Erin Fletcher
Northern News Services

Holman (Mar 15/04) - For the past two weeks, flags in Holman have been flying half-mast for a man who literally put the hamlet and its people on the map -- Catholic missionary Reverend Henri Tardy.

Tardy, 86, died Feb. 27, in St. Albert, Alta.

He lived in Holman from 1949 until 1983. During that time, he co-founded the Holman Eskimo Co-op and taught residents how to be self-sufficient through selling traditional crafts and prints.

Sister Agnes Sutherland remembers Rev. Tardy

He is remembered as a caring and generous man who embraced the people he served.

Mary Uyartik was 14 years old when Tardy came to live on Victoria Island. She attended his funeral in Edmonton, March 3, on behalf of her family.

"He taught us every part of life -- spiritual and physical," said Uyartik from her Holman home.

When Tardy arrived on Victoria Island there was no permanent community like there is today. Four families lived along Queens Bay -- the hamlet's present site -- where he built the first church and lived in a Hudson's Bay home, said Uyartik.

In the summers, he would travel between the scattered family camps in his boat he christened "Mary." In the winter, he would help hunt for seals to feed the people, said Uyartik.

"When he heard people didn't have much to eat he'd go to them," she said.

"What I liked most about him was his generosity. He treated us like one big family. Everything I liked about him -- his teaching, his kindness. He was like a father."

Mary Okheena, Uyartik's younger sister, learned how to make her famous prints under Tardy's instruction.

"He was there when I started remembering. He came before I was born and he was always a part of the community," said Okheena.

Tardy played an important role in Okheena's life. She found inspiration and hope in his biblical teachings. He conducted Okheena's marriage to her husband Eddie and baptized their children.

"There were so many things I never thanked him for before he passed away," said Okheena.

He knew of her artistic talents as a child and asked her if she'd like to learn how to make prints for the art shop. By helping him design stencils, she learned to make her own.

"He always encouraged me to bring our culture to life through my artwork," said Okheena.

"I still remember him always telling me to do it from the heart. Do it as though you are telling somebody something through your artwork."

A community memorial and feast was held in his honour in the school gym, March 13.