Pointe-Claire village merchants say the streets in the area don’t feel the same these days since Gordon Bell stopped coming around.
“We miss his presence,” said pharmacist Nathalie Turgeon.
For a couple months now, nobody has seen Gordie, as they call him. He’s been recovering from hip surgery after an injury he suffered in 2010.
“I was hit by a motorbike in a hit and run,” he told Global News from his living room.
He said he was supposed to have the operation a couple of years ago.
“Then we had COVID-19 and everything went to hell,” he explained. “Heart surgery, lung surgery, cancer surgery — everything was cancelled.”
He finally had the surgery in the fall of 2021, but he said there were complications and he ended up spending more than two months in hospital.
“That’s when I decided, well, time to retire,” he said.
Now, he gets around the house with a walker. His bike is parked in his living room, the first time he hasn’t been able to cycle since 1994 when he began collecting bottles and cans, which he redeemed for cash.
“It gave me a job,” he told Global News. “I didn’t have to live on welfare, food banks and charity handouts, and I liked what I did.”
Bell maintains that he made a killing but refuses to say how much.
“That’s private information,” he said with a laugh.
Bell pointed out, though, that it wasn’t just about the cash.
“It’s the fact that you worked hard and you made something happen,” he told Global News.
According to Turgeon, Bell also cleaned up the area, picking up anything he thought was out of place. She said he even shoveled snow to ensure merchants had clean walkways.
“He was doing it for the village,” she said. “He wanted to have a very clean village.”
People like Pointe-Claire Mayor Tim Thomas, who’ve known Bell for a long time, point out that the cyclist isn’t just a nice guy, but an inspiration.
“He did the best with his circumstances,” Thomas said. “He worked hard, he made a friendly existence with all his neighbours. He made the best of his life.”
Comments