The bodies of a community leader and her 12-year-old daughter were recovered Sunday from Lake Rosseau, after their ATV went plunging through a patch of thin ice yesterday afternoon.

Carolyn Bray, the 46-year-old executive director of YWCA Muskoka, drowned Saturday afternoon with her daughter Jolene Robinson. Her husband Tony Robinson, who was riding on a second utility vehicle behind his family, could only look on helplessly as his wife and daughter became lost in the lake.

"I'll never forget the look on his face," said Bill Robinson, the widow's brother. "I'll never be able to get that out of my mind. It was awful."

Ontario Provincial Police pulled the two bodies from the lake early Sunday afternoon. Authorities blamed the constant shift in weather, from freezing to warm temperatures, as the reason for the pressure crack in the ice.

"Obviously with the winter that we've had and the freeze and thaw cycles, it certainly causes the ice to be unpredictable," OPP Sgt. Mike Tennet told reporters at the scene.

Police say three people and a dog were on the utility vehicle when it broke through the ice. The third person in the vehicle -- the woman's 11-year-old niece -- and the dog managed to escape before the vehicle was pulled underneath the water.

But Bray and her daughter were wearing their seatbelts and could not unfasten themselves in time.

"Carolyn's last words were, 'Oh no,' and then the machine started to sink and my daughter jumped off," said Mike Robinson, the woman's brother-in-law. "It doesn't take long for a machine like that to sink down."

"They're going to be missed," he continued. "They're wonderful people."

The young girl was remembered as a sweet person with an angelic face and beautiful smile. Her mother was remembered for her dedication to the community and her social conscience.

Bray, who had served the YWCA since 2002, was the "heart and soul of the organization," Virginia Hastings, president of the YWCA board of directors, told ctvtoronto.ca on Sunday.

Hastings described a woman who always had a smile on her face and an infectious laugh to boot; a mentor who loved helping people and who always kept her office door open.

"If you were hesitant in yourself, you could always go to Carolyn and borrow some of her confidence," she said. "She taught people to surround themselves with positive people, to surround themselves with excellence. She was really great at pushing people to do what was right and good for them and to always grow and learn."

Bray was a broadcast journalist who began her career in Halifax before moving to Muskoka in 1987. She was dedicated to issues around health, community development and economic development in rural Ontario.

She was also a consultant to several provincial health committees and was a director of the North Simcoe Muskoka Local Health Integration Network Board, according to a posted biography on the YWCA website,

Hastings said her friend was instrumental in keeping YWCA Muskoka afloat during tough times and never failed to make quality programming at the top of the organization's priority list.

"She was a great leader who taught others to lead," she said. "No matter what Carolyn came up against, she always had an idea, a solution. She was a real visionary."

Bray leaves behind her husband and their eldest daughter.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Chris Eby