‘He genuinely loved people’

“Pat came to the North when he was a young man. He came as a hippy — looked rough and tough — but a very good-hearted hippie that you don’t see very often. He was a good hippie, I’ll tell you.”

– Brother-in-law George Mackenzie

Plumber, chimney sweeper, author, videographer, Indigenous advocate, coffee shop owner, PhD holder from University of Dundee in Scotland.

But most importantly, brother, husband, father, uncle, and grandfather to 15 children.

That was Patrick Scott, whose generosity, compassion and brilliance lit up the lives of all who met him.

That was evidenced by the hundreds of people who journeyed to St. Patrick High School for one of the largest celebrations of life seen in the region in a long time.

Enlarged photos of Patrick were on the walls and the stage, which was also adorned with flowers and a wooden cross.

At the two-hour celebration of life, speaker after speaker told stories of Patrick’s life — both before he came to the North in 1975 to work as a cameraman and producer for CBC North, covering the historic pipeline inquiry led by Judge Thomas Berger, and after he found the love of his life, Gabrielle.

Dene National Chief George McKenzie shared a heartfelt tribute, highlighting brother-in-law Pat’s integration into the Indigenous community and his deep love for his family.

“Pat’s personality, he was  one of a kind. God left a legacy behind for his wife and his children and all these relatives, all these friends, the kindness that he showed to everybody, this is what  the family will carry into the future,” he said.

“I have no doubt there will be a strong family to rely on. Pat worked among us, even though he was not Aboriginal, he gave us pride in who we are as Aboriginal people. I feel it. I can feel it as a brother-in-law.

“In the Dene world, we welcome everybody. Pat was like that; like one of us. The Scott family and the Mackenzie family, they meshed together; they became a family through Pat Scott. That family will want to remain as family for life.”

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Mi’kmaq theologian and educator Terry LeBlanc, recalled conversations he had with life-long friend Patrick concerning the end of life, “and there were some things he wanted to be sure were done when the time came.”

He explained: “He asked me to do a couple of things: The first thing he asked me to do was to be sure to emphasize how much he loved (his wife) Gabe, how much he loved his children, how much he loved his grandchildren, how much he loved his friends, how much he loved the communities that he had had the privilege and the blessing to live with him over the course of his life.

“The second … was to be sure that each of you knew that he loved you all, because as Patrick put it, Jesus first loved me. So let me say it again, to be sure that I honour Pat’s request: He loved you deeply.”

Daniel Scott, “Patrick’s slightly older brother,” said “Patrick was a good brother, a damn good brother.”

“When Patrick was little, and I mean very little, and in my mind when I think of Patrick and our childhood years, he was allways littler than me, and that’s sort of the image that I carry. This little guy who was always with me. When he was first learning to talk, he and I had a language that we shared. I would translate for the other members of the family, so Patrick would say something I’d understand, and I’d say, ‘Would someone give Patrick the milk, please? Patrick needs the salt.’ Eventually, I was forbidden to translate for him, so he would learn to speak English. I don’t know how we did that, but we’ve lived with that kind of understanding ever since, that we could say very little and know what each other was meaning.”

Another one of the eulogies offered at the two-hour celebration of life, Pat and Gabe’s daughter, Dahti Tsetso.

“Cancer is a thief. It took so much from Dad and from our family, but through the hardest part of his journey, the staff at Stanton Territorial Hospital walked beside us and supported us. We thank you.

“Their efforts remind us of something that Dad spent his entire life doing: caring deeply for others. Looking around this room today, it’s impossible not to see how many lives he touched. As a family, we’ve been reflecting, and if there’s a sentiment that captures our father best, it is simply how much he loved people. He genuinely loved people. He believed community mattered, and he grew community around him and around all of us everywhere he went.

She told a story from years ago, when one evening as the family was sitting around dinner table about to have supper, “a man who was a little bit lost and likely a little bit intoxicated wandered right into our front door unexpectedly and abruptly and interrupted our meal.”

She continued: “Many people would have turned him away, but not Dad. Without hesitation, he inquired about his well-being, invited him to sit down to share dinner with us, and while that man didn’t stay, much to the relief of my Mom, what Dad showed us in that moment is that every person deserves dignity and kindness, and that this should not depend on somebody’s circumstance, and that compassion often begins with something as simple as making room for others to belong.

She said next May would have marked Patrick and Gabrielle’s 50th wedding anniversary.

“Together, they built a life. Together, they built our family. Through the years, their love has been constant. It has been steady, and it has been unwavering,” she said.

“In his final months, Dad often (said) his main concern was not for himself, but for her. And if Dad were standing here today, I know he would say, ‘Make sure to take care of your mom.’

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“She was the love of his life, and nothing would bring him greater peace than knowing that she continues to be surrounded by the love of all of us and the friendship and the care from all of you. So, as our family and as my mother begins this next chapter, we are deeply grateful to you all.”

His wife, Gabrielle, thanked everyone for travelling from near and far to the ceremony, which also included a visitation prior to the celebration.

“I used to say to Pat, the only way I know love is because he loved me. That’s what I used to say to him all the time, and he has given me everything. I don’t know how he figured out how to do the many things he did.

“I thank all of you for traveling to come and pay your respect to the man that I love. He was a great husband, father, and grandfather and friends to so many.”

Patrick’s lengthy funeral procession wound through Yellowknife, with a Municipal Enforcement escort, to the Lakeview Cemetery.

He will be deeply missed.