by Ric Stryde
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 13/97) - One of Yellowknife's best-looking lawns belongs to the Department of National Defence, and Cam Ivey is the man responsible for keeping it that way.

Ivey, who has been working there since the middle of May, says that he really enjoys the job, especially the opportunity to spend so much time outdoors.

"The best part about the job is getting to be outside when the weather is nice," said Ivey. "This summer hasn't been so good, though."

While outside, Ivey cuts and waters the lawn, pulls weeds, fixes benches, plants flowers and trees and empties the garbage bins.

He said that people sometimes stop to compliment him on the flowers when they are passing by. Friends also stop and tell him to "pick some weeds," he added.

Ivey not only does the outside maintenance. Sometimes he gets called upon to do other duties inside, such as sweeping, mopping, cleaning or maybe painting.

Though he prefers to be outside, because then he gets to enjoy the warm weather of Yellowknife's short summer season, he likes going inside to do odd jobs during the rainy days.

Among the stranger aspects of Ivey's job are what he finds on the lawns, including dead rodents and dead birds, every now and then when he mows the lawn in the morning. That's kind of sick, he says.

Ivey will be maintaining the DND's grounds until the middle of September, when his summer job ends, along with Yellowknife's summer.

He already has some plans in mind, though. "I'm thinking about doing some travelling before I come back to Yellowknife to work next summer," he said.

Ivey has one request to make to anyone who walks their dog along the DND's grounds: "Please pick up after your dog," he said.

Mowing over a dog's waste is not a good thing.