Tributes

The Big Guy

“Dave K aka Big Guy was a larger than life person. I revered his wisdom and vision as a participant and staff member at NWL. My first year on staff, I worked in the kitchen first session. We'd already had a wild staff training involving 2 lambs being purchased to slaughter as a celebration at the end of staff week. One died in transport and was hauled off a boat at the dock and hidden just before coincidentally my Mom, Dad and sister came to visit in a Loon Lodge water taxi. The other lamb was tied up in the field and baa'd all week while we had endless circles to debate it's fate. Dave had forgotten on small detail regarding a lamb slaughter - a signficant portion of the staff were vegetarian! Anyways, I digress to my main story as kitchen staff. The unspoken deal was that if you "show up" (in the Dave K sense), work hard, don't complain about the early mornings and endless dish scrubbing, you are rewarded with going out on trail as a guide second session. On the particular day in question, Dave K, Cynthia, CG, Jodi (aka management) were heading out to Wabun for an AYCTL meeting. As was always the case, there was a construction project underway, at that time, it was the pizza oven. So the work ended as they had to leave for the meeting and the power tools were left out at the site, it was a sunny day, no big deal right? After they left, Tyler (another basecamp staff member that session) and I were left