Andrew Hunter needed one final moment with his friend Peter Verin. As people were starting to leave the dedication of a bench in the memory of the person everybody called the ‘Shopping Cart Philosopher’ Sunday afternoon, Hunter stepped towards the empty bench and paused for a brief moment. “He is worth remembering,” said Hunter afterwards. “He had a presence about him.”
That presence left this world on Jan. 9 when Verin died in hospital at the age of 71, one day shy of his 72nd birthday. His death resonated across all social circles in Saanich, where Verin had become familiar figure thanks to his presence at the corner of Quadra and McKenzie and on the University of Victoria campus, where he had been fixture for decades, before the university banned him.
A homeless person by choice, Verin lived what many called a philosophical existence deeply concerned about the well-being of others, while almost negligent of his own basic needs.
Often confused with a university professor, deeply knowledgeable of human affairs and reflective, Verin would strike up conversations with individuals from all walks of life, as evident by his memorial, which attracted provincial politicians, priests, police officers and members of society ranging across all social stratas.
Sunday’s dedication of the bench in Vernin’s honour across from the bottle depot on Quadra echoed this public outpouring, as some 30 people gathered for the dedication.
“It is kind of hard to think of everything to say, except we all know why we are here,” said Doreen Lowres, owner of B-Sharp Hair Design, who helped organize the commemorative bench, with Denise Peters. “We were all touched deeply by a man named Peter.”
Starting at Verin’s memorial service, people started to donate money towards something that would remember Verin, said Lowres, who collected $900 the day of the memorial. “This is for you, the people, who wanted to see something for Peter,” she said. “Out of that, people have come to me, thanking me, hugging me – it has just been an amazing journey, getting to know different people who knew Peter.”
Kerry Mann of Mortimer’s Monuments in Victoria eventually received wind of the initiative and donated the granite bench for cost, which would have otherwise cost $2,300.
It recognizes Verin’s biographical data and describes him as “Our Philosopher King.” The inscription below reads: “You touched all our hearts. We were blessed to know you.”
The term references Plato’s Republic, where the Greek philosopher describes an ideal three-class society governed by philosopher kings, modest individuals endowed with a deep love for knowledge and high ethical standards, but also reluctant to pursue power for its own sake.
Verin reflected those ideals, said Peters, who described Verin as a humble man, who remembered everybody’s name. Verin also confounded expectations about the homeless, said Peters. As such, he served as spokesperson for the homeless, said Peters, who issued an appeal to treat the homeless with the respect and dignity that they deserve and has gone missing in recent years.
Nancy Borden, whose family owns the property on which the bench stands, agrees. “The measure of who you are is not what you possess, but who you touch,” said Borden. “The bench is just a testament to Peter’s legacy.”