Alex Trebek’s Hometown Planning Memorial

The hometown of Alex Trebek is planning on celebrating the gameshow’s life in a big way. Greater Sudbury Mayor Brian Bigger says the city is asking its residents for ideas on how to adequately pay tribute to the late Jeopardy! host, and the city is willing to shell out some serious cash for it. As the mayor told TMZ, the city is willing to erect a statue or craft a massive mural linking to the city’s library should Trebek’s family approve. Bigger expects to “get the ball rolling” on an idea at the city’s next city council meeting.

Bigger does say he hopes to get the family’s approval on whatever they do, but he’s aiming to give them time to grieve before approaching them about the idea. Trebek was born and raised in the city, graduating from Sudbury High School before attending the University of Ottawa. The beloved host started his professional career with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation before moving to the United States to dive into the world of game show hosting.

Trebek passed away on November 8th after battling pancreatic cancer for a year and a half. At the time of his death, the host had recorded 30 episodes of Jeopardy! that have yet to air. His final episode is currently scheduled to air on Christmas Day.

“Now I’d be lying if I said the journey had been an easy one,” Trebek previously shared in a video update earlier this year. “There were some good days but a lot of not-so-good days. I joked with friends that the cancer won’t kill me, the chemo treatments will. There were moments of great pain, days when certain bodily functions no longer functioned and sudden, massive attacks of great depression that made me wonder if it really was worth fighting on. But I brushed that aside quickly because that would have been a massive betrayal – a betrayal of my wife and soulmate, Jean, who has given her all to help me survive. It would have been a betrayal of other cancer patients who have looked to me as an inspiration and a cheerleader of sorts, of the value of living and hope, of my faith in God and the millions of prayers that have been said on my behalf.”

Cover photo by Amanda Edwards/Getty Images