The Bill Davies Memorial Community Member Recognition

This Memorial Recognition was established in spring 2024 to remember and honour the legacy of our late friend, Mr William Davies, by recognizing a community member in his name. This recognition will go to someone who lives and demonstrates the values that Mister Bill lived by.

The values at the core of Mister Bill’s life were Community, Resilience, and Stewardship.

Bill created a community everywhere he went by connecting with people, and connecting others to each other. Whether it was at the bike shop, in health communities, or talking to neighbours in back alley ways, people would be drawn to Bill’s enigmatic bike, covered in baskets and license plates, and charmed by his many stories of travels on his bike.

Bill’s life was one of resilience. Bill was a cancer and HIV survivor, and yet still had to struggle on in life precariously on the edge due to extreme financial barriers, providing for himself by collecting cans on his bike. Despite this, Bill carried on in stoic, or even stubborn, defiance of his circumstances, and was still able to see the simple pleasures in life.

Bill was also a steward, as one who protects and takes care of people and places. He cared for his bike as a rider would for a horse, protecting it from harm and maintaining its health for the long hard miles they would ride together. He maintained a community garden. He looked out for the wellbeing of the OCB shop; and he looked out for the wellbeing of others around him, checking in and keeping tabs on friends and acquaintances, people he knew who were also binners or living out of shelters.

Awarding this recognition is a chance for the OCB community to collectively remember fondly our friend, Mr William Davies. But the wheel must keep turning, so to inspire us all to embody Mister Bill’s values, we wish to, annually, recognize one who we see living out these values and having a strong presence in the OCB community.