Editor's Note: This week, we'll take a look back at some of the biggest news stories of the year in Orillia. For our second feature, we'll focus on the death and outpouring of grief following the death of Orillia's Gordon Lightfoot.
On May 1, 2023, the world lost one of its finest singer-songwriters and Orillia lost its favourite son.
At 9:45 p.m. on May 1, OrilliaMatters reported Gordon Lightfoot had died.
His publicist announced he had died at a Toronto hospital at 7:30 p.m. of natural causes. He was 84.
“I’m shocked,” Pam Carter, president of the Mariposa Folk Foundation that is behind the hugely successful Mariposa Folk Festival, said that night.
Lightfoot’s name was synonymous with the “grand old dame” of folk festivals. When it returned to Orillia in 2000, Lightfoot was the headliner and he performed for free.
“I think that speaks to his generosity and his humility and his love for Orillia,” said Carter.
In the years since the festival returned to Tudhope Park, Lightfoot was ever-present and often took the stage. The summer before his death, he was inducted into the Mariposa Folk Festival Hall of Fame.
Carter said the death of the Canadian icon was a huge loss.
“He will surely be missed by the Mariposa Folk Festival, by his beloved fans, by Orillia and the world,” she said.
Lightfoot’s death sparked an outpouring of emotional tributes both in Orillia and from around the globe.
The morning after his death, people from around his hometown of Orillia started paying tribute to him and mourning his loss.
Local fans left bouquets of flowers at his Tudhope Park monument and at the bust outside the Orillia Opera House. They recounted their personal experiences with Lightfoot and his effect on Orillia, Canada and the world.
“He’s a big deal (here), but I think he means more to Canada than he does to just one town — a small-town boy who made it big and represents the country really well,” said Orillia resident Al Byrnell, who was outside the opera house taking photos of Lightfoot’s bust the morning after his death.
“He’s an icon in the country itself. Elvis Presley performed his songs, (as did) lots of other people, Bob Dylan — just everybody had tremendous respect for him and his ability to write music.”
Although Lightfoot achieved international fame in his illustrious career, he carried an approachable demeanour and made a point of acknowledging and helping out his hometown, residents recounted.
“For someone of his stature to always acknowledge that he came from Orillia is huge. A lot of performers don’t do that,” said Orillia Opera House general manager Wendy Fairbairn. “A lot of performers don’t look back on their cities and acknowledge them like he has. As part of his CBC interviews — everything — he’s always acknowledged the fact that he’s from Orillia.”
Fairbairn recalled the last time Lightfoot performed at the historic downtown venue in the main auditorium that is named after him.
“He celebrated his 80th birthday (the) last time we had him here at the opera house, which was just a beautiful ceremony,” she said. “He came out and stood up on stage and performed, and we all sang Happy Birthday to him in the audience. It was just a lovely event, and he’s just such a lovely man.”
On May 7, a public service was held for the legendary troubadour at St. Paul’s Church in Orillia, where Lightfoot began his career as a boy tenor in the church choir.
Travelling from across Ontario, Canada and the United States, people began lining up hours in advance of the seven-hour service.
Just as a church bell long ago chimed at the Mariners’ Church of Detroit for each of the 29 lost souls aboard the Edmund Fitzgerald, so did St. Paul’s Centre toll its bell — a total of 30 times, capturing the loss of those sailors and the man who immortalized that harrowing wreck on Lake Superior 48 years ago.
Lightfoot’s longtime bassist credited the late musician with putting Orillia on the map, and remaining humble despite his fame.
“I wouldn’t be exaggerating to say that Gordon Lightfoot put Orillia on the map, and he’s also been a great supporter of Orillia as a philanthropist,” said Rick Haynes.
“He was a humble man considering his fame. He was very engaging, he was very caring, and he really had time for everyone. He really did.”
And it was those qualities that endeared him to generations of fans. It’s also why a grassroots movement quickly took shape to build a museum in his honour in his hometown.
In September, city council created a working group, tasked with developing a business plan, community partnerships, and determining the availability of Lightfoot memorabilia for a potential museum.
As part of the process, the working group reached out to the executors of Lightfoot’s estate to gauge interest and find out what, if any, memorabilia might be available for a museum.
“The disposition of Mr. Lightfoot’s estate has, and continues to be, a huge endeavour, as one can imagine. The executors have been consumed with the various tasks related to the estate,” said Carter, who is also a member of the working group.
“I’ve also been assured that our proposal, as outlined in high-level terms … is a priority for them.”
Without knowing what memorabilia was available at the time, the working group was granted an extension on its mandate, and will report back to council once the estate’s details are finalized.
While the museum idea was put on hold, a three-day festival to honour Lightfoot did occur in Orillia in November.
“There is a longing to gather around the stories of Gordon Lightfoot because of how important he’s been to us,” said Karen Hilfman Millson, one of the event’s organizers.
The former St. Paul’s minister conducted the service for Lightfoot’s private funeral days after the public event.
While this year’s festival was just a pop-up event, Hilfman Millson hopes Lightfoot Days will once again become an annual event and continue to grow.
“I hope there will be enthusiasm for this to happen,” she said. “It’s a great way for Orillia to be introduced to the wider community.”
