Remembering Pudloo Mingeriak

I would like to write a few thoughts on the late Pudloo Mingeriak of Kimmirut, who passed away July 14, 1999 from cancer, in the Baffin Regional Hospital.

Cancer has taken a lot of good people away, and Pudloo was one of them. I first met Pudloo in Kimmirut back in 1987 when I was hired as the senior administrative officer. At one of the Hamlet’s annual public meetings, Pudloo was very outspoken and held the view that any publicly elected person, be it hamlet councillor or MLA, should be accountable to the people who put them in office.

He was very involved in community affairs and served several terms as either mayor or councillor, as well as being involved in regional and national Inuit groups. He was also very concerned about young people anywhere on his travels, and always had advice or encouragement to assist them with their needs.

Even though he was candid about his views or ideas, he always injected a bit of humour now and then. I remember one time when he was the mayor of Kimmirut, one of his duties was to present a gift of some sort to the NWT’s deputy commissioner in honour of her visit.

We tried to think of a gift all day, and in the end were still undecided, so Pudloo mentioned that we should just buy a bra and panties combination for her. You had to really know him well to grasp his sense of humour.

He had a gift for making things seem simpler and easier, both in private and public life. We would like to pass on our condolences to his family and that he will be missed.

Raymond Kaslak
Arviat