Garry Lefebvre (November 12, 1944 – March 16, 2016) was a

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a c ...

player with the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Comm ...

and

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes ( French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Cana ...

at the wide receiver and punter positions.

Professional career

After being injured in high school, Lefebvre starred with the Edmonton Wildcats for three seasons before joining the Edmonton Eskimos in 1966. Playing 16 games and catching 9 passes for a 25.3 yards average and three touchdowns, he won the

Dr. Beattie Martin Trophy The Dr. Beattie Martin Trophy is a Canadian Football League award, given to the most outstanding Canadian player in the West Division. Each team nominates a player for this award, from which the winner is chosen. Either the winner of this trophy ...

as best rookie in the Western Conference. After two more season in Edmonton, Lefebvre was disappointed to learn he was traded to the last place Montreal Alouettes. His short 1970 season was redeemed by a Grey Cup victory, in which he caught the final touchdown. Returning to the Eskimos, he was the Dick Suderman Trophy winner for best Canadian in a Grey Cup loss to the

Ottawa Rough Riders The Ottawa Rough Riders were a Canadian Football League team based in Ottawa, Ontario, founded in 1876. Formerly one of the oldest and longest-lived professional sports teams in North America, the Rough Riders won the Grey Cup championship nine ...

in 1973. His best season was 1974, when he caught 36 passes for 575 yards and played in the Grey Cup, losing to Montreal. In 1975 he won his second

Grey Cup The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested be ...

ring, again against Montreal. While mostly a receiver, Lefebvre was also a first string punter, punting 83 times in 1968, 102 times in 1973, 103 times in 1974, and 127 times in his final season. He could also play defensive back, intercepting seven passes and returning two for touchdowns (both in 1967.) He attempted two passes during his career, completing both.

Career regular season statistics

Personal

Lefebvre was married to Sandi and they have four children: Cheri, Brad, Julie and Jesse. He was a founding member of

Athletes in Action Athletes in Action (AIA) is an American sports organization founded in 1966. It is the sports ministry of Cru Ministries, formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ. History Athletes in Action was started in 1966 by Dave Hannah."Fact Sheet: ...

, which he joined in 1972. Lefebvre built and directed Canada's first

Circle Square ''Circle Square'' was a Canadian children's television series that ran from 1974 to 1986. Crossroads Christian Communications produced the series in cooperation with its Circle Square Ranch network of summer camps for children. Circle Square Ran ...

youth ranch in

Halkirk, Alberta Halkirk is a village in central Alberta, Canada within the County of Paintearth No. 18. It is located east of Red Deer at the intersection of Highway 12 and Highway 855. Founded in 1912, Halkirk was named after Halkirk, Scotland. With commerc ...

, where he and his family served for eight years. After founding and pastoring a small church in

Kelowna Kelowna ( ) is a city on Okanagan Lake in the Okanagan Valley in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the head office of the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The name Kelowna derives from the Okanagan word ' ...

, BC in 1988, Garry returned to Edmonton in 1992 as director of the 100 Huntley Street counselling centre. On July 15,1992, Lefebvre was a guest on 100 Huntley Street. In 1995, he brought the ministry of Athletes International Ministries to Canada, where he is now Executive Director. In January 2009, he became the Regional Co-ordinator of Edmonton and area for Promise Keepers Canada. On March 16, 2016, the Edmonton Eskimos announced on their website that Lefebvre died. No cause of death was given. He was 71.Eskimos Mourn the Passing of Garry Lefebvre
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References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lefebvre, Garry 1944 births 2016 deaths Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year Award winners Canadian football punters Canadian football wide receivers Edmonton Elks players Franco-Albertan people Montreal Alouettes players Players of Canadian football from Alberta Sportspeople from Edmonton