I was lucky in a way to have finished work before Black Monday. I was the beneficiary of a great retirement party and had the chance to see so many friends, old and new, before I left. It was a sendoff that everyone deserves and I appreciated the effort.
Unfortunately, many people have now left or are leaving “en masse” and the common custom of those who remain throwing them a great party has not been possible in many cases.
A dozen or more people, comprising almost 500 years of collective Parks Canada experience are leaving the Yukon field unit between now and early September. How do you do them justice?
How do you do justice for the scores of people who have left, are leaving, or just won’t be rehired?
If there was a way to have a gigantic party it would be a hell of a time.
The “truth serum” would be flowing and there would be a lot of laughter. And maybe a few lies would be told and a few tears shed.
I don’t believe we have ever had a formal motto within Parks Canada but from my experience it would have to be “Work Hard, Party Hard, Repeat if Necessary”. I’m not sure what the Latin translation would be.
From Day One in Terra Nova we had a reputation for being partyers. When the “naturalists” in our bunkhouse found out that myself, one of the junior wardens and one of our lifeguards could belt out the tunes, they fed us beer before the Saturday campfire program at Newman Sound, drove us to the program and strategically placed us around the campfire circle, embedded in the crowd, bursting into song at the appropriate times and coercing the crowd to sing along. It was a “sing-along” after all.
In the winter, when the campground was all but empty, we would take over the one cook shelter that was enclosed with poly and use it as a party place on some weekends. We disturbed no one and when we left it was as clean, or cleaner, than when we started. Somehow it made the winters go by faster and built a comradery that can’t be bought.
Fundy was notorious for its house parties and the infamous Wolfe Lake Garden Party.
Cape Breton was well known for the lobster and snow crab feeds.
The North was a special case.
A friend had a bunch of caribou that he wanted to barbeque and have friends over. We asked where he planned to do this and his response was “Your place”.
Of course.
There would be lots of meat left over that we could have he suggested.
Right.
It was a great party. At 30 or 40 below you can’t possibly complain that the beer is not cold.
Leaving Parks Canada housing and living out of the park was a bit more challenging but we still managed to lift a glass and tell some stories.
House parties were the glue that helped us get through the tough times and celebrate the victories. Kids were always part of the parties because they were family and we were all one big family, sharing more than just our connection through work.
We celebrated births and mourned losses but mostly, we stuck together, through thick and thin.
One of my bosses and I fought regularly but after a day of knocking heads he and his wife would show up with a few beer and ask “Do you want to have a fire?”
Of course we did and soon we were sitting around the campfire, flames licking at our feet, laughing about the silly things we battled over but feeling good about the many things we fought together for.
It didn’t take a lot of debate to decide to have a party. We didn’t need complicated reasons or endless discussions.
So for all of you who have left or who are leaving, I hope the party finds you and I hope there is lots of beer, a crate of snow crab or lobster, fresh caribou, some salmon perhaps, salads and desserts galore, but most importantly, a bunch of your friends.
You won’t hear it in these words “officially”, but thank you for working your asses off for what you believed in, thank you for saving bears and other wildlife from ending up in the landfill, thanks for explaining a small piece of nature to an enthusiastic audience, whether it was a single child or packed outdoor theatre, thanks for building world class trails that display some of our greatest marvels, thanks for enforcing the rules with discretion and professionalism, thanks for leaving our parks in better shape because you cared enough to make them your passion and give them your all.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.