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David Alan Harrison was born July 17, 1940 to William Harrison and Evelyn Harrison, nee Fiddler in Leeds, Yorkshire England. Raised in northern England, he earned a BSc. in Geography in 1961 from Leeds University. He emigrated to Canada in 1961 to work as a meterological observer and graduate student at the McGill University Sub-Arctic Research Station at Knob Lake (Shefferville). On completion of his Master's degree in Geography in 1964 he worked for the Canadian federal government carrying out glacial geomorphologic research on Baffin Island. In 1966 he took teacher's training at McGill and was employed as a Geography Instructor at the University of Victoria, and a high school teacher in Dorval, Quebec.

In 1969 he returned north to Hay River, NWT where he taught at Diamond Jenness Secondary School. In 1970 he married fellow teacher, Dona Maria Murray. They made their home in Hay River, raising two children David Michael and John Martin. David A. Harrison taught at Diamond Jenness Secondary School from 1969-1996, specializing in geographic, social studies, and historical geography education. He published work in teachers' journals, magazines and academic journals on those topics as well. Along with teaching responsibilities, David was active in the NWTTA local, the Hay River Library Board, Cubs and Scouts, the Elder Hostel Programme, and worship and fellowship at St. Andrew's Anglican / Grace United Church.

David A. Harrison's education continued with a Master of Education from the University of British Columbia in 1977, and a PhD. in Geography from the University of Alberta in 1984. The thesis, "Hay River, NWT. 1800-1950: site and situation" was a culmination of research and work on the history of Hay River.

David A. Harrison was very active and committed to faith work throughout his life. Upon retirement after 30 years of teaching, David and Dona returned to her family's home in Tobago. There he became involved with lay leadership in St. Mary's Parish and was ordained decon in 2001 and priest in 2005.

Jacob Isaac Glick was born in 1899 or 1900, possibly in Galicia or Montreal, and was raised in Montreal in a family of 11 children.

When he was a teenager, his father attempted to establish a homestead near Rosetown, Saskatchewan through the support of the Baron de Hirsch Institute and the Jewish Colonization Association. The homestead was unsuccessful, and he reported that his brother and father were the first two people to be buried in the new Jewish cemetery in Saskatoon. The rest of the family returned to Montreal. His mother died during the influenza epidemic, and he and his older siblings worked together to care for the three youngest children.

From the fall of 1920 through the 1930s, he worked as a prospector and fur trader in northern Ontario. He wrote that he had long dreamed of working for the Hudson’s Bay Company, but was told at the head office in Montreal that they did not hire Jewish staff. From then on, he was determined to work against the HBC: “If they don’t let Jewish people work for them, then it was my ambition to work against them.” After working for a fur trader for several years in Sudbury, Gogama, and Low Bush, Ontario, he entered into a business partnership with A. Brown of Sudbury.

While in Toronto with his trading partner, he met Sonia (Sadie) Nicholeavsky and her family. They had arrived two years prior from Russia, where they suffered during pogroms, war, and revolution. He and Sonia married on January 16, 1925, moving to Gogama and then Sudbury, where Sonia had extended family. On October 26, 1925, their only child Harold was born. That winter Glick began prospecting near Red Lake while Sonia and Harold stayed with Sonia’s mother in Toronto. When he returned to Sudbury, he and Brown established a fur business there while maintaining an office in Gogama. The family experienced significant financial difficulties during the Great Depression. By 1931 he began work in Oba, Ontario on behalf of Glick Mining Syndicate and Troy Consolidated Gold Mine Limited, and appears to have continued this work through 1935 on behalf of Steepe Mining Syndicate.

In July 1935 he shot and wounded William Denomer, an employee, near Horne Payne, Ontario. The case went to trial in August 1935, and after an appeal in September 1935 Glick was sentenced to three years in Kingston Penitentiary. Glick maintained that the shooting was in self-defence, and that the trial had been laced with antisemitism. While incarcerated in Kingston, he attempted to maintain his mining claims and syndicate and wrote an autobiography. He was released in November 1937, and returned to Oba.

In June 1938, Glick was charged with illegal fur dealing in Gogama, Ontario. He was released on bail and then arrested in Rouyn, Quebec, with nearly $10,000 of furs. After he was released on bail in Quebec, the Ontario Provincial Police launched a land and air search for him. There was a moratorium on selling beaver pelts in Ontario, and Glick was purportedly part of an international ring purchasing furs illegally from First Nations hunters for sale to markets in the United States and Great Britain. In July 1938, Glick was convicted on 21 charges and sentenced to two and a half years in Burwash Reformatory.

