Today is going to be very hard for me, as I do a celebration of life for Isadore Simon. I was very fortunate to call him and Lucy, mom and dad. He was born on November 7, 1945, in Rocher River, NWT to Charlotte Simon and David King. Isadore was raised in Rocher River by Joseph Jerome and Charlotte. Isadore had TB at a young age and when he was released from the hospital, he lived with the Dumels who took care of him. Isadore lived there until he was forced to relocate to Fort Resolution after the school burnt down.
Isadore was taught his tradition skills of hunting and trapping by his stepdad Joseph Jerome. Isadore was a traditional and humbled man who loved being on the land. He was at his best being close to Mother Nature. He was proud of his lineage.
As a young man, he enlisted in the navy and was away for a few years. Isadore always worked hard and had many jobs over the years. His last job was with the power corp in Jean Marie River as a plant supervisor/operator. Even after he retired in 2004, Isadore continued doing odd jobs to make ends meet.
Like some people, he had an addiction problem with alcohol, but he decided to address his addictions head on. He attended a treatment centre in Bonnyville, Alberta. After completing the program, he spent his remaining days sober. During his sobriety, Isadore would often go to the bar to visit with his friends that he always kept close, and it never bothered him. As a strong resilient man, Isadore won his battle with addictions.
Isadore had two children, Christina and Milly, from a previous relationship. Several years later, he met the love of his life Lucy Sanguez. At this time, Lucy had three children, Ralph, Boris and Stephanie. In Isadore fashion, he took them all in as his own and raised them as such. To date, they all consider Isadore as their dad. In 1979, Isadore and Lucy got married by the Justice of the Peace. They had two more children, Paul and James. In 2007 Isadore decided that he had remarry Lucy and have it done by a priest.
When his granddaughter Brittany Sanguez was born, Isadore fell in love her and called her his queen, and they had a strong bond. Britt considered Isadore as her dad. He had many grandchildren whom he loved dearly. He was a family man who never turned away from his family. He taught his children and his grandchildren to be responsible and respectful on the land. Later in life, his boys would always ensure that their parents had traditional food in their freezer. Isadore had many longterm friends throughout his life span. It did not matter where Isadore went, he always ran into friends and would like to take time to converse with them in his Dene language. He was proud of his knowledge of Chipewyan and Slavey language.
In the end, Isadore battle with throat cancer and his treatment took a toll on him. In the end, he caught pneumonia which ended his life at 9:30 a.m. on November 25th, 2023, in the community of Jean Marie in the loving arms of his beloved wife Lucy. Dad was the backbone of the family, and he will always be deeply missed by all of us that knew him.
