As hundreds showed up Sunday to a hastily organized vigil in honour of Chris Bellchambers, many expressed shock at the turnout.
James (JD) McRae wasn’t one of them.
“I’m honestly not even the tiniest bit surprised,” said McRae, Bellchambers’s cousin. “He has touched a lot of people.”
Bellchambers, 42, died after being pulled from Lake Couchiching, near the government dock at Couchiching Beach Park, on Saturday.
The news spread quickly, with tributes pouring in from all corners of the community.
It showed how much Bellchambers was liked, how much he was appreciated and how much he contributed to Orillia.
If there was an event in the community, chances are Bellchambers was there to help. He was a longtime volunteer — a passion that benefited a variety of popular events, including the Mariposa Folk Festival, the Orillia Waterfront Festival, the Orillia Winter Carnival, the Santa Claus Parade, Canada Day celebrations. The list goes on.
“It was better than being bored,” McRae said of his cousin’s reason for volunteering. “If he’s helping someone, that’s all that matters. That’s payment enough for him.”
That was obvious to Doug Bunker on many occasions.
“He was really keen. He was hard working. That’s what I remember about him,” said Bunker, who organizes many events on behalf of the Orillia District Chamber of Commerce. “He’d be asking me about the Santa Claus Parade in May and the perch festival in September.”
Bellchambers took his volunteer roles seriously, treating them like paid jobs.
During an event at the waterfront, Bunker recalled, Bellchambers was working the main gate.
“The chamber president showed up and he said, ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ and Chris said, ‘I don’t care who you are. Where are your papers to get in?’” he recalled with a laugh. “He was the watchdog.”
It wasn’t enough for Bellchambers to simply show up and get to work. He endeavoured to get others interested in giving back to the community.
“He’d bring his friends in and basically train them to be volunteers. He encouraged it and told them that it was very important,” Bunker said.
That commitment was on display every year at the Mariposa Folk Festival, too.
“No job was too big or too little for Chris,” said Pam Carter, festival chair and president of the Mariposa Folk Foundation. “There were times when I’d have to say, ‘Look, Chris, you need to go get some lunch. You need to sit down.’”
She described him as an “informal leader.”
“He wasn’t a team lead, but people took their cues from him. It was hard to sit around if he was working. He motivated other volunteers,” Carter said. “Chris was a part of the folk festival family. He will be absolutely missed.”
Bellchambers was awarded the Order of Orillia in 2013 in recognition of his volunteer efforts, and the city is again honouring him following his death. Flags have been lowered to half-staff at the Orillia City Centre, the Orillia Opera House, Orillia Fire Stations 1 and 2 and the Orillia Recreation Centre.
“He was a great ambassador. He just had a wonderful attitude,” said Mayor Steve Clarke. “His heart was the size of his body. He was kind and generous and had a good sense of humour.”
The Order of Orillia was a fitting honour for Bellchambers, he added.
“The Order of Orillia identifies people that truly give to the community, people who exemplify community spirit, and Chris did that in spades,” he said. “He was just such a bright light.”
Kara Black feels the same way about her friend.
“Chris was always funny. If one of us had a bad day, he was there to cheer us up and make us laugh,” she said. “It was a shocker that he passed away. It freaked me out.”
Bellchambers was hard to miss in town. He could usually be found in a reflective vest and, if he saw people he knew approaching, he’d call out their names with a big smile and an excited wave.
A makeshift memorial on the government dock included items associated with Bellchambers, including a reflective vest, Lego, and Tim Hortons cups.
Friends have also placed reflective vests on posts along Mississaga Street.
A GoFundMe campaign to help cover funeral costs has been created by McRae. It can be found here. Any additional money that is raised beyond funeral expenses will be split between Bellchambers’s two favourite organizations: the Sharing Place Food Centre and the Lighthouse shelter.
Cash donations are being accepted at Ironside E Motors on Mississaga Street.
