Mike W. Bryant
Northern News Services

Fort Simpson (May 24/02) - As the old saying goes, the family that works together stays together.

Father and son duo Daniel and Danny Allaire recently completed Aurora College's Natural Resources Technology program in Fort Smith, and are now back at work at the Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development office in Fort Simpson.

Going to college together was no big deal, says the pair. They have been working together ever since the elder Allaire took Danny along to fight forest fires when he was 16.

"Oh yeah, we work together lots," Daniel chuckles.

Daniel, who rose through the RWED ranks from a seasonal forest-fire fighter 20 years ago to his present job as a forest technician, says he was impressed with his son's work ethic from day one.

The year 1991 was a particularly brutal one for forest fires, and Daniel wondered if his son would be up to the task after he took him out to the Trout Lake winter access road to fight a fire that spring.

"I needed some firefighters, but we had no crews yet," recalls Daniel. "So I hired Danny."

"I started walking through the muskeg. I didn't think he would be able to follow me, and that he'd complain the hose was too heavy, but nope, he was right behind me."

Danny continued to do seasonal work with RWED, supplementing his income by trapping in the winter, until his father announced three years ago that he intended to go to college.

"I was the first one," says Daniel. "I decided I wanted to go to school, and after I talked to Danny, I asked him if he wanted to go to school with me.

"We got along good. We stuck together at school, and we didn't get into one scrap."

By the time the pair completed the course last month, both were near the top of their class.

Danny finished with an 86.6 per cent average, Daniel had 90.5 per cent and a possible Governor General's Award.

"Some of them at school didn't even know we're father and son," says Daniel.

"I was the first one to go up on stage (at graduation). Then the instructor called out, 'Danny Allaire,' and said, 'it's Daniel's son.' Some of the students and management didn't have a clue."

While Daniel is now back at his old job, Danny now works as a wildlife technician.

"I'm going on a small mammal study and working with woodland caribou," Danny explains, noting that their different jobs means they won't be seeing each other as often.

Nonetheless, there is still plenty of camaraderie to go around.

"It's like a (wrestling) tag team or something -- the Allaires," Danny laughs.