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An incredible humanitarian William “Bill” Campbell Blake, born in Ottawa on November 1, 1931 left this earth on Sunday, July 21, 2024, at 10.30 am, at the time that the service began at his place of worship, St. Giles in Sarnia. He was in palliative care at Bluewater Health in Sarnia after the ravages of dementia had taken over his life. His family, brother Bob (Bette), and sisters Bettianne and Heather, their families and children, a blended family of 5 children, Peter (Liz), Cathy (Dave), Cyndy (Dale), Martin (Tracey) and Kerry (Gary) and 11 grandchildren, Sara, Joe, Mike, Erin, Laura, Steven, Adam, Sean, Ryan, Erin and Tom will miss his presence in their lives. His love, mentorship, humour and wisdom will be remembered by all.
His parents, Annie Moodie and William Stanley Blake met at Queen's University, married and moved their family to live in South Porcupine, Port Hope, Bronte, Kingston, Etobicoke and Bermuda. Bill loved telling stories about living in Bermuda spearing lobster for dinner, surfing and exploring the many caves. In school, where his father was the headmaster, they were taught to use guns in case German submarines surfaced on the reefs and there was an attack. Back in Ontario, Bill graduated from Bronte High School and then studied at Queen’s University. To support his family, he drove a taxi in the evenings, groomed and showed Afghans for a friend, and worked as a packer in a grocery store. His teaching career began as Head of Geography at Lorne Park and AB Lucas Secondary School. He then moved up to Geography Consultant with the Ministry of Education, visiting secondary schools in Ontario.
His young family enjoyed summers at his parent’s farm home at Deseronto on the Bay of Quinte. Exploring Northern Ontario, mostly in the Algonquin area, became a favourite vacation. Camping, canoeing, portaging, swimming, tracking wolves and taking photos were pastimes enjoyed by Bill and his family. They enjoyed skiing from their ski lodge in the beautiful Beaver Valley.
He came to Sarnia as the Superintendent of Program working with a group of 7 educators, creating curriculum for the elementary schools and promoting the Young Authors’ Program and Annual Conference.
His next move was to Timmins as the Director of Education. He visited some of the isolated First Nation communities of Northern Ontario to learn about their education and development needs. Students from these communities came to Timmins for their education and there was a high rate of school dropout, suicides and a community of low self-esteem. Upon retirement he was asked by the First Nation communities for help. He started Norquest Associates Inc. to do educational consulting. It went far beyond education and involved leadership, development of the entrepreneurial spirit and helping to become self-sufficient. With his guidance, the Attawapiskat First Nation Education Authority was established. They set out on a course of reform that included hiring more native and non-native teachers, implementation of a secondary school curriculum, introduction of First Nations studies and an emphasis on technical and skills training. He spearheaded the opening of the $24 million Vezina Secondary School and lobbied for the funding of a $5 million sports complex. Other communities started to ask for the same kind of wise counsel. In nine years, Bill made more than 200 flights to the remote communities of Attawapiskat, Kashechewan and Fort Albany. He built up trust and understanding with the First Nation's people over the years.
Bill’s work with the First Nations communities earned him the Order of Ontario. Many family members, friends and First Nations community members travelled to Toronto to help him celebrate. He was honoured with a sweet grass ceremony, a spiritual event spoken in Cree. He was blessed with a beautiful dream catcher. Within this award, he was also recognized for his dedication to the Kidney Foundation of Canada. Bill was past president of the local chapter, past president of the Kidney Foundation of Greater Ontario and past co-chairman of the Foundation’s National Research Council. He is also on the Mayor’s Honour list in Sarnia, Ontario.
Bill returned to Sarnia 28 years ago when he and Doreen were married. Upon her retirement from teaching, Doreen often travelled to the North with Bill. Then together they created a new company, Norquest Learning Systems for training and consulting. It was an extension of their backgrounds as educators and allowed them to continue to learn new things and take on new challenges. They joined up with Inscape Publishing and became top Canadian Distributors and the first to achieve the company’s Diamond Executive Award.
Visits to Doreen’s families in Spain, England and Scotland over the years are still very memorable. With family, Bill’s 70th birthday was celebrated in a Scottish Castle, on the banks of Loch Lomond. His dream of being "piped in" by a bagpiper was realized that night and the address to the haggis was certainly enjoyed. Attending Doreen’s godson’s wedding in a glen, in the wilds of Scotland is certainly remembered. Visiting the many distilleries in the beautiful areas of Scotland led to a love of Scotch and more research. Palm Springs, Las Vegas and Sedona were favourite places to spend time attending International Training Conferences and enjoying recreational times. Visiting his daughter and family in Guangzhou, China was one highlight of his travels. Days were spent walking on the Great Wall, visiting pearl and opal markets, tours with a guide especially at the many markets, and savouring the exotic food at the various restaurants.
Bill’s interests have always been dogs, playing bridge, tennis and squash. He has had several dogs as companions. His first one.... given to him by his father when Bill was only 2 was a terrier named Shag. ..... His last dog was Max, a loveable Schnauzer. Bill was certainly a life-long learner. He spent many an hour on his computer, learning new techniques, building websites, listening to webinars, creating videos and blogs, playing Solitaire and researching topics of interest Ring of Fire, Scotch, The Empire Loyalists and Family Genealogy.
Bill's mantra is” Let each become all that he was capable of being.” He has always put this into practice in his life, encouraging many young people, mentoring people including his family members. He has always been an advocate for “the underdog.” May his legacy live on in all those he shared his knowledge and wisdom with throughout his 93 years on this earth.
Rest in peace my very special friend and loving soulmate.
Cremation has taken place. A memorial service will be held at Smith Funeral Home, 1576 London Line, Sarnia, on July 27, 2024 at 12:00 p.m. Visitation will commence one hour prior at 11:00 am. In lieu of flowers, donations to The Kidney Foundation of Canada and the Autism Canada are appreciated (cheques only at the funeral home please). For those unable to attend in person, a live stream will be made available on his memorial page starting once the service commences at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 27, 2024.