Upon release from Burwash, Glick enlisted in Montreal on June 20, 1940, and went overseas in August 1940, serving as a cook with the 1st Canadian Survey Regiment through 1944. He was discharged from the military and returned to Montreal in January 1945.

J.I. and Sadie Glick moved to Yellowknife in April 1945 with the encouragement of Hon. Charles McCrae, the president of Negus Mines and former Ontario Minister of Mines who had acted on behalf of Glick during his mining disputes. Upon arrival, Glick worked at Negus Mines as a cook, and the couple spent their first winter in a tent.

J.I. Glick's first business venture in Yellowknife was the Veterans Restaurant (also known as the Veterans Cafe), which was in operation from approximately 1946-1953. He started the business with the support of Re-Establishment Credits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The cafe was in a building in ‘New Town’ downtown Yellowknife, and he also sold vegetables from a root house. By 1953 he was reporting income from property rentals and a second hand store. He sold the Second Hand Shop in 1955 and ventured more deeply into real estate, owning and operating Central Real Estate from 1954 onward to around 1971.

In 1957 he built the Gold Range Hotel on the same site as the Veterans Cafe, and worked as hotel manager from 1958 onward. He and his wife owned half of the business and their business partners were in Edmonton. The hotel property was owned by Central Real Estate. Around 1958-1959 J.I. Glick introduced the first telephone that had more than local service. He ran a radio telephone from his office in the hotel that connected out to the south, which locals could use to call out. In 1966 the Glicks sold their shares in the Gold Range Hotel to Hymie Weisler (Edmonton). J.I. Glick stayed as a public relations manager for the hotel for two years. Glick was also a Director of Premier Electrical, a local utility company, ca. 1967-1970.

Glick was involved as a member of the Yellowknife Ratepayers Association and Yellowknife Town Council in the 1960s, and was also a member of the Northwest Territories Progressive Conservative Association.

J.I. Glick passed on March 20, 1973. A service was held at Park Memorial Chapel on Spadina Avenue in Toronto, and interment took place at Lambton Park Cemetery.

Harold Glick was born in 1925 in Sudbury, Ontario to Jacob Isaac (J.I.) Glick and Sadie Glick. He described his upbringing as not overly religious, but his parents did keep a kosher household. He was raised in Sudbury until 1938 or 1939, at which point the family relocated to Montreal. He completed schooling through Grade 10 as well as two years of an electronics apprenticeship through Ecole Polytechnique, after which he worked for Northern Electric Company (1944).

He served in the Second World War in the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals (1944), and upon discharge moved to Yellowknife to be near his parents. He arrived via plane in March 1946 during Operation Muskox, and worked at his parents’ business, the Veterans Cafe, for about a year. For three months in 1947 he worked as an electronics helper at Giant Mine, and then went to Toronto to study radio technologies. In October 1948 he returned to Yellowknife and went into business, starting Yellowknife Radio and Record Store Ltd (YK Radio) in a wall tent next door to the Gold Range Hotel. The store initially sold records, radios, and appliances, and also offered repair services, and by 1952 had moved into a new building. In 1958 an addition was added to the shop. The store’s offerings expanded to include jewellery and furniture. As of 1968-1970, the company had three directors: Harold Glick, Zelda Glick, and Jacob Isaac Glick.

In 1952, Harold Glick married Zelda Vinsky of Vegreville, Alberta, who he had met in Edmonton. Harold and Zelda had four children (Murray, Jeffrey, Leah, and Marilyn), who they sought to raise with a Jewish education. Zelda kept a kosher household in Yellowknife, and brought meat from Winnipeg and Edmonton. The family belonged to Beth Israel Synagogue, a Modern Orthodox synagogue in Edmonton, Alberta. Harold and Zelda sent their sons to Pine Lake (a B’nai B’rith Camp near Red Deer, Alberta) and their daughters to Camp Hatikvah (Lake Kalamalka at Oyama, near Kelowna, British Columbia).

Harold volunteered with Yellowknife's first radio station, and also served on the Yellowknife municipal council (Town Council) during the 1960s, including 1960-1961. He became a director of Hidden Lake Gold Mines Ltd., which was established in 1968.

In 1986, Yellowknife Radio was sold to Roy Williams, and Harold and Zelda Glick moved to Kelowna, British Columbia, where there was both a Yellowknifer community and a Jewish community. Harold passed on April 20, 2009, in British Columbia.

