Skip to content

CAMPBELL, William "Bill" James

Posted

william-campbell

MARCH 16, 1936 – JUNE 1, 2023

It is with immense sadness that we share the passing of William James “Bill” Campbell, at Cambridge Memorial Hospital, surrounded by adoring family on June 1, 2023. Bill was born in the spring of 1936 in the northern reaches of la belle province, in Noranda, Quebec, where he lived out his childhood years building his lifelong passion for sports, especially hockey and curling. Bill was the beloved husband of 59 years to Anita Virginia “Ginny” (Matheson) Campbell, who he met and started their family life in their beloved Montréal, and with whom he created a wonderful life in Galt. To Bill’s great sadness, Ginny predeceased him in spring of 2022, leaving a hole in his heart and a void in his life that he felt intensely over the last 15 months.

Bill was the tremendous and very proud father of Malcolm (Joan Ouellette) and Andrew (Claudia Sanmartin); cherished grandfather (“Zaidy”) of Callum, Tessa (Matt Tersigni), Connor, Samuel, Rebekah, and Joshua; and doting great-grandfather of Gwendolyn and Archer Tersigni. Bill was predeceased by his parents, Harper and Jean (MacMillan) Campbell of Norway Bay, Quebec. Bill is fondly remembered by his sister-in-law Florence Graham (late Keith), nieces Ruth (Dave Szabo) and Sarah (late Nigel Armstrong), and his nephews David Graham (Heather) and Paul Graham (Sandy Savage), as well as his cousin James “Jimmy” MacMillan and wife Esther, their children Gordon and Tom MacMillan and their families. He is especially fondly remembered by his many “neighbourhood family” members – the dear friends in Galt and elsewhere with whom he and Ginny shared holiday festivities, family celebrations, an array of social and cultural activities, backyard barbeques, evening drinks, family meals, and life’s most important events.

Bill was an incredibly kind, generous, and thoughtful soul with a real passion for coaching, mentoring, and simply being a true friend. He provided unconditional love to his entire family and to those who were fortunate to be his friend – and he continuously let them know how much he loved them and how they brought him great pride. Bill was a committed listener to people’s stories – their travails, their successes, the big and the minutiae that made up their lives. He was the kind of person that people gravitated to in a sports bar, a jazz club, or at a furniture show or sales room because it was clear that he would listen without judgement and take a real, genuine interest in them. He offered calm and solace in a sea of challenges, and provided thoughtful guidance, generally framed in unassuming questions, to help navigate times ahead. He was a consummate salesperson – anticipating people’s needs and working to address them. This skill also made him the consummate host – anticipating friends’, family, and other guests’ needs and working, almost always with Ginny, to make sure that drinks were served and topped up, bellies were satiated with the most delectable food, and the music, “the sounds” as he called music, was precisely what was needed to create the perfect ambience.

If Bill had another big love in his life, beyond family and friends, it was sales. From the time he graduated from Sir George Williams (now Concordia) University early in his 20s, all the way until his 87th year, Bill dedicated his professional life to sales. There were many companies that he worked with – from Dupont, Galtex, Deilcraft and Dylex to Levcam, Dorel, England Corsair, Najarian, Leather Living and his own WJ Campbell Sales – but to Bill it was all about the people – from manufacturer to dealer to retailer to consumer – to whom he dedicated his energies. And this made him happy – because, for Bill, sales was not about some trivial making of a deal. Instead, for Bill, sales was about relationships; how people worked together to meet needs. Bill’s symbiotic approach to sales – putting people first – may not have made him a financial fortune, but this approach made him richer in so many other ways, and, crucially, it made him timeless. It’s difficult to replace a person with technology when that person is all about relationships between people. No machine, no algorithm can do that. It’s why Bill and his way of doing things were valued immeasurably to the end.

Bill was a lover of all manner of sports, with a particular fondness for the Canadiens, the Jays, and the Raptors. He was also an immense appreciator of jazz, and especially an aficionado and supporter of Canadian jazz, spending many an afternoon with Ginny at the Rex on Queen or the Pilot in Yorkville or Biddles in Montreal, and with Jazz FM continuously playing in the kitchen at home. Regardless of how he spent his time, other people always people were at the fore for Bill. Whether he was making a sales call, cheering on a grandchild playing hockey, listening quietly to jazz at a club, or simply sitting in front of the TV with friends and family, Bill was always engaged in making people feel comfortable. He loved their stories and sharing his own stories with them, and he was quick to laugh at the pleasure those stories brought him. That attention to others will define our most cherished memories of Bill, and where we will feel the greatest loss. Those who knew Bill well will be able to honour his memory by raising a large Bloody Mary, no Tabasco, to him.

There will be a celebration of Bill’s life at the Hamilton Family Theatre, 46 Grand Ave South, Galt, Cambridge on Sunday, June 11th from 2 p.m - 4 p.m. In lieu of flowers, and in keeping with his wishes, those wanting to memorialise Bill can do so by contributing to one of his favourite charities: Cambridge Memorial Hospital (https://cmhfoundation.ca/donate/), Grand River Freeport Hospital (https://grhf.ca/collections/donate) or St. Mary's Hospital Kitchener (https://supportstmarys.ca/ways-to-give/donate).

Arrangements entrusted to T. Little Funeral Home & Cremation Centre