More than four decades after his death, Bill Kovinsky's name has found a permanent place in Canadian history. The Windsor man was honored last week at the Toronto AIDS Memorial, where his name was unveiled during a ceremony recognizing those lost to AIDS and HIV-related illness.
First reported AIDS death in Canada
Kovinsky became the first reported person in Canada to die from AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) in 1982. He was 43. At the time, his death was recorded in medical literature only as a case from March 1982. No name was attached. No public acknowledgment. Just a number. His family, unaware of the cause, believed he had died of pneumonia.
Family reflects on his life
Born Jan. 23, 1939, Kovinsky lived his entire life in Windsor, but often traveled to cities where he could move more freely and anonymously, including Detroit, Toronto, New York, San Francisco and parts of the Caribbean. He built a career in business, first operating a scrap yard before later working as a stockbroker. To his family, he was intelligent, social and widely engaged with the world around him.
“He was really a good brother,” said his sister, Anna Levin. “We were raised almost like twins, because we were so close in age.” Levin described him as someone who was both sharp in business and deeply cultured. “He was always smart in what he did . . . well read, well cultured, well versed in the theatre, up to date on worldly events,” Levin told the Star. “He was an exceptionally well-rounded person.”
Private life in a different era
She also reflected on the parts of his life he kept private. “I might have had my inklings, but he never said it to me,” she said. “He kept his gay life very, very private.” In the late 1970s and early 1980s, she said, that secrecy was common. “Queer people did not make their lives public. That was the norm.”
Memorial and ceremony
Kovinsky's name was added to the Toronto AIDS Memorial during the 42nd annual Toronto AIDS Candlelight Vigil on June 23. The memorial was first envisioned in the mid-1980s by a group of gay men led by Michael Lynch, according to The 519, a 2SLGBTQ+ registered charity funded by the City of Toronto. What began as a temporary annual tribute on Pride Day grew into a permanent memorial, which opened in 1993 in Barbara Hall Park behind The 519 Community Centre in the heart of Toronto's Church-Wellesley neighborhood, also known as The Village. The site now honors people from across the broader community impacted by HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and AIDS, with names added each year.
Long-delayed acknowledgment
For the family, the recognition represents a long-delayed acknowledgment of both his life and his death. “Adding my uncle Billy's name on this memorial gives him the opportunity to live his truth that he was never able to openly and without shame,” said his niece, Jennifer Teper.