Ethel Sheila Coates was born in Carbon, Alberta to John Hubert Coates (an immigrant homesteader from London, England) and Edith Coates (Tirney) on January 16, 1922. She grew up on her parents’ farm, but spent most of her school years in Toronto (where her mother was from) and completed high school in Alberta. Her niece suggests that she may have had some formal training as a secretary, and an Ethel Sheila Coates is listed as having passed the Canadian federal government’s stenographers’ civil service exams in May 1941.

She left the family farm and moved to the Northwest Territories alone and worked for Imperial Oil in Normal Wells for a number of years in the 1940s. It appears that she was one of the few secretaries or female employees living and working in Norman Wells, and that she chose to remain there after the wartime project (the Canol project) was completed. According to her niece, she loved the Northwest Territories and referred to her time there as the best time of her life.

Later she moved to Devon, Alberta, where she lived and continued to work for Imperial Oil for approximately thirty years in total. In Alberta, she worked at the Leduc gas plant, which opened in 1950, and taught skiing at the local Devon ski hill. She traveled extensively internationally in the 1950s and 1960s. She did not marry.

She identified as an environmentalist, and established the Coates Conservation Lands as a bequest to the Edmonton Area Land Trust. She died in August 2014 in Devon, Alberta.

Jean Boulva was born in Montreal and completed his Bachelor of Science degree from the Université de Montréal in 1968. He continued his studies at Dalhousie University, Halifax, earning a master’s degree in marine biology and a doctorate in biology. Dr. Boulva was employed as a professor of marine ecology at Université Laval, Regional Science Director for the Quebec Region in the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), then Director of the Maurice Lamontagne Institute (MLI) in Mont-Joli, Quebec. Dr. Boulva is the author of numerous publications, has lectured on marine biology, served as a board member for teaching and research agencies, and been a guest expert on advisory committees.

During the summers of 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, and 1968, Jean Boulva worked as a summer student for the Fisheries Research Board of Canada onboard the M. V. Salvelinus, a 12 meter research vessel.

In the summer of 1964, along with Captain Ingram Gidney and summer student David Patriquin, he was directed to prepare and sail the M. V. Salvelinus some 1000 kilometers from Cape Parry to Cambridge Bay. Jean took many photographs on the journey north, while staying in Inuvik for nine days (June 18-27), and while delayed in Cape Parry nearly 2 months (June 27-August 16) due to poor ice conditions. He also spent time on bird and plant studies. At the time, Cape Parry had a church, Hudson’s Bay store, and was the site of a DEW line station, PIN-Main. In later years, the population of Cape Parry relocated to Paulatuk, further south. They travelled from Cape Parry via Coppermine and southern Coronation Gulf, arriving on August 25 in Cambridge Bay, where they studied oceanography and marine fish populations until beginning their return trip on September 19.

In 1965, the same team returned for the summer (June 27-September 11). They conducted oceanographic and fishery work first in Cambridge Bay and then in Bathurst Inlet (August 9-12), and traveled alongside the patrol vessel R.C.M.P. Spalding from Cambridge Bay to Baychimo (Bay Chimo). They took a side trip to a field camp at Keyhole Lake (50 kilometers northwest of Cambridge Bay) to study a landlocked arctic char population.

From July 2 to September 17, 1966, Ingram Gidney, Jean Boulva, and David Curtis (also a summer student) conducted research in Cambridge Bay and at a site in Dease Strait near Starvation Cove (69° 09' 41"N 105° 58' 50"W, 36 kilometers west of Cambridge Bay), where they built a small laboratory to support a multi-year study of arctic marine waters and small arctic lakes. On August 19, the trio visited a commercial char fishery at Wellington Bay.

From June 19 to September 25, 1967, Ingram Gidney, Jean Boulva, Steve McColl, and David Curtis (also summer students), and Moses Koihok (a local Inuit assistant) continued the research from 1966 in Cambridge Bay and Dease Strait near Starvation Cove. During the sea ice breakup period, David Curtis and Steve McColl coordinated scientific field work at Starvation Cove while Moses Koihok, Jean Boulva and Ingram Gidney worked on fisheries, oceanography and preparing the M.V. Salvelinus in Cambridge Bay.

From June 16 to September 8, 1968, a larger group carried out scientific research, including Ingram Gidney, two Fisheries Research Board of Canada (F.R.B.C.) technicians (Marsha Joynt and Shirley Leach), two F.R.B.C. scientists (Ken Muth and Jay Wacasey), the scientist head of the M.V. Salvelinus research program (J. Gerald Hunter), as well as two summer students, Gary Atkinson and Jean Boulva. The group carried out studies of marine and freshwater productivity near Starvation Cove, and fisheries research in Cambridge Bay. The group took a trip to Bathurst Inlet “with a lot of bad weather from August 5 to 11”; on August 11 Ingram Gidney departed due to an arm injury; on August 16 the vessel’s transmission broke down and became inoperable until the end of the season.

