Fort McPherson (July 21/03) - Language is a source of happiness and pride for Neil Colin of Fort McPherson.

He uses Gwich'in in his daily life, on the local radio station and in the school. And he encourages everyone to do the same.

"It brings happiness to speak your own language," he said.

"It was given to us from the Creator and it is important we don't lose it."

He said the biggest challenge is encouraging the youth to speak their language. He said the 50 per cent who can speak Gwich'in use it regularly.

"They practice and they aren't shy about it."

Colin's dedication to preserving his native language was recently recognized by the territorial government.

Colin is one of nine people to be awarded the 2002-2003 Community Language Leader Award.

William Firth, the Gwich'in language program manager for the Gwich'in Social and Cultural Institute in Fort McPherson, nominated Colin for the award.

"He takes one step further than other people and I thought he would be a good candidate for the award," said Firth.

"He is one of the most prominent people in the community who retains and exposes the language to the general population. He is instrumental in passing on the language to young people."

The 2002-2003 Community Language Leader Awards were created to publicly recognize individuals dedicated to keeping the territorial official languages alive.

Colin shares the honour with Edna Elias, Leonard Harry, Mary Heron, Louis Beaver, Rosa Mantla, Maurice Mendo, Andy Norwegian and Lilly Borges-Oldham.

Elias, formerly of Sachs Harbour, was acknowledged for her work as an Inuinnaqtun interpreter and Leonard Harry of Inuvik for his Inuvialuktun translation services for media, corporations and at culture-based activities.

Mantla, a Rae-Edzo teacher and Elizabeth Mackenzie Elementary school principal, was celebrated for her education work in Dogrib.

Heron, a Fort Smith resident, was congratulated for her work with the Regional Chipewyan Language Advisory Committee as was Beaver for her help with the Bush Cree Dictionary and Medical Terminology.

Mendo, a Tulita resident, helps the North Slavey language co-ordinator with translations and preservation of North Slavey.

Norwegian, of Fort Simpson, teaches South Slavey language classes and was involved in the creation of the Slavey dictionary.

And the final award was given to Borges-Oldham posthumously for promoting the French language throughout Yellowknife and as the French language co-ordinator for Yellowknife Education District No. 1.

The awards were sent out to each community last week.