 |
|
|
|
|
  
|
Welcomed back with royal honour Jeanne Gagnon Northern News Services Published Monday, July 30, 2012
But a phone call from Gjoa Haven Mayor Allen Aglukkaq insisting he attend a community gathering earlier this month put a hold on these plans.
Puqiqnak went to the July 13 public meeting at the community hall, mingling with fellow residents at the feast and listening to the mayor and Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq speak to the crowd. Then the Canadian Diamond Jubilee flag was raised.
Puqiqnak said he remembers wondering about the flag until he heard his name.
Aglukkaq presented him with the Diamond Jubilee medal which commemorates the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II to the Throne in 1952.
"I was not expecting it, but I was really proud, not for me but proud of my family," he said.
"I was not expecting it because I just do what I wanted to. It's not easy sometime but you have to be there."
This is not the first honour for Puqiqnak.
He received the Order of Canada in 2005.
Born about 193 kilometres south of Gjoa Haven in 1946, Puqiqnak is the youngest of five.
The family moved to Gjoa Haven in 1957, the first time he saw buildings, he said.
He started earning a living carving soapstone, then got involved in municipal and territorial politics, serving 10 years as the mayor of Gjoa Haven and five years as the Nattilik MLA from 1999 to 2004.
He married his wife, Lorraine Puqiqnak, in 1981 and they have nine children - three girls and six boys - and about 20 grandchildren. Puqiqnak said he has retired from politics but is not ready for retirement, as he still carves daily, travels on the land and plays guitar at church functions.
"I was grown on the land. My home is not community but I like it. Summertime, my home is out there on the land," he said.
The country food he harvests has a different taste than store-bought one, he added.
"If you love me, eat what I eat," Puqiqnak said he tells his grandchildren. "I can't go without country food."
|