The roots of the Northwest Territories’ college system begins with the adult education programs offered by the federal government, usually out of the federal day schools in communities across the NWT. During the late 1960s, Frontier College was also contracted to create a system of community-based adult education, with accompanying legislation being passed in 1974.
Responsibility for education, including adult education, was transferred to the territorial government in 1969. Also in 1969, the Adult Vocational Training Centre (AVTC) was established in Fort Smith, following a Heavy Equipment Operators course offered at nearby Fox Holes 1968. Canada Manpower/CEIC began sponsoring programs at AVTC in 1971 and in 1981, AVTC became Thebacha College.

However, there was recognition that program delivery at the community level was desirable, creating Arctic College in 1984 with campuses in Iqaluit and Fort Smith. Campuses were eventually established in each region of the Northwest Territories with headquarters in Yellowknife. The Arctic College Act was passed in 1986, making it an arm’s length corporate entity and giving it the mandate to deliver adult and post-secondary education. The Aurora Campus in Inuvik was established in 1987. By 1990 the community learning centres were also rolled into the College system.

In 1992, the head office of Arctic College was decentralized to Fort Smith and Iqaluit to prepare for the creation of two colleges as part of the preparations for division with Nunavut. On January 1, 1995 Nunavut Arctic College was established for the Eastern Arctic and Aurora College for the Western Arctic. The Science Institute of the Northwest Territories (SINT) was also rolled into the colleges to provide an in-house research institute for each.

The roots of the Northwest Territories’ college system begins with the adult education programs offered by the federal government, usually out of the federal day schools in communities across the NWT. During the late 1960s, Frontier College was also contracted to create a system of community-based adult education, with accompanying legislation being passed in 1974.
Responsibility for education, including adult education, was transferred to the territorial government in 1969. Also in 1969, the Adult Vocational Training Centre (AVTC) was established in Fort Smith, following a Heavy Equipment Operators course offered at nearby Fox Holes 1968. Canada Manpower/CEIC began sponsoring programs at AVTC in 1971 and in 1981, AVTC became Thebacha College.

However, there was recognition that program delivery at the community level was desirable, creating Arctic College in 1984 with campuses in Iqaluit and Fort Smith. Campuses were eventually established in each region of the Northwest Territories with headquarters in Yellowknife. The Arctic College Act was passed in 1986, making it an arm’s length corporate entity and giving it the mandate to deliver adult and post-secondary education. The Aurora Campus in Inuvik was established in 1987. By 1990 the community learning centres were also rolled into the College system.

In 1992, the head office of Arctic College was decentralized to Fort Smith and Iqaluit to prepare for the creation of two colleges as part of the preparations for division with Nunavut. On January 1, 1995 Nunavut Arctic College was established for the Eastern Arctic and Aurora College for the Western Arctic. The Science Institute of the Northwest Territories (SINT) was also rolled into the colleges to provide an in-house research institute for each.

Aurora College has transfer agreements and partnerships with a wide variety of technical schools, colleges and universities throughout Canada and the circumpolar world. It offers trade and apprenticeship training, certificate, diploma and degree programs, adult literacy, and basic and continuing education courses.

Aurora College is governed by a Board of Governors, appointed by the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. The Board determines policies for the administration of the College, recommends priorities to the Ministers for programs and courses, and manages the College’s finances, among other duties. The head of Aurora College is the President, who is appointed by the Minister and is a non-voting member of the Board. The President supervises, administers and directs the operation of the College in accordance with the Board’s direction. There are currently campuses in Inuvik (Aurora Campus), Fort Smith (Thebacha Campus), and Yellowknife (North Slave Campus), with Community Learning Centres in most of the NWT’s other communities. Headquarters is in Fort Smith.

Laura (McLeod) Loutitt was born March 2, 1904 in Fort Nelson. She was the oldest child to parents Fred and Margaret (Firth) McLeod, and the oldest of 12 siblings. She attended the Hay River Anglican Mission for 8 years before moving briefly to Fort Providence, and then to Fort Smith for work. She married Colin Loutitt of Fort Chipewyan on September 26, 1926, with whom she had 10 children: Elmer, Ernest (Ernie), Mavis, Shirley, John, Sandy, Freddy, Roy, Allan, and Jack.

