Orville Chubb, publisher of Edmonton’s Avenue magazine, was “a doer” with a variety of interests and a passion for making a difference.
“He really did think that the organizations you supported were important,” Steven Sandor, editor of the magazine, said Thursday.
“He was a big patron of Ballet Edmonton, a big champion of the Nina Haggerty Centre for the Arts,” he said.
Chubb was on the board of Arts on the Ave, a non-profit charity focused on developing 118th Avenue, and often talked about the need for people to do more in the city to support the arts, he said.
“Orville didn’t do lip service. Orville was a doer,” Sandor said.
Chubb, 57, died Sunday surrounded by family following a cardiac event. A private funeral will be held Friday.
Magazine staff ‘a family’
“There’s no better way to honour Orville than to keep building this great magazine,” said Trudy Callaghan, in a tribute to Chubb on the Avenue magazine website. (Avenue Magazine)
The Edmonton-based marketing firm Odvod Media was founded in 1999 by Chubb, with his wife, Trudy Callaghan.AvenueEdmonton published its first issue in 2006 and has been a platform for the city’s arts scene ever since.
“Nothing would make Orville happier than just knowing that people in Edmonton were going out and enjoying the arts,” Sandor said.
The magazine has a staff of about two dozen and Chubb “tried to have us be a family,” he said.
“Orville always took a deep interest in what was going on in your life, what was happening with you, or your family,” Sandor said.
Chubb also puts in years as a basketball referee — what Sandor described as his one sports passion. Even during work discussions, Chubb would frequently use basketball analogies to make a point, Sandor said with a chuckle.
In 2013, Chubb was elected to the Edmonton Public School board and served as a trustee for one term.
Loved his Land Rover
Orville Chubb in his Land Rover after completing the Alexander MacKenzie Trail drive with other club members in July. (Bill Inch)
Chubb also loved his Land Rover, Sandor said.
In July, Chubb joined other members of the Alberta Land Rover Enthusiasts Club and took his vehicle into the bush, completing the Alexander MacKenzie Trail in B.C.
Chubb became the camp cook on the eight-day trip, said Bill Inch, a fellow member of the club.
Toward the end, as they were trying to use up the remaining food supplies, one interesting breakfast included pancakes with hamburger and roasted peppers, Inch said Thursday.
The two men spent time riding together in Chubbs’ vehicle and shared a lot of laughs.
“He was a witty individual,” Inch said.
Chubbs’ death came as a big shock to all of the people on the trip and within the club, he said.
“It put a real damper on what was otherwise a great success of a trip,” Inch said. “We were all celebrating it and now it’s not such a great success.”
The magazine will honour Chubb as part of its publication in October.
“Right now, we’re still trying to process what happened and, honestly, it’s still pretty raw for a lot of people,” Sandor said.