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Sparkling legacy
Longtime Northerner's smile and kindness will be missed

Sara Wilson
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, Sept 26, 2012

SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The North has lost one of its icons, as longtime Northerner Patricia (Trish) Joan Warner, 77, died in an Edmonton hospital on Sept. 19.

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Patricia (Trish) Joan Warner, 77, died in an Edmonton hospital Sept. 19. Warner is survived by her husband Glenn, three children Boyd Warner, Kim Warner and Teri Arychuk, eight grandchildren and three great grandchildren. - photo courtesy of Teri Arychuk

Together with her husband Glenn Warner, she ran and operated the Bathurst Inlet Lodge in Bathurst Inlet, Nunavut. The couple celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary in Yellowknife with family and friends this past July.

Their highly successful travel destination was opened in 1969 and is still welcoming travellers and adventure seekers through its doors today.

Trish's journey North began in her hometown of Drumheller, Alta., where she met Glenn, an RCMP officer who had been stationed in the Northwest Territories.

The couple were married on July 5, 1957 in Aklavik.

"It was a big move, and of course they couldn't justify or afford for all parents to come," said daughter Teri Arychuk.

"My mom's mom came up and the other constables that were stationed in Aklavik at the time stood up (at the alter) for mom and dad."

The newlyweds celebrated their two-day honeymoon in Fort McPherson, thanks to an RCMP charter flight.

Warner and her husband spent most of their time in the NWT, leaving for a short stint in the Yukon and a five-year period in Cambridge Bay.

"They loved Cambridge Bay as they did the whole Arctic," Arychuk said.

Through their travels across the Arctic, Glenn came across the Bathurst Inlet property and fell in love with area and the community, although they later settled in Yellowknife.

"When dad was going on patrol by dog team, he came across Bathurst Inlet and fell in love with it, as did mom on her first visit," Arychuk said.

Trish ran and operated the lodge up until a couple of years ago, as her medical condition forced her to move to Edmonton. Along with Bathurst Inlet Lodge, Warner's hard work and dedication to the RCMP force in the North and her volunteer efforts as president of the NWT Tourism Association will solidify her Northern legacy.

To friends and family, her "sparkling bright blue eyes," and her smile were her trademark characteristics, that will be deeply missed.

"She was an amazing, amazing woman," Arychuk said. "She was so loved in the North, (for) anyone that knew her, it was her warmth and kindness, and how outgoing and hardworking she was."

Warner's unwavering dedication to her family, her three children - Boyd Warner, Kim Warner and Arychuk - her eight grandchildren and three great grandchildren was well known throughout the community.

"She will be remembered for her warmth, kindness, love of her family and friends of the North," Arychuk said.

A memorial service is scheduled for Nov. 3 at Northern United Church.

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