In her earlier years, she worked aboard the HBC ship Distributor. Upon her marriage in 1926, she moved to Fort Chipewyan for four years, before returning to Fort Smith in 1930. She worked as cook for the NTCL Company, working seasonally aboard the boats for about 10 years, including the Radium King, Porphyry, Diesel 8, and the Richard E. She also worked for the RCMP as cook for 31 years overall, beginning early in her career, and then resuming again in 1960 for 17 years. In between, she cooked for pilots and passengers for the PWA.

Loutitt raised her children in between and during these jobs. In the off season, she worked as cook at local hotels, and later running her own café. She died in May 1990.

E.T. “Ted” Lonergan and his wife Vera arrived in Yellowknife from Box Mine in Goldfields, Saskatchewan. Prior to working at Box Mine, Ted worked in the oil sands. He was a carpenter by trade and had his own construction company. In Yellowknife, he was a miner and shift worker at Con Mine.

The Lonergans remained in Yellowknife until 1943, when Ted joined the Royal Canadian Navy. After the war, he returned to Yellowknife and went to work at Giant Mine. He left Yellowknife in the early 1950s.

In the mid-1980s, he was living in Vancouver and working as a Project Supervisor and Coordinator at Placer Development Limited.

Brock Hagen Parsons, nicknamed “Rocky”, was born to Frederick and Mary Parsons in Rainy River, Ontario on October 22, 1926. Frederick was a railroader and the family moved to various small towns in Manitoba and northern Ontario as he was transferred every few years. In 1943, following his graduation from high school, Rocky enlisted in the Canadian army and served in World War II. After the war, he tried various things, including attending the University of Manitoba, mining in Flin Flon, and trapping.

Rocky started training for his private pilot’s licence in August 1949 at the Winnipeg Flying Club and received his licence (P-417) the following month. From 1949-51, he flew for Severn Trading in Ontario. Rocky was also the owner of his own Tiger Moth.

Rocky received his Commercial pilot’s licence (C-5667) in May 1951 and flew for Superior Airways from 1951-52 in the Port Arthur-Fort William (now Thunder Bay) area. In 1952, while in Port Arthur, he met his future wife, Mary. The two were married July 20, 1953 and had three girls, Catherine, Gwendolyn, and Elizabeth.

Hoping for a more stable life, Rocky joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1953 and was stationed at Claresholm, Alberta. It was here that Rocky was trained in navigation, something that became a point of professional pride and personal interest.

Rocky did not stay in the Air Force long, but accepted a job with Associated Airways. He and Mary moved to Yellowknife in the fall of 1953 and were transferred to Hay River a few months later. When their first baby was born and required medical treatment, the Parsons moved back to Ontario.

Later in 1954, Rocky accepted a job with Arctic Wings (Trans Air) and the family moved to Churchill, Manitoba, where they remained until 1964. Rocky achieved his Senior Commercial licence (WGS 635) in October 1960 and ran his own company, Arctic Airways, out of Churchill from 1960-1964. Notable experiences included flying Anglican Bishop of the Arctic Donald Marsh on his 6-week tours of the Keewatin and flying medevacs from various communities to the hospitals in Chesterfield Inlet or Churchill. Parsons is also remembered for making Christmas deliveries, as is told in the story “Baseball Bats for Christmas”, written by Michael Arvaarluk in 1990.

When the Parsons family left Churchill, they moved south to Sioux Lookout for a brief time. Rocky studied for his Airline Transport rating (WGA 869) in Winnipeg, earning it in December of 1964.

During 1965-66, Rocky flew for Nordair Ltd., based out of Montreal’s Dorval Airport and servicing mainly Iqaluit and the DEW Line. The family lived in Lachine, Quebec. In 1967, they returned to Yellowknife, when Rocky began working for Bob Engle and NWT Air. Yellowknife remained Rocky’s home for the rest of his life.

In 1970, Rocky moved over to Wardair, then became Chief Pilot of Northward Airlines from 1973 to 1977, during which time he was responsible for training young pilots. Although still living in Yellowknife, Rocky began doing more flights in the high Arctic, flying for Bradley Air (1977-78) and Kenn Borek Air (1978-83), including several trips to the North Pole. On a notable trip May 15, 1982, the Twin Otter went through the ice and although the aircraft was lost, Rocky was able to evacuate the passengers and crew in time. Rocky was also involved in a project with the Geological Survey of Canada, in which they landed on the ice about every 50 kilometers to take readings, all the way to the North Pole.

