Goodbye to Laurent McCutcheon, a man for whom nothing was impossible

Last Saturday, about 100 people gathered at Saint-Pierre-Aptre church in Montreal's Gay Villageto say goodbye to Laurent McCutcheon, thepioneering Quebec LGBTQ+ activist who died earlier this month at 77.

In 1982, McCutcheon became the president of Gai coute, a telephone help line forLGBTQ+ people a position he held for 31 years.The service, which became Interligne in 2017, is offered to Quebecersin French and English, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

McCutcheonfought for the recognition of same-sex marriage and helped set up the Fondation mergence, an organization that raises awareness about the realities faced byLGBTQ+ people. He also created a fund to support other LGBTQ organizations.

McCutcheon was diagnosed with cancer in 2016 and died July 4, after receiving medical assistance in dying.

Malika Dehraouiis on the board of directors ofInterligne and knewMcCutcheon for many years. She pays tribute to him in this essay.

I am moved to see so many wonderful testimonials aboutLaurent McCutcheonand his legacy. The passing of this amazing human beingis a big loss tothe LGBTQ+ community, not only in Canada butaround the world.

I met Laurent more than 20 years ago; I was supposed to have a six-month contract with Gai coute (now Interligne),and I ended up spending several years volunteering for the organization.

The first things I noticed about Laurent was his smile and his contagious energy. He was always in the process of developing a new project, a new idea or trying to bring things to the next level. He was an inspiring person. The word "impossible" did not exist in his vocabulary.

I never met anyone else with such dedication to bring awareness to others about the LGBTQ+ community; he was always one step ahead and never accepted the status quo.

He was a real leader who brought not only the changes we were all aspiring to, but he laid the groundwork for changes to come. He leaves us withthe responsibility to pursue his legacy and keep it alive.

Some of the members of Interligne and members of the community at large, myself included, come from countries where we cannot talk openly about homosexuality. Laurent was a model of bravery and commitment. He wascurious about what was happening elsewhere and was therefore very aware of and sensitive tohow the LGBTQ+ community was dealing with threats and rejection in other parts of the world.

On the board of Gai coute, Laurent was always shaking things up. During the monthly volunteer meetings, hechose justthe right words to emphasize the importance of commitment toward the organization, and he used the right tone to make everybody feel part of the family.

He also had his own way of inspiring each one of us to dream about the futureand to persuadeus all it was worth dreaming about. I willremember him as a real leader and acharismatic person.

Laurent was adiplomat, avisionary, adreamer, anegotiator, anintellectual, acommunicator but also ahandyman. In addition to his involvement in the LGBTQ+ community, he managed to find the time to map out a renovation of hisfamily home, to build a chalet from scratch and toundertake other creative projects.

Each time the organization had to move to a new address, Laurent was the architect, designing the plans for the new place and rushingaround with other volunteers to arrange the space so everyone felt comfortable and at home again.

That is how I will remember him a person full of life who hadtons of ideas and was unstoppable.

His vision, his entrepreneurial spirit and his generosity will always be remembered. We will miss you, dear Laurent.

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