over the news of Jays passing. My heart is with Jays family and all of his friends right now. Jay has been a good and true friend to me over the past 10+ years. It was always easy to chat with Jay as he was an excellent listener with an open mind, and big heart. Conversations with Jay were always interesting. He had so much knowledge about world issues, politics and history. Not only did he have a lot of knowledge, but he was passionate about these topics. He has taught me a lot over the years, not only about history and the world, but he has demonstrated how to be a good person. Jay will always have a place in mine, and many of our hearts.

Jay was the glue that kept our reenacting unit together and always moving forward.

Goodbye my friend. See you when I see you. Home is where you dig it. We try harder. Airborne all the way.

Jay, A true gentleman, It was a pleasure to have known you, even if it was only for a few years.. Sorry to see you taken from us far too early, Rest easy soldier your tour is over.

It won't be the same without you

I am saddened to hear of Jays passing. I did not know him only online. I always looked forward to his online post.His knowledge of the Vietnam war was immense.He will be missed.

Jay has been the older brother I never had since August 2013.. He taught me so much about reenacting and the 173rd. Home is where you dig it Jay. I love you brother.

Rest Easy Troop. The Vietnam Reenactment community is a Man down.
Chris (Macv SOG UK)

Rest well Jay, going to miss our chats.

I love you brother, home is where you dig it.

Heartbroken to hear of Jay's passing....you are all in our thoughts and prayers.....xo. The Thomas Family (Lucan)

It was an honor to have known Jay, from elementary till now, he always stood out to me as a good man. Full of passion and good values, he was proud of his country and very humble. My condolences to all who knew him, he had a great impact on many souls. I will miss you dearly jay forbes, thanks for the memories, and you thought me good character, whether you ment to or not. So sad you went so soon.. I hope you are at peace, cheers!

Jay I remember all the good times and the great times you and my brother had hanging out at our house. The things you didn't for the community and the joy you brought and outlook on life made each day better and better. We lost a great guy but the heavens gained an even greater one. R.I.P Jay