Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I’d like to follow your lead and remember some of the people across the Northwest Territories that are no longer with us. Today I’d specifically like to recognize the passing of a remarkable northern pioneer and long-time Weledeh resident, Adolph Duesterhus.
Adolph came to Canada from Germany after enduring the terrible experiences of war on the Russian front and internment in a Soviet prisoner of war camp. He arrived in Canada April 25, 1953, with eight dollars and a train ticket to Edmonton. Arriving in Edmonton, he answered a Giant Mine job ad, and was in Yellowknife drawing a paycheque within two weeks of stepping off the boat. After a year at Giant, Adolph moved to Curry Construction, where he stayed many years running equipment and supplies across the territory; an original ice road catskinner long before the truckers. His experiences are chronicled in the unpublished memoire, Driving Northern Byways: Memories of Northern Ground Transport in the ‘50s and ‘60s. Adolph was a family neighbour and I personally heard many of his hair-raising tales of too-heavy equipment on too-thin ice.
Perhaps less well known but equally remarkable was Adolph’s scholarly passion for advanced physics. Self-taught in one of the most intellectually challenging disciplines, Adolph was also a pioneer in the mindscapes of complex mathematics and theory. He was a contributor to scholarly journals and always at work on explanations of phenomena few of us are aware of, let alone understand.
Though a private and perhaps even eccentric man, Adolph was a willing contributor to community projects and a reliable helper to his friends and neighbours. In the closing passage of his book, Adolph pays tribute to the people who welcomed him and worked with him to build a better community. He said, “All of the good people helped make Yellowknife what it is today. I salute them all.”
Adolph Duesterhus, a friend of the Yellowknife Community Foundation, passed away on Friday, September 28th, and is survived by two nephews living in Germany. Mr. Speaker, I will miss his unique character and northern wisdom. Mahsi.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.
