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Pay it forward
Teacher recognized with award named in honour of long-time friend and mentor

Shawn Giilck
Northern News Services
Published Thursday, April 17, 2014

INUVIK
Shane Brewster, a physical education teacher at East Three Elementary School, says he's a little humbled to win an award named for a good friend.

nnsl photo

Gayla Meredith, president of the NWT Teachers' Association, left, presents the Cliff King Memorial Award to East Three Elementary School teacher Shane Brewster while Gene Jenks, Beaufort Delta regional president of the NWT Teachers' Association, looks on April 5 in Yellowknife. photo courtesy of Shane Brewster

Brewster has taught in Inuvik for 30 years and is a fixture in the community. That's why many people applauded when he received the Cliff King Award from the NWT Teachers' Association (NWTTA) April 5 at a presentation in Yellowknife.

The award is named for Cliff King, a long-time teacher in the Mackenzie Delta who passed away suddenly some years ago.

The award is given out to a NWTTA member deemed to have made outstanding contributions to the association.

Brewster said he worked with King for many years, and credited him as being an important mentor and a good friend.

King died while working on association business, Brewster said, and that's why the award was created.

"The award is an honour to him and all the years he put in," he said. "He was also a good friend to me. I worked with him, went on holidays with him, and he was a mentor to me and a very good personal friend. It was just a great loss."

Winning the award is a tribute to the allure of the North, since Brewster said he had several job offers in various areas 30 years ago. The job market wasn't good back then in Nova Scotia, where he hails from, and Brewster said that's why he looked to the North.

Inuvik was the largest community he received a job offer from, and that's why he picked it over the others. Obviously, it's been a good fit, since he's stayed on since then without interruption.

"I didn't have a clue of where I was going," he recalled. "I pulled out an atlas and looked at the population of Inuvik, and it had more than anywhere else.

"I wasn't one of those people who thinks they're only coming for a year," Brewster added. "My mentality is that if you have a job, you come and work. I didn't have any plans on leaving."

He was touched to receive the award, which is a tribute to his never-flagging enthusiasm for the association.

"I think it's a mark of the work you've done with the association," Brewster said. "You have to be actively involved in the association."

He's been a long time executive on the association, both locally and territorially. He held the offices of NWTTA Beaufort Delta regional president (2003-2012) and NWTTA central executive vice-president (2010-2012), among others.

"The association has done a lot for me and a lot for teachers, and I think we should all be working on giving back something to the association," he said.

That's why he's been so active with the organization.

"We've got good working conditions, and I think we're paid fairly well. That's all because of what members of the association before me have done, and I want to give something back to our membership."

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