As he aged, Rocky reduced his work schedule and took contracts with several companies, including Laronge Airways, Nahanni Air, and North-Wright Airways. Throughout his career, Rocky had a strong work ethic of doing things properly and well. He took his responsibility for himself, his aircraft, and his passengers very seriously. This conscientiousness led to his decision to retire at the age of 65. He did not fly again.

Rocky was best known for his extensive experience with the Twin Otter aircraft, but he also piloted many other types of planes, including the Tiger Moth, Norseman, Bellanca Skyrocket, DC3, DC4, C46, Beechcraft Model 18, Single Otter, Bristol Freighter, Gulfstream 1, and Fokker F27. Rocky travelled to various locations for intensive training courses on many of the aircraft he flew.
In his private life, Rocky was a member of the Canadian Legion, Masonic Lodge 162 (Yellowknife), and Holy Trinity Anglican Church (Yellowknife). He enjoyed being outdoors camping, fishing, and canoeing, even toward the end of his life. Rocky was also an avid reader and enjoyed music. He took a keen interest in navigation, even while on the ground, collecting and using bubble sextants. He took great pride in his family and spending time with his grandchildren. Rocky died on July 30, 2019 at the age of 92.

Ron and Bev Hall and their three young children lived in Wrigley (Pehdzeh Ki) from 1971-72. Ron was initially employed as a basic upgrading instructor under the Territorial Department of Education, but transitioned into community education and development under the Department of Local Government with the aim of establishing a settlement council, training settlement administrators, and implementing community programs for social and economic development. Bev was also active in the community, providing assistance in establishing a bilingual early childhood program, community library, handicraft industry, and coffee shop. She also served as a relief teacher. Their interest in Wrigley continued even after they left the community and they have made several return trips over the years.

The Gwich’in Social and Cultural Institute (GSCI) was established by the Gwich’in Tribal Council (GTC) as its cultural and heritage arm following the signing of the Gwich’in Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement in 1992 as part of the establishment of a number of organizations to address the responsibilities outlined in the Agreement. The GSCI was also established to address concerns about the decline in Gwich’in language and culture. Beginning operation in September 1993, the GSCI was responsible for matters relating to Gwich’in heritage resources as outlined in the Agreement, specifically Chapter 25, and Chapter 9 of Appendix C which relates to the Yukon Transboundary Agreement. The Institute had a mandate “to document, preserve and promote the practice of Gwich’in culture, language, traditional knowledge and values.”

From 1993-2016, the GSCI operated as a non-profit organization under the GTC and had registered charitable organization status. It was governed by a Board of Directors made up of seven to eight representatives from the GTC and the Gwich’in communities of Aklavik, Fort McPherson, Inuvik and Tsiigehtchic. The GSCI was led by an Executive Director who reported to the GSCI Board of Directors. The GSCI’s first Executive Director was Ingrid Kritsch (1993-1998), followed by Alestine Andre (1998-2000), Grace Blake (2001-2002), Leslie McCartney (2002-2003), Dolly Carmichael (2004-2005) and Sharon Snowshoe (2005-2016). Among GSCI’s long term staff were Ingrid Kritsch (Executive Director 1993-1998, Research Director 1998-2016); Alestine Andre (Cultural Director 1994-1998, Executive Director 1998-2000, Heritage Researcher 2001-2016); Kristi Benson (TK Coordinator 2004-2006, Traditional Knowledge/Heritage/GIS Specialist 2007-2016); and Sharon Snowshoe (Executive Director 2005-2016). The GSCI operated multiple offices: a head office in Tsiigehtchic, a research office in Yellowknife, an Executive Director office and language office in Fort McPherson (the former from 2006-2016), and other outpost offices as needed. In April of 2016, the GSCI became the GTC’s Department of Cultural Heritage which continues the GSCI’s mandate and work within the Gwich’in Settlement Region.

The GSCI’s mandated responsibilities included documenting, preserving and promoting the Gwich’in language, conducting research on Gwich’in social and cultural heritage and developing related programming. In regards to the claim, GSCI’s responsibilities included implementing the heritage resources chapters of the Gwich’in Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement which included the repatriation of Gwich’in heritage materials and knowledge, the recognition, protection and management of Gwich’in historic and cultural sites, and the nomination of Gwich’in place names for official recognition. Developing and implementing GTC policies relating to research including the GTC’s Traditional Knowledge Policy and the GTC Burial Sites Guidelines were also important responsibilities.

