Elsie Joan Sumanik

Elsie Joan was born to Harry and Mary Weltons on July 7, 1938, in Ft. McLeod, Alberta. Shortly after her birth, the family moved to Coleman, Alberta, for work with the C.P.R. Elsie grew up there with her two siblings, a brother and a sister, completing her primary and secondary schooling.

During high school she had met her future husband, Don Sumanik. They married in June, 1957, shortly after Elsie had completed her training as a nursing aide ln Calgary. She worked in the Blairmore Hospital until her first child, Don Jr., was born.

The young family was transferred to Port Hardy on Vancouver Island, where their second son, Ron, was born. Elsie’s husband, Don, was employed by the Canadian Weather Service, and the years between 1960 and 1967 brought many moves. They made their home in Fort Smith, N.W.T. twice, Moosinee, Ontario, and twice in Whitehorse, Yukon.

It was during their first stay in Whitehorse that they came to love the Yukon. As Don gained seniority he kept his eye open for a vacancy in Whitehorse. In 1967, the family made their final move back to Whitehorse, with a home in Takhini. While Don was releasing weather balloons, the boys attended Takhini Elementary School. During these years Elsie worked as a nurse/receptionist at the Whitehorse Medical Clinic. She enjoyed this job as it required a combination of her nursing and secretarial skills. During their time in Fort Smith, Elsie and Don had become avid square dancers. When they found that Whitehorse did not have a dance club, they formed one. They founded the Sourdough Stompers Square and Round Dance Club. Not only were they active leaders in Whitehorse, Don and Elsie travelled around western Canada and Alaska with the club. They made many lifelong friends, dancing and calling with other clubs. Elsie loved dancing and remained active in square, round and ballroom dancing for three decades. Elsie loved the social connections, the artistic movement, and the pageantry of the attire.

In 1968, Elsie’s sons took up cross-country skiing with the Territorial Experimental Ski Training Program, led by Father Mouchet. Little did Elsie know that cross-country skiing and physical fitness would become a central fabric of her life. One day Elsie was commenting to her sons that they should be a little more aggressive on a particular downhill section of the ski hill. The retort was that if she thought it was so easy she should go and try it herself. With her usual practical determination, she did. Elsie soon left her job at the medical clinic and took on raising two active boys and “ski-training” full time.

During these busy years, all free time was centered around the enjoyment of the Yukon outdoors: hunting, fishing and berry picking. This included time at their cabin on the Haines Road near Kathleen Lake. Elsie was always a willing and energetic participant in the family hunting adventures; mainly as the organizer of meals, carrier of heavy packs, and maintaining some semblance of safety in the wilderness. She owned her own rifle and set herself a goal of getting herself a Dall sheep. In August, 1985, she got the required permit and with a single shot had herself a Dall ram.

In the winter-time, the family was fully immersed in the ski culture in Whitehorse. Else and the boys continued to train and race, while Don developed the trails and racing programs. Don often rose before 5 A.M. to set tracks on the miles of trails that the family had worked to clear and prepare the previous summer. Elsie supported her husband in bringing the F.I.S. World Cup Finals to Whitehorse in the spring of 1981. Events such as this no doubt helped convince the government that a facility was needed. The beautiful Mount Mac Recreation Center has served the community well now for three decades and fittingly it sits on Sumanik Drive.

Tragically, Don passed away suddenly in 1982. Both boys had left home by this time, and Elsie threw herself into skiing more than ever. In Lake Placid, New York, she won three medals at the Seniors World Masters Cross Country Ski Championships.

Although it was a difficult decision, in 1986 Elsie moved to New Westminster, B.C., to help care for her aging parents. She continued to stay fit and to dance, and also became a Mary Kay Cosmetic Consultant. She enjoyed being a successful independent business person, while meeting new people and learning new things. This enterprise fit in perfectly with Elsie’s lifelong passion for make-up, stylish clothing and jewelry.

In 1989, Elsie married Myrle Westervelt, and they settled into their Coquitlam home and community. Elsie continued with exercise programs in local gyms, and of course, skiing in the nearby mountains. She and Myrle travelled to many places around the world, until he became ill and passed away in 2008.

In 2011, “The call of the Yukon” prevailed, and Elsie moved back to be closer to family and old friends. Elsie plays an integral role in the lives of her children, grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. Happily, she was back in the Yukon in time to enjoy the arrival of the two ”greats.”

Since returning to the Yukon Elsie has been an almost daily visitor to the Canada Games Center. Along with other forms of exercise, she has been a faithful member of the aqua-fit class. This includes meeting for coffee and socializing after class, out for lunch on Fridays, and celebrating each other’s birthdays as they roll around each year.

Elsie has a legacy of physical activity, a strong mental outlook and a healthy lifestyle. This physical strength, practical outlook, and determination, have carried her through two bouts of cancer, and sustains her as she fights for health again.