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TETLIT'ZHEH/FORT MCPHERSON
The North lost one of its great pioneers with the death of Mike Krutko last week.

Mike Krutko, showcases the book he wrote of his experiences trapping, fishing and building a life in the Canadian North. - NNSL file photo

Krutko died on March 19 at the Yellowknife Dementia Centre from colon cancer complications. He was 97. His generous and entrepreneurial spirit is often credited for shaping Fort McPherson and those who knew him have many stories about his contributions to the community.

"Mike helped a lot of families," said Chief William Koe of Fort McPherson, a childhood friend of Krutko's son, David Krutko.

"Families used to be very large and we had some hard times. A lot of people wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him," said Koe.

One of Krutko's biggest impacts on Fort McPherson was his trading-post-turned cafe and general store. Locals depended on Krutko's store to supply food that was direly needed, but often difficult to access in the isolated community of early Fort McPherson. Krutko often let people take what they needed on credit, with full faith that the bill would work itself out as the trapping season started or times got better.

"He wanted everybody to succeed," said Koe. "When traders came in with their furs he'd buy all of them. He was a very supportive guy for our people and the community. Especially in difficult times.

"We would really have struggled then. There was no social services, not much was known about the government."

Krutko's son, David, remembers his father's consideration for the community, creating sources for practical needs, entertainment and jobs.

"My dad had a store, cafe, movie theatre, pool hall," said David. "He did all these things to get the people working."

"What made him great was his attitude. He'd talk to anybody and help anyone out. There weren't banks then. People would charge stuff up, then they'd pay their bills with their furs. People had to trust each other to get through."

The tough times never seemed to hold Krutko back. His sense of adventure literally filled a book. His memoirs are chock-full of stories about trapping, bush piloting, and staking out a living during a difficult era in Canada's history.

In one of the few emotional reflections found in his book, Mike Krutko's Amazing Adventures, Krutko describes his love of the outdoors.

"(Dad) wanted me to stay in school, and arranged for me to board in town with the grocer and his wife," wrote Krutko. "But somehow I talked him into taking me trapping, promising I would take my school books and study faithfully. I loved the outdoors and I was really exhilarated about our adventure."

Krutko's adventure with his father wouldn't be his last, or even the most dramatic he would write about.

In one chapter, Krutko recounts his third plane crash. In November of 1956, on a small lake not far from Rat River Pass, Krutko had tried to land his ski-plane near a herd of caribou. Days earlier, a warm spell had begun to melt the ice on the lake but temperatures dropped soon after, quickly freezing the surface again. The resulting surface was too slippery and weak to complete a safe landing.

With the aircraft beyond salvage but nobody hurt, Krutko and his passenger, RCMP Const. Johnny Biensch, walked 130 km back to Fort McPherson, in the middle of November. These stories of Krutko's resilience, necessary for the time and place in which he lived, fill the pages and the memories of those who knew him.

Having his own plane was another of Krutko's invaluable contributions to the beginnings of Fort McPherson. He often flew people and supplies to wherever they needed to be, rarely charging for his services.

Ed Jeske, who used to maintain the airstrip at Inuvik, met Krutko on one of these trips and they struck up a friendship during their infrequent visits.

"Once, it was fall and he'd called over and asked if I had the runway ready," said Jeske. "I told him it was snowy, it wasn't smooth, but he flew over and landed fine. He'd come in for a coffee and then he took me on a ride in the plane."

Jeske left Inuvik in 1958 to work as a teacher in Yellowknife and the pair didn't meet again until almost 59 years later. "I don't think we recognized each other at first," Jeske said, "We'd go for lunch at the Baker Centre and it was just like having old times again. We got along real well those years ago and we met again years later and became great friends."

As with many who knew Krutko, Jeske's memories include tales not only of Krutko's adventurous spirit but also of his generosity, kindness and a legendary garden.

"I'm in a walker now," said Jeske. "But Mike would come over and make coffee, get water, he was a big help. Last fall he had a nice big garden. He brought potatoes, carrots - one potato was so big you could make four meals out of it."

In addition to his personal qualities, Koe believes that Krutko was able to build the community because he understood what it was like to live there.

"I've read his book four times," said Koe, admitting he'll probably be reading it again. "Mike went out on the land, did the same things as us.

"We are going to miss him and what he did for our community, that comes right from the heart."

Krutko's funeral was held at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Yellowknife on March 24.

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