Jennifer McPhee
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Aug 17/01) - Five students travelled to Kamloops recently armed with projects highlighting Yellowknife's rich heritage.

For the second consecutive year, Yellowknife schools participated in this national heritage fair. Unlike other exhibitions, this wasn't a competitive event.

It was strictly meant as a way for students to gain exposure to new ideas while mingling with amateur historians from all across Canada.

The fair was the brainchild of the Toronto-based Charles Bronfman foundation. The Bronfman family wanted to help expand students' knowledge of history beyond what is taught in schools.

For this reason, students are encouraged to research topics which are meaningful to them, such as their family histories or favourite pastimes.

Grade 10 student Louise Tumchewics did her project on the history and development of Canada's military nurses from 1885 to 1953.

Is she an aspiring nurse?

"No," she says, explaining that her last year's project piqued her interest in Canada's nursing sisters. "I did that project on a World War One aviator, she said.

"He spent a lot of time in hospitals and I became interested in who was taking care of him."

She also found it interesting that the nurses were para-rescuing "at a time when it was rare for women to parachute or skydive."

Twins Sam and Joe Ashoona come from a long line of Yellowknife artists. Their project--which was a big hit at the fair--included their families' art as well as their own carvings.

John Tumchewics' project was a slide show about our ice roads and Allan Borden researched the Thompson-Lundmark mine which is an abandoned gold mine 40 kilometres outside of Yellowknife.

Jerome Rondeau, a substitute teacher who accompanied the students to Kamloops, said he'd like to see Yellowknife's involvement grow next year.

"Right now in Yellowknife only two or three schools participate. We'd like to expand it."