2 days ago
Special constable who welcomed officers to Sachs Harbour receives RCMP headstone
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A former special constable who helped police settle into Sachs Harbour, N.W.T., was honoured this week with an RCMP headstone for his work.
The late Peter Esau, who died in 2017, served in Sachs Harbour in the 1950s. He was recognized Tuesday in a ceremony in Inuvik.
Esau was one of the special constables who helped RCMP officers adapt to their postings, often showing them how to trap and live off the land.
Aleta Esau, one of his daughters, said her dad was from Aklavik and he himself needed to adapt to a new way of life in Sachs Harbour.
"One of the things I remember him saying was he had to learn from the locals on how to trap and live in a different environment. From the trees to the tundra, he had to learn a different style of trapping," Aleta said, adding the lack of wood to make fires was another challenge he had to overcome.
She said she wants people to remember her father as a man of the land.
"He was a big part of the Muskox harvest, and he was always proud of being a trapper and the skills he learned on the land," Aleta said.
"He really enjoyed what he was doing."
Retired officers Eric LaFoy and Bob Knight, who both worked with Esau, made the trip north to be at the ceremony
The recognition didn't feel real for Aleta until she got phone calls from the retired officers, she said.
"When they called me, that's when it became something to look forward to," she said.
"It's so nice to see our family come out for this. I got a lot of phone calls [from] people who wished to be here for this."
Aleta said LaFoy and Knight left a mark on their family too — Knight is the godfather of Aleta's older sister.
Not all special constables get headstones, but the two veteran officers who worked with Esau made sure he did.
LaFoy was in Sachs Harbour from 1982 to 1984. He spent 22 years in N.W.T.
He said the visit back to the North was one to remember.
"Those were probably the best two years of my life on the force," LaFoy said.
"It's so wonderful to be here today. I haven't seen some of them since they were little kids."
LaFoy said the relationship between the special constables who were locals and the RCMP officers who were new to the North was crucial for their success.
"Special constables at that time were our life link. We come up here, we are new to the country and to the people, we didn't speak the language or know the customs," said LaFoy.
"Without them, we would not have survived, quite honestly."
A ceremony was held at the Inuvik cemetery Tuesday followed by a reception at the RCMP mess hall.
LaFoy said it's important to remember the special constables who served the detachments.
"This feels great," he said.
