Tributes were paid last night to a much-loved “gentle giant” who died suddenly at the age of 24, despite his family’s desperate attempts to save his life.Father-of-one Aaron Christopher Callabras Edness began having difficulty breathing just yards from his Hamilton Parish home on Friday evening, as his family drove him to work.His father Ray Edness, 42, performed CPR and a passing nurse stepped in to help before an ambulance arrived.But Aaron, a Regiment corporal and a bouncer at The Beach, was pronounced dead after arrival at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.His parents, Ray and Sharon Edness, and sister Sharae spoke to The Royal Gazette yesterday about their devastating loss and told how Aaron was a “wonderful” father to his four-year-old son Jevon Farmer.Mrs Edness, 51, a teacher at Warwick Academy, said: “It was absolutely sudden. We had all, the whole family, spent the day at Clearwater Beach. We came home and he got ready for work. He bathed his son, gave him a peanut butter and jam sandwich. Didn’t say ‘I feel sick’ or anything of that sort.“He was working security at Fort St Catherine for a party. We were all in the car, including his son. We were taking him to work when he had difficulty breathing. We started CPR and along came a nurse, who helped, a certified RN. I would like to find out who she is.“She continued the CPR while my husband Ray did the breathing. They did all that until the ambulance came.”Mrs Edness said her son was a “big guy” but had no known medical condition that could have caused his death. “We don’t know the cause until an autopsy is done,” she added.She described Aaron as “larger than life, almost” and a “big gentle giant teddy bear”.He was a proud Regiment soldier but had to miss several parades because a big enough jacket could not be found for him, nor a pair of his size 18 shoes.He eventually got a proper uniform and his family plan to bury him in it. Mrs Edness said her son loved serving in the Regimental Police (RP) unit and recently won a medal for “Best RP” at overseas camp in North Carolina.His military service was almost over but he planned to stay on for another year.Mrs Edness said her son shared custody of his child and regularly flew to Halifax, Nova Scotia to bring Jevon back here. “He was a wonderful dad, loving, he kissed him and hugged him a lot.“He always put his soldier’s hat on him and Jevon loved that too. He supported him financially. He brought him here for the whole summer: Jevon is supposed to be here until August 17. We told him his dad has gone to be with Jesus.”Sharae, who turns 17 on Wednesday, said her brother had the “biggest heart” and “always a listening ear”.The teenager told this newspaper: “He was always willing to put others before himself, always made sure that others had before him.“When I was little he was just my big brother, someone to beat up or blame things on. But as we got older we related more, we got to talk about things on a deeper level.“We planned to go back to school together. He was here saving to go back in September 2012. He was a very excitable person. We couldn’t stay mad at each other for long; he had too much of a big heart.”She added: “It hurts. It’s a whole different type of pain. I didn’t even know that he knew so many people. It’s sad that it took this event to realise that so many people loved and cared for him. I hope that he knows.”Mr Edness Sr said Aaron, a musician and sportsman, had diverse interests. The pair loved watching American football together and the younger man was a “diehard” Eagles fan.“He was like a best friend more than a son,” said Mr Edness Sr, an IT technician at Saltus Grammar School.Cpl Edness followed his cousins, brothers Wayne and Randy Smith, into the Regiment and they also paid tribute to him yesterday.The former, a retired major, said Aaron offered to be a full-time caregiver to his autistic son Johnathan and travelled to Florida a few times this year to look after him.“My wife and I were living in Bermuda and Johnathan was in Florida in school and Aaron went to stay for a few weeks at a time, on a few occasions during the school year. He was such a loving and giving person. He would never tell you ‘no’.”Randy Smith, a former corporal, said: “He was a great kid, a great guy, a godfather to my second son. I always played with him when he was young. It’s sad. I am going to miss him. My son, who’s five, is saying ‘when do I get to see my Godpa?’”Cpl Edness was a youth leader at Radnor Road Christian Fellowship, where his family worship. He attended Dellwood Primary School, Warwick Academy, and, briefly, Bermuda College.He studied psychology at St Mary’s and Mount Saint Vincent universities in Canada and planned to return to college to complete his degree. He hoped to eventually work with autistic children.Cpl Edness played the tuba, keyboards and the piano. Sharae said she followed in his footsteps by learning the tuba and “he was so proud of me”.While at Warwick Academy, he performed in the group ‘Mahogany’, appearing before Premier Dame Jennifer Smith. He was also a member of Bermuda National Youth Jazz Ensemble.Regiment commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Brian Gonsalves said last night: “We were shocked to hear of Cpl Edness’s untimely passing.“Cpl Edness will be remembered as a fun, jovial and pleasant young man who was always keen to assist wherever he could and always wanted to do his best.“As part of our Regimental Police (RP) unit, he enjoyed his time this past May with the US Marine Corps counterparts at Camp Lejeune and, while there, was an excellent ambassador not only of the Regiment but also for Bermuda.“On behalf of the entire Regiment, I want to extend our condolences to Cpl Edness’s family; he is part of our large family who will be surely missed.”Wendell (Shine) Hayward, founder and director of the Youth Jazz Ensemble, said Cpl Edness was a “personality, more than just a musician” who would be missed by those who played alongside him.“You got an immediate grasp of his personality while he was on stage,” said Mr Hayward. “We made a joke about Aaron being the next Premier of Bermuda. He was always very opinionated. From a musical standpoint, he was a player who played more from feeling, rather than technique.”Messages commemorating Cpl Edness were posted on the door of The Beach, on Front Street, at the weekend, and on his Facebook page. Cpl Edness also played rugby with the Mariners RFC team and a tribute to him was spray-painted on the side of a boat taking part in yesterday’s Non-Mariners’ Race.