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DEH GAH GOT'IE KOE/FORT PROVIDENCE - Fort Providence mourned the loss of a well-known member of the community last week.

Alister "Sandy" Geddes died in Yellowknife on Feb. 13 due to heart failure at the age of 78. The funeral service for Geddes on Feb. 18 nearly filled the community hall in the hamlet.

Sandy Geddes will be remembered in Fort Providence for his skills as a handyman and his unflagging work ethic. - photo courtesy of John Silverthorn

Around the community Geddes will be remembered for his skills as a handyman and his eagerness to be involved in any construction project.

"He was just a handyman for everybody," said his wife Harriet Geddes.

Geddes could be trusted to help anyone who was having troubles with their furnace.

"As soon as anybody called no matter what time of the night he was out the door," Harriet said.

On one occasion a few years ago, it was so cold in Fort Providence that oil was jelling and wouldn't flow properly into furnaces. Geddes was up for three nights straight keeping furnaces running, she said.

Afterwards he slept for a whole day and a half. When he woke up he was angry with the family for letting him sleep so long, said Harriet. Geddes just liked to be busy and continued to work right up until the end, she explained.

On the day he died Geddes was out collecting a paycheque for a job that he'd recently completed.

Even in the health centre while he was being prepared for a medevac flight to Yellowknife Geddes was still talking about people who were having problems with their furnaces, said Jerry Geddes, his son.

"He was a loving, caring father. He was a good man," said Jerry.

Geddes was born in Bulyea, Saskatchewan, a small community north of Regina on Nov. 9, 1930. In his early years Geddes, who was primarily a carpenter, worked on construction projects for grain elevators across the prairies, said John Silverthorn, who delivered part of the eulogy at the funeral service.

Geddes also worked in other construction projects across Canada including pulp mills in Ontario and oil rigs in Alberta. He came North to Hay River in the 1950s to work as a commercial fisherman. He later worked for BNR Construction in Hay River and also met his future wife, Harriet Landry, in 1968. The two married in 1970.

The couple moved to Fort Providence in 1973 so Geddes could work on the extension to the Snowshoe Inn.

"He loved doing concrete work," said Silverthorn.

Geddes went on to be involved in some way in almost every large construction project in the community, including the Snowshoe Centre and the arena.

"You name it and he worked on it," said Silverthorn.

He also helped build many of the houses in the community for the Northwest Territories Housing Corporation.

Even later in life Geddes liked to be involved in all the building projects in the community, said Silverthorn.

"He enjoyed what he was doing. He enjoyed being in the thick of things."

Michael McLeod, the MLA for the Deh Cho, made a short speech about Geddes in the legislative assembly the day after his death.

"His dedication to hard work was something that really impressed me," said McLeod.

McLeod and Geddes had a joint venture company together in the 1980s during the construction of the Norman Wells Pipeline. McLeod credits Geddes for encouraging him to return to college, a move that opened a lot of opportunities for him.

When he wasn't working Geddes could often be found in the Snowshoe Cafe joking with and teasing the regulars, said McLeod.

"He will be very much missed in the community because he was very much a part of it," McLeod said.

Geddes is survived by his wife Harriet, their three children Herbie, Jerry and Cheryl and eight grandchildren.