SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Yellowknife matriarch Esther Braden died last week, leaving shoes that one of her sons says will be difficult to fill.

City matriarch Esther Braden, 92, died after a 15-month battle with chronic lung disease on Feb. 18. She was an advocate for a number of city charity and volunteer groups since moving to Yellowknife from Saskatchewan in 1964. - photo courtesy of Bill Braden

The long-time volunteer, songbird and community builder died Feb. 18 at Stanton Territorial Hospital at 92 after a 15-month battle with chronic lung disease.

Sixty-one-year-old Bill Braden said he is "intensely proud" of his mother's tireless work as a seniors' advocate and she has set an example her descendants won't easily surpass.

He said his mother was part of a core group of city "matriarchs" responsible for the establishment of the Avens Community For Seniors, was known for playing the organ at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church for nearly 50 years, and she challenged her grandchildren to fill the void she leaves behind.

"I think that's something that's set a benchmark for the rest of us," said Bill. "For the grandchildren, mum's asked them to be part of this activity and I'm anticipating there's going to be some uptake among our kids to fill that."

Pat Braden agreed with his older brother during a conversation about their mother's life held at Yellowknifer's offices Friday.

"She set the bar extremely high."

Esther grew up in Rosthern, Sask., a little farming town north of Saskatoon, where she met her husband Bill. The couple was married in the late 1940s and had five children, beginning with her daughter, Sandy Dehnke, who now lives in Chilliwack, B.C., former premier George Braden, who was 65 when he died last May, then Bill, Max Braden, then Pat.

Their father was looking for work in Saskatchewan when he noticed an ad for a parts manager at Frame and Perkins - a Ford dealership that used to sit on the lot where Yellowknifer now stands.

"In fact, where our office is right now," said Braden, referring to the room he was sitting in. "This would have been the parts department. So he was here for about three years."

Pat said the family hadn't been on the ground in Yellowknife for a week before his mother was recruited for her musical talents.

"Mom played church organ in Saskatchewan and as soon as we landed here, the first Sunday as soon as the priest found out that she played organ, mum was conscripted and that went on for the better part of 50 years."

"There were many people married and buried with mum playing the organ," said Bill.

Esther first found work in the territory at CBC with experience she gained working at a Saskatchewan station during the war years, he said. She also soon began working as an office manager for Frenchy's Transport. Next, she worked for the Geological Survey of Canada, where she developed an affinity for the mining community, according to her sons.

"She got to know all these guys and she worked there through the Pine Point rush, the old timers will remember that, leading up to the big zinc mine that was there. I remember her talking about that," said Bill.

Esther's longest gig was with the tourism industry. She was around when the tourism industry was first getting established - in the 1970s and 1980s - said Bill.

"She was really involved with some of those early days when fishing and hunting was a very strong part of the industry then," he said.

Volunteer extraordinaire

Pat said his mother will be remembered for her volunteer work.

"She was so willing to share and so many people know her," he said.

Esther, along with Theresa Crane and Dawn Lacey formed a group called the Songbirds and for years faithfully visited the extended-care ward at the hospital. They would also visit Avens at least once a week for an hour or two and play songs for the residents, said Pat.

About 20 years ago, when Esther partially lost hearing, said Pat, she started the Yellowknife Chapter of the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association. She was affiliated with the Imperial Order of the Daughters of the Empire, Alison McAteer House, the YWCA, both Yellowknife and NWT seniors' societies, and received the Order of Canada in 2006.

Bill said his mother moved to Avens in 1994. That same year, her husband died. For 22 years, Avens became the family's hub, said Bill. When she had to move to Stanton Territorial Hospital last September, he said people who remembered her volunteer work came out of the woodwork to wish her well.

"When she was at Stanton hospital, many of the people who worked there remembered this trio very fondly for what they did," he said. "And this came back to us as the kids."

Sixty-one-year-old Bill Braden said he is "intensely proud" of his mother 's tireless work as a seniors' advocate and she has set an example her descendants won't easily surpass.

Bill said she was "in total control" at the time of her death.

Former Yellowknife Mayor Gord Van Tighem said Esther was a "very strong lady" with a definite view of how things should be done.

"She was the first one to stand up and explain how things needed to be," he said. "She was a champion of the continued development of housing for seniors and spoke very strongly at a few of our annual meetings."

Van Tighem said he met Braden in the late 1980s at a community event.

"She was very focused, very clear in her message," he said.