Robert Cuerrier, the owner of Mockingbird Hill Farm, has died.
Known as Farmer Bob, Cuerrier described himself as an artist in a video interview with SooToday.
“I’m driven by the idea of making the place look pretty. I look at the farm as my art on a large canvas and I’m out painting every day,” he said.
“Whether I’m planting wild flowers or cleaning an outhouse, I still consider it my art and that’s satisfying.”
A Facebook post announced his passing earlier today.
“I am talking to you now from the Great Beyond, ‘cause if you are reading this I have passed on,” the post said.
“I was raised on a back road country farm . . . a place where time was tethered. We had woodstoves and outdoor plumbing . . . and that, it seems, defined me since I have lived traditionally on the land most of my life.”
Cuerrier ran the farm for 40 years, which he said was a re-creation of his grandfather’s farm.
“It was really gratifying to see how the canvas I had painted lifted the spirits of all who came to visit the Farm,” the Facebook post said.
Before running the farm, Cuerrier spent four years working as a teacher.
“To me teaching school was nothing more than a sea of waving hands mostly wanting to go to the bathroom,” he said.
Then he ran three successful clothing stores in the Sault.
"I was a dress buyer with a propensity for lingerie – and no, I didn’t wear it, but I enjoyed buying it," he said.
Then in the early 1980s he went broke due to the recession and ended up opening Mockingbird Hill Farm.
“Homesteading is the most satisfying thing I have done in a lifetime. Sharing my love for the land with the community and being a touchpoint for educational, cultural and recreational values was the reason for keeping on with the farm,” the Facebook post said.
Cuerrier loved the lifestyle, the wild flowers and the horses, which is why he stayed at the farm until his passing, the post said, encouraging donations to ARCH Hospice.
His passing resulted in the sharing of several social media posts that described fond memories spent in his presence and on the farm, including from Mayor Matthew Shoemaker.
“On behalf of the City of Sault Ste. Marie, I want to express condolences on Farmer Bob's passing,” Shoemaker wrote.
“He was a true fixture of our community whose nickname alone brought a smile to so many.
“His kindness and humour left a mark on everyone who had the pleasure of knowing him. May he rest in peace.”
Cuerrier's obituary is posted here.