Fayne Bullen, a beloved teacher, local politician, and community activist, has died at age 95.
After his death Monday, community members are remembering Bullen as an “incredible man” who sought to lift others up through his tireless efforts to improve Orillia for all.
“He left Orillia, without a shadow of a doubt, a better place, and made an impact here beyond the majority of people that have lived in Orillia. Just a great man,” said Chris Peacock, executive director of The Sharing Place Food Centre.
After growing up in a close-knit family of 13 in Grenada, Bullen moved to Canada in 1955, completing bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history before obtaining a teaching certificate from the University of Toronto. He moved to Orillia in 1965.
He spent 24 years as the head of the history department at Park Street Collegiate Institute, where he worked hard to make the subject interesting, serving as a role model for his students and colleagues alike.
“Instead of teaching history as mostly a myriad of facts to be memorized, a method that turned off generations of students, he posed questions about the past and researched historical data, which would provide relevant answers to these questions,” recalled Jim Watt, a former colleague, in a statement to the Orillia Museum of Art & History.
“If you happened to walk by Fayne’s classroom when the door was open, you would invariably hear students involved in enthusiastic debate.”
Beyond working to make history more interesting, Bullen is remembered for his efforts to help all students achieve what they were capable of.
“Fayne’s really one of the nicest people I have ever met. He was kind, he was considerate, and he treated us all equal,” recalled Orillia Coun. Ralph Cipolla. “He was very considerate of people, especially his students. He wanted to make sure that they were educated enough that they can go to the next step.”
That compassion extended into the broader community in numerous ways, with Bullen spearheading a variety of local initiatives — including efforts to open The Sharing Place in the 1980s. The organization now provides thousands of meals to the community on a weekly basis.
“He was one of the founding members of The Sharing Place and went through the difficulty of starting a non-profit, which is not an easy task,” Peacock said. “He was an incredible man, just truly committed to the community.”
Bullen was the landlord of the food bank until it moved to its Dufferin Street location several years ago, and Peacock said he was always helpful and willing to work with staff to ensure The Sharing Place was successful, even when the decision was made to move to the new, larger location.
“He owned the building and was very kind and generous with the monthly payments and ensuring that it was affordable for The Sharing Place,” Peacock said. “When we moved from West Street to Dufferin, even though he was losing a tenant, he was very supportive of that move and helped us out to ensure that it was a smooth transition between the two locations.”
Bullen also made efforts in other social service sectors, advocating for non-profit housing and playing a role in converting a house near St. James’ Anglican Church into four rental units, which would serve as Couchiching Jubilee House.
He helped create the St. James Non-Profit Corporation, and played a role in creating more than 200 non-profit housing units in the city over the years.
Bullen also served as chair of the Orillia Historical Society, ran the Orillia Cricket Club for 20 years, and served with the Rotary club, among a number of other community organizations.
For Cipolla, a fellow immigrant to Canada, Bullen’s tireless efforts to improve the community have roots in his humble beginnings.
“Those of us who come from poverty, we tend to … help others,” Cipolla said. “He knows what he felt like being in the position that some of the people were in the community, so he reached out to them and he made sure that they were all … comfortable living in a community like ours.”
Bullen’s efforts didn’t stop in Orillia.
He served as an alderman (now known as city councillor) from 1990 to 1999 and was a perennial NDP candidate both provincially and federally through the ’70s and ’80s, which Cipolla views as an attempt to bring his passion for social change beyond the borders of the city.
“I supported him, and I’m not an NDPer, believe me. I supported him because his attitude was that we’re all equal, we all want the same things, and that is to rise above poverty,” Cipolla said.
“I think he wanted to accomplish that provincially as well as federally, and make sure that everybody was protected and everybody was treated equally.”
Those efforts and others led the city to bestow on Bullen the Order of Orillia earlier this year.
Roger Pretty, a fellow former teacher, summed up Bullen’s sweeping accomplishments — from politics to activism and more — in a recent social media post.
“A remarkable teacher, community activist, athlete, businessman, landlord, local-provincial-federal politician, democratic socialist, appointed OMERS director by Bob Rae, charity benefactor, service club leader, traveller to every continent except Antarctica, inveterate gardener, accomplished cook, vintner, punch maker and supplier for every social occasion, and friend to everyone he met,” Pretty said of his Park Street colleague.
Larger than any of his individual accomplishments, however, was Bullen’s attitude toward life and friendship with others.
“Perpetually positive, he always sought solutions,” Pretty said. “Profoundly honest, forever personally loyal, and eternally cheerful. He put smiles on others with every encounter.”
Throughout it all, he was a family man with four children and dozens of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
His obituary can be read here.
A celebration of life will be held at Hawk Ridge Golf and Country Club on Sunday, Sept. 22.
