Honourary Toonik
Photo by Ed Maruyama, Elisapee Sheutiapik presents the Honourary Toonik award to John Maurice.
2010 Honourary Toonik John Maurice
John Maurice has lived in many places, but for the last 32 years he has made the Arctic home living in Aklavik, Igloolik and Iqaluit.
He has three University degrees: a bachelor of Education from the University of Washington, a Master of Arts from the University of Manitoba and a Bachelor of Education from Acadia University. He has also studied at the Universities of London and Victoria. He holds the Diploma of Ministry from Saint Francis Xavier University.
After a long career as a teacher in Nunavut, he retired in 2008. He is presently the Returning Officer for Elections Canada for Nunavut.
For many years, he has been involved with the sport of speed skating and is presently Head Coach and President of the Nunavut Speed Skating Association. He has attended many Arctic Winter Games, Canada Winter Games and other national and international competitions as the representative of Speed Skating Nunavut.
He is married to Rhoda Ungalaq and has four children and two grand-daughters. He is good father to his children. Rhoda and John have a passion for going out to their cabin on the land and so they have a busy schedule of commuting by either boat or snowmobile, and even sometimes on foot to their cabin. John loves music of all sorts and is actively involved in the community as a volunteer, one of the two original volunteers at the Kamatsiaqtut Nunavut Help Line still serving as a volunteer, as a member of several subcommittees for the City of Iqaluit and also with the Iqaluit Roman Catholic Community.
He loves to travel and build houses and cabins, recently has made trips to Chile and Italy and plans many more trips abroad in the future.
FYI – My late father Jim Kilabuk of Pangnirtung served as an Honourary Toonik in 1973 and his Grand Order Toonik is displayed on my wall. To celebrate the Toonik Tyme and to honour the recognition of acknowledging the great man who served his community and other Inuit villages well throughout his life.
If the Committee is interested in viewing the certificate, I’d be happy to show you and perhaps such certificate can be issued as such in caligraphy and inutktitut?
Have a great day!
Hi Meeka, that is great. I want to try and get a list and photos of all the past Honourary Tooniit to upload on the site. Do you have a picture you can email me of your late father?
Good day Franco, I also have my late father’s, Simonie Alainga, Grand Order from 1984. He was always involved with Toonik Tyme and any other activities in and around Frobisher Bay. We also have pictures of people outside of the old Parish Hall and Nakasuk School during Toonik Tyme in the late 70′s and 80′s.
Nominations for you to consider Franco… David & Leslee Serkoak (past V-P & both members of Toonik Tyme Committee for many years – they’re the ones that held things together with me for quite a while in many of the years of planning – and Leslee was the one that organized and ran most all of the events for the smaller kids all the time) plus as you know, David is so very involved in the community both when he was in Iqaluit and now here in Ottawa.
Another idea – Bob Hanson – He’s done tons for the community and always helped out with TT with the huge donation of equipment and personnel to set up in particular the major feat of the golf tournament on the ice. We never had to worry about it as he took full care of all necessary arrangements in that regard.
Also, you might wish to check with Heather or Henry but I believe that Fred Coman was an Honourary Toonik at one time too.
Cheers
Shani