INUVIK
Val Robertson, East Three Secondary School's self-nicknamed Den Mother, is bidding farewell to her colleagues, students and the community after 43 years living in the town.

Val Robertson is bidding farewell to East Three Secondary School and the community of Inuvik, which she has called home since 1973. The school secretary is headed to Alberta after 34 years working with the Government of the Northwest Territories. - Stewart Burnett/NNSL photo

She has stayed at what became East Three since 1992 and developed close bonds with colleagues, parents and students.

That was made obvious when, just a few minutes into the interview with the Inuvik Drum, two students entered the office and proclaimed how they would miss Robertson. They joined in a group hug, and the secretary offered some parting advice.

"Listen to me, you two," said Robertson. "Be really careful these next couple years in the high school. Put some effort in. Get out of bed in the morning, because you're at that age. You're at that age where you do dumb things, so think twice. Make me proud. Finish high school."

Some students have issues at home and some don't, she said afterward.

"But I've formed a bond and that's why I came to work here originally. I've always worked with kids or for kids."

She's sad to leave Inuvik but happy to see more students graduating high school, going to university and then coming home with their own children.

"I think that speaks well of our school, because we have a fantastic staff here," said Robertson.

The community has worked its way through the residential school experience and bonded to help the students have a more positive experience than many of their grandparents did, she explained.

Teachers are more permanent and a part of the community now, she said.

"As much as I like the people who do come through and then leave, that's becoming less of a common thing," said Robertson. "Now we have more teachers who are coming and staying and integrating into the community and becoming the community so they have a vested interest in what happens in this school and that makes for more caring staff."

That kind of consistency pays off in the long term for the students, she said.

"The students and the staff here, I treat them like they're my own kids. I always encourage the teachers to get close to their kids, get to know their kids, because if you know someone then you have an obligation to help them. The kids here feel safe, they feel welcome, they hug each other, they hug us, we hug them. You don't see that at a lot of places. That's a good thing because when times get hard and things aren't going well, they know they can trust us, and trust is a huge issue when it comes to schooling in the North given what we've learned about residential school."

Principal Deborah Reid has worked with Robertson for only three years but said she was amazed at how much she does for the school.

"She has a very kind heart and she's always thinking about how to make things better for the students of Inuvik," said Reid, pointing to her spearheading the recycling program for the school on her own time.

She would always spend time with new parents at the school and make them feel welcome and safe, she said.

"She tries to alleviate all their fears, make them feel comfortable," said Reid.

"She is a loss for our school but I'm really happy, I'm glad that she is happy in what she's going to be doing for her retirement. This is a happy time for her, not a sad time for her. She didn't want a party, she didn't want a card, she didn't want flowers, no songs sang in her honour, but at the least we did some video clips of the kids saying thank you to her."

Robertson said her favourite part of each year is watching the grad memory videos, which show students growing up and list some of their accomplishments.

She hopes that higher-ups recognize the hard work the East Three staff do and meet their needs for the future. For the community, she hopes to see more young people come back and grow Inuvik.

"It's been tough the last couple of years," she said. "But like all times, Inuvik no matter if it's busting or it's booming, the people in the community have always hung together and taken care of each other, and if they continue to do that it has a bright future."

Robertson came to Inuvik in 1973 at the age of 13.

"I was a Forces brat, a 219-er," she said.

Robertson went to high school here, graduated here, married twice and started working for the Government of the Northwest Territories at 19.

She joined the Beaufort Delta Education Council in 1984 at its media resource centre, got laid off and went to work in the hospital for a year.

She had a daughter, adopted a son and was asked to go back to the resource centre.

"And then I got laid off again, so that's when I decided to come work for the school in 1992," she smiled.

She didn't want a big sendoff, but she was still fielding calls and hugs all day during her last day at work on Sept. 8.

"I'm finding it really hard not to cry all day long," she said. "It's not a bad cry. It's just really nice to know that I was appreciated."

As a parting gift, she is donating the money she received for her service from the government to the school and its staff.

She thanked the students, parents, staff and community for all of the wonderful opportunities she had.

"I can't think of a better place to have lived," she said.

Robertson will be moving with her husband to Medicine Hat, Alta., to spend time with her daughter.

"We're ready to go and have some fun," she said.

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