Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. In August 2012 I went to Fort Reliance and met a retired RCMP officer named Garth Hansen who was looking for a lady that had saved four kids from a burning fire way back when he was a member in Reliance and Lutselk'e about 50 years ago.
Today I would like to pay tribute to this one amazing hero that he was looking for. I speak of Celine (Nataway) Marlowe, the wife of George Marlowe, the mother and grandmother of many in Lutselk'e and other communities in the Northwest Territories.
On New Year’s Eve 1960-61, Celine, before she turned nine years old, saved the lives of four young children from a house fire in Snowdrift/Lutselk'e. This act speaks of the kind of person Celine is today. Celine acted bravely and is a true hero. Today there are people walking around Lutselk'e because of this act of bravery.
Celine received the highest honour awarded for bravery in the Northwest Territories issued by the RCMP. Celine was the second person in the Northwest Territories to receive this award since 1993. The other person is now on the Nunavut side.
On January 14, 2014, the retired RCMP officer that nominated Celine, Garth Hansen, who was at the RCMP station in Lutselk’e/Snowdrift or Reliance at the time of the house fire, actually was stationed in Reliance and then was in Lutselk’e during Christmastime. Along with some high ranking officials from the Northwest Territories, including the chief superintendent and two of the other high ranking officers, gave this award to Celine Marlowe. Presented by the RCMP, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, to Celine (Nataway) Marlowe for her dedication and bravery in rescuing Peter Abel, Dorothy Abel, Gilbert Abel and Raymond Abel from a disastrous house fire which destroyed Joe Fatt’s home on New Year’s Eve in 1960-61 in Snowdrift, now called Lutselk’e, on the north arm of the Northwest Territories. Her immediate response encouraged a nine-year-old, actually before she turned nine, to save the lives of her friends and brought great credit to her community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
