Community Hero
—by Hillary Handy
This issue’s Community Hero comes to us from Orillia. You probably have met her in your travels, as she is involved in so many aspects of our community.
Meet Pamela Paylor.
By profession, she is a Registered Nurse. But it is entirely possible that she volunteers her time more than she works! She is a volunteer with the Couchiching Conservancy, both in the office and as part of the Invasive Removal Team. She was instrumental in completing the funding applications to have an AED installed at Grant Woods, a testament to her love for nature and her Emergency Department roots.
She is a fierce lover of animals. She once had a white crowned sparrow hit her window and was devastated. She then put up some dense-pattern decals on her windows to avoid that happening again in the future. This is just one small example of her seeing a problem and working towards finding a solution.
She is an avid gardener. Pam is a member of the Mariposa Pollinators as well as the Orillia Horticultural Society. She is seen around town tending to gardens to support the local farmers in pollination efforts, as well as the animals themselves. She comments, “I truly feel that planting native wildflowers, grasses and shrubs not only beautifies Orillia, but will feed and shelter beneficial insects, bees, birds and butterflies.”
She’s a connoisseur of water sports and recreation. She’s a part-time pirate as you can often find her at the Port of Orillia’s Pirate Weekend. She’s been spotted volunteering at the Scottish Festival and many events supporting the Orillia Youth Centre. She has been seen counting butterflies for the Severn Butterfly Count. To say she loves and appreciates nature is an understatement. You may have heard her perform in the Sing It Choir last summer.
In the winter months, when gardens are quieter, Pam is a volunteer ski instructor with Teens on Edge, a group of youth skiers that meet at the Orillia Youth Centre and then head to Mount St. Louis on Wednesdays and Fridays. She finds this to be very rewarding, but also super fun.
Pam also is a volunteer instructor with CADS (Canadian Adaptive Snowsports), which helps people living with disabilities experience a barrier-free joy of snow sports. This unique skill set was developed to help facilitate her husband to get back into skiing, after he became a paraplegic in a life-altering accident. The use of a sit-ski allows Charlie, and others, to enjoy the snow sports our region boasts of, in an accessible way.
Pam raised her family in Perkinsfield, but her family has deep roots in Orillia with her grandparents, parents, sister, and husband, Charlie, living in the area for years. At one point in time, Pam and Charlie lived in Golden, BC and experienced some incredible adventures on the west coast. However, two years ago they made the permanent move back to Orillia after Charlie was injured and became a paraplegic. Being closer to family was the right move for them.
When Pam reflects on our region, she is poetic in her description, “I absolutely love the sparkling waters of Lake Couchiching, the many nods about town to Stephen Leacock’s Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town. I love that our sailing club has a Mariposa Belle race. I appreciate that I can walk my dog on the Lightfoot trail, feel that I am so in touch with nature and even see ducks in the creeks that run through it. Orillians always seem to be smiling and because my dog is older and our pace slow, it allows time to meet and chat to so many lovely people.”
Pam is so humble in her demeanor. She indicated that when North Simcoe Life first reached out to her, she thought we had the wrong family member! Her family is so connected to the Orillia community…we may just have to do subsequent stories on them.
She notes that, “My whole family volunteers, it is an important part of belonging to a community, everyone is a piece of the puzzle.” Being recognized as a Community Hero prompted Pam to do much introspection as she shared bits of her story.
“After our lives changed with Charlie’s accident, so many friends and community members reached out to us, supported us in so many kind, thoughtful ways that if I were to list all the ways, it would occupy the entire magazine. I know in my heart that being kind to each other and to Mother Earth is the path to living our best lives, and that’s why I volunteer my time.”
She ends her submission with gratefulness and reflection saying, “Although our lives look different now, we landed with the wheels on the wheelchair upright, and we have been able to carry on living life to the fullest, just like the song by Wookiefoot, ‘We are just happy to be here’.”
For the many ways she gives to our community, serves in various roles, and is just an overall incredible human, North Simcoe Life would like to recognize Pamela Paylor as this issue’s Community Hero.
If you know someone pretty great, we would love to hear about them! Send us a nomination to info@northsimcoe.life.