Peter Corbeil, the friendly face behind the counter at the now-closed Queens Park Meat Market, has died.

The 53-year-old father-of-two passed away suddenly on Tuesday, Aug. 2 from natural causes, according to his wife Cathy.

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“We had a lot of good laughs with customers that became friends,” she said. “He’ll be sadly missed.”

In June, Corbeil announced he was closing his butcher shop at 402 Second St. in order to do some travelling and for a “change of lifestyle.” He didn’t know where he was headed, only suggesting he was going out east, possibly to the Maritime provinces.

He had been at the helm of the nearly 100-year-old business since 1998 after taking over the reins from his predecessor, Eric Davies.

Corbeil first picked up a cleaver when he was 21. After a stint in the navy, a Burnaby master butcher took him under his wing and taught him the craft. Prior to owning Queens Park Meat Market, he worked in large supermarkets for more than a decade but found the day-to-day grind unsatisfying, he told the Record in a previous interview.

Many in the community are mourning Corbeil’s death, including Harry Toor, the owner of The Castle Neighbourhood Grill, a restaurant Corbeil frequently dined at.

“Pete was an amazing guy with a big heart. I can’t say enough about him. We held fundraisers at the castle and Pete won two or three of them and donated all the money back to the charity,” said Toor. “Not only was he a patron, he was a friend as well.”

Marcel Schaubs, another patron of the pub who knew Corbeil, described him as having “good moral character,” “a standup guy” and “hardworking.”

“He’s a really gentle fellow. We had a lot in common,” he said.

A celebration of life will be held on Friday, Aug. 19 at St. Peter’s Church (at the corner of Royal Avenue and Fourth Street), at 2 p.m. All are welcome. In lieu of flowers, Cathy is asking for donations to be made to a charity of your choice, in Corbeil’s honour.