What He Loved: Remembering Bill Hendry
(February 11, 1939 – August 1, 2017)
It is with sadness, mingled with a sense of great comfort and hope, that we honour the passing of Bill Hendry, a close friend of A Rocha. He passed away suddenly on the morning of August 1st, 2017 after a morning of chores around his Farm (Cedar Haven–A Rocha Hamilton’s partner location). He was the beloved husband of Lyndia Hendry and loving father of Jeffrey (Michelle).
Bill and Lyndia began their involvement with A Rocha in 2012, when considering how to leave a legacy of land and ministry. They wanted to find an organization that would carry-on their long held vision of teaching people about the land and how to appreciate it. Bill, at a young age, had this love for stewarding land and sharing that with many people. He and Lyndia found a derelict property at the headwaters of Bronte creek (Cedar Haven Farm) and worked tirelessly to restore its natural heritage. On the day he passed, Bill had been helping the A Rocha team remove an invasive plant called Buckthorn. Driving the tractor, cutting grass, tilling the soil and harvesting vegetables were all things Bill absolutely loved to do, everyday. The A Rocha team is deeply honoured and grateful to carry on his legacy at Cedar Haven.
At Bill’s ‘Celebration of Life’ service, it was abundantly clear that his life was also dedicated to
loving other people. His community along RR 97 (in Freelton) is an example of a rural farming neighbourhood where there exists a deep love of people and land–at A Rocha we have the privilege of seeing these amazing places that most of us just drive by on our way from city to city. We met a neighbour who had already cut their grass, a neighbour and counsellor sitting with Lyndia in her shock and an ‘adopted granddaughter’ from two doors down. Everyone knew Bill on his street and over 140 people came to his celebration. In classic Bill fashion though, he only expected and planned for there to be 40 people or so at his service. Clearly, he humbly approached his relationships with others and made people feel welcome–this trait made us true partners.
As for the future, we are walking alongside Lyndia in her shock and grief. We are committed to faithfully partnering with her for the long haul and will pray into how we carry on Bill and Lyndia’s shared vision for seeing Cedar Haven welcome people into God’s creation.
Through A Rocha, Bill & Lyndia have set-up a fund to support key stewarding work of A Rocha at Cedar Haven. Any gifts to this fund will go directly to supporting the things Bill loved: farm maintenance, harvesting vegetables, grass cutting and caring for the animals on site. This will help us carry out Bill’s legacy and give Lyndia the important support she needs at this time.
You can give here to the things Bill loved.