The GSCI worked with researchers, Gwich’in communities and organizations, other First Nations, government departments and agencies including museums and archives, independent filmmakers, and media outlets such as the CBC to develop, organize and conduct approximately 120 research projects, many of which were conducted on the land. Types of research projects the GSCI conducted or was involved with included oral history, place names and traditional knowledge projects, ethnoarchaeological projects, material culture revitalization and repatriation projects, genealogy projects, ethnobotany projects, ethnoastronomy projects, and Elder’s biography projects. The GSCI also conducted climate change projects related to impact on heritage resources, traditional knowledge research associated with major proposed development such as the Mackenzie Gas Project, and a variety of Species at Risk research projects. Science, culture and language immersion camps involving community members, youth, professionals and graduate students were also important educational initiatives carried out by GSCI. Language documentation and recording were integral to these projects and camps and they often involved audio or video recording of interviews, workshops and other events, as well as extensive photography. In addition, the GSCI contributed to the development of the Gwich’in Language Plan and worked with the Gwich’in Language Centre and was involved in its administration. This work generated many publications, including books, dictionaries and language materials, curriculum materials, a cybercartographic place names and story atlas and database, place name maps, posters, videos, museum exhibits, and online exhibits and resources.

The Gwich’in Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement outlined provisions and responsibilities for the GTC in regard to land use, archaeological and heritage resource permits, and a Traditional Knowledge Policy was created by the GTC and the GSCI to guide research in the Gwich’in Settlement Region. The GSCI was responsible for implementing the Traditional Knowledge Policy, among other polices, and for reviewing and regulating Gwich’in traditional knowledge research, developing research guidelines and consent forms, incorporating Gwich’in traditional knowledge into programming and policy and communicating the policy and the rights of Elders and participants with research participation. To these ends, the GSCI was involved in the development of a traditional knowledge policy that related to Gwich’in traditional lands in the Northwest Territories and Yukon, provided input into land use planning and management with other organizations, reviewed land use and research licence and permit applications, entered into research and data sharing agreements with researchers, assisted researchers, and received project and produced materials from researchers. Consequently, the GSCI became the major repository of all Gwich’in traditional knowledge research materials in the Gwich’in Settlement Region.

Under the Gwich’in Comprehensive Land Claim Agreement, the Gwich’in Tribal Council and the Teetł’it Gwich’in (under the Yukon Transboundary Agreement) are to be consulted by government concerning cultural and heritage resources and matters. The GSCI was responsible for this consultation and engagement with government and engaged with departments, agencies, boards and commissions of the Government of Canada, the Government of the Northwest Territories and the Government of Yukon, plus Yukon First Nations in the transboundary areas. This consultation related to legislation, research, heritage, language, education and curriculum, funding and environmental protection.

Repatriation projects undertaken by the GSCI included the identification of Northern Athapaskan and Metis materials in national and international repositories, the repatriation of Gwich’in knowledge from the Dene Nation Mapping Project conducted in the 1970s and 1980s, and the repatriation of traditional skills and the creation of replicas of traditional 19th C. Gwich’in caribou skin clothing.

The GSCI’s work for the recognition, protection and management of Gwich’in historic and cultural sites included work with other Gwich’in organizations and governments in developing a vision and management plan of the Gwich’in Territorial Park and conducting oral history, place name, archaeology, and ethnobotany projects in the park. The GSCI also undertook burial site mapping and recognition projects and undertook nomination projects to have Gwich’in heritage sites and rivers designated as national and territorial historic sites and Canadian Heritage Rivers. These nominations came out of GSCI place name and oral history research projects, with the GSCI playing significant roles in the planning and management of these sites. The GSCI successfully nominated eight Territorial Historic Sites and one new National Historic Site and advocated successfully for the revision of the plaque text for the Fort McPherson Historic Site, already designated as a National Historic Site for its role in the fur trade, to include its importance to the Gwich’in. The cultural and heritage research the GSCI carried out also generated a comprehensive heritage inventory of culturally significant heritage sites and places in the Gwich’in Settlement Region that GSCI helped to recognize, protect, and manage in a manner consistent with Gwich’in values. This is being carried out through protective measures in the Gwich’in Land Use Plan and the designation of Territorial and National Historic Sites.

