Lynn Lau
Northern News Services

Paulatuk (Apr 22/02) - While his colleagues get ready to go on summer vacation, Bruce Chadwick gets ready to go tree planting.

The 45-year-old principal of Angik school has been spending his summers working on cut lots across the country ever since he was a student at Queen's University 14 years ago.

Most students quit tree planting when they can get a steady job, but Chadwick has never tired of the work.

"So many people say, 'Why are you doing this on your summer holidays? Are you really crazy?'" Chadwick laughs. "But I just love the job. I love being outdoors, and my dogs love it -- they follow me along when I'm working."

Planters are paid by the number of seedlings planted, so each person tries to go as fast as possible. A lifelong athlete, Chadwick says he enjoys the physical challenge of the work and the friendly competition among crew mates.

"I do it because I want to see how fast I can go -- how fast I can push my body. I can't go as fast as some of the younger planters now, but they're still amazed how fast I can go. They say, 'Boy, my parents can't do that!' I'd like to be able to do it until I'm well into my 60s."

Sports and education have been Chadwick's twin passions throughout his life. Originally from Peterborough, Ont., Chadwick has lived and travelled across the country to attend different colleges and universities, and compete in cross-country skiing, road cycling, running and rowing.

In 1988, he made the Canadian national rowing team and went to Italy to compete at the world championships.

"We didn't do very well, but it was a trip to Italy and a great experience," he says.

When he was 37, Chadwick went back to school to become a teacher, with the intention of coming to the North. When he graduated, he applied at school divisions from Baffin to the Yukon. Paulatuk was the first to respond.

Now, seven years into his first teaching assignment, Chadwick is ready to make a move to Fort Smith, with his new partner, Sheila Sauteur, a social worker.

Before they move, they'll spend the summer together -- tree planting in northern Alberta.