Helene Marie Caufield was born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario on July 10, 1929. She attended Central Public School and Sault Collegiate Institute and received the nursing scholarship on graduation. Helene trained as a nurse at the Plummer Memorial Public Hospital and the Civic Hospital in Ottawa. She also received training in pediatrics at Montreal and at War Memorial Children's Hospital in London, Ontario. Helene worked in Sault Ste. Marie, Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), and Montreal before being sponsored by the Anglican Church of Canada to serve at All Saints Hospital in Aklavik, Northwest Territories. Although based in Aklavik, Helene also provided nursing services in Fort McPherson, Reindeer Station, and Tuktoyaktuk. She also spent some time in Inuvik. In 1960, Helene went to Edmonton and earned a diploma in public health nursing. She resumed her nursing career in Fort Simpson, where she married Edd Johnson in 1963. A son, Peter, was born in Fort Simpson later that year followed by a daughter, Clara, born three years later in Inuvik. Imperial Oil transferred Edd and the family to Calgary in 1966 and Edmonton in 1973. Helene moved to Victoria following the deaths of Edd and Peter. Throughout her life, Helene was involved in church work, including teaching Sunday School while in Aklavik and singing in several choirs. She received a number of awards for her volunteer work with the Victorian Order of Nurses and other organizations. Her other interests included painting, gardening, knitting, and sewing. Helene died in Victoria on September 26, 2015.

Yellowknife Photo Service was opened in July 1947 by Henry Busse. Busse immigrated to Canada in 1927. He came north and worked at Eldorado Mining and Refining at Great Bear Lake in the mid 1940s after having been interned. At Eldorado he joined the photography club, improving the skills he gained earlier running a darkroom in Edmonton. In 1947, Busse moved to Yellowknife where he opened Yellowknife's first commercial photography business. An award-winning photographer, Busse processed film and photographs, shot portraits, and provided event photography. The business was initially housed in the TXD building, and moved to the News of the North building.

Gerhard “Gerry” Reimann arrived in Canada in 1955. Reimann always had an interest in photography, and gained experience during his previous work with the West Berlin Police. While waiting for his plane from Yellowknife to take him to Discovery Mine, he found Busse’s shop by the Wildcat Cafe and the two became friends.

Reimann and Busse became business partners in 1958. They relocated the store up the hill in the New Town on 51st St. Their partnership lasted until September 1962, when Busse died on assignment in the Nahanni region. Reimann then ran the business as sole proprietor. In December 1962, Reimann moved the store to the new W.H. Bromley building on Franklin Avenue and renamed it Reimann Studios. Under Reimann’s ownership, the studio shot portrait photography, as well as commercial and event photography. On the retail side, the business sold cameras, film, and other photographic equipment. The name changed to Yellowknife Photo Centre in 1966, and then Yellowknife Photo Centre Ltd in 1968.

By 1968, the business expanded into the building’s basement, which then housed the store’s developing lab and studio. Yellowknife was not large enough to make continued photo processing profitable, so by 1976, all photo developing was outsourced to Winnipeg.

Bob Wilson began working at Yellowknife Photo Centre Ltd. in 1974, and stayed there part-time for three years. He had moved to Yellowknife in 1970 as a teenager. Wilson obtained his degree in Photographic Arts from Ryerson in 1979, and after graduation, he became a photographer for the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT). He worked for the GNWT for four years, then worked as a freelance photographer for two years.

In 1983, Reimann wished to retire and approached Wilson about buying the store. Under Wilson’s ownership, the store initially focused mainly on retail sales of cameras, accessories, and other photographic equipment. As with previous owners, Wilson also shot portrait and commercial photography, as well as event photography.

The store opened up a photo developing lab on Range Lake Rd in 1992, which was primarily focused on photo finishing services, leaving the main store on Franklin to serve as the retail front for the business. Wilson aligned the store with the Foto Source Corporation around 1994, changing the store’s name to Yellowknife Foto Source.

The Range Lake Rd lab closed in 1999, which was at the time located in Extra Foods. Wilson expanded the store to accommodate the lab and its equipment, so that the store now contained a photo development lab, a studio, and retail space. By January 2003, the store had equipment for processing and developing digital photography, which was a first for Yellowknife and served to further expand the store’s operations. It continued to provide commercial and personal photography, photo finishing, and retail sales, but as time continued, camera sales declined and the store shifted towards studio photography and photo development. Around 2005, the store’s name became Foto Source Yellowknife.

By May 2008, the store moved to 50th Street, in the former Right Spot building. With this move, Wilson stopped selling cameras and photographic equipment, and stopped his repair service for customers. He focused on portraiture, commercial large-scale printing, and passport photography. Around the same time, the name changed again to YK Foto. It continued as a photography studio briefly until Wilson closed it around 2008-2009. Wilson was a photographer for Canarctic Graphics for about two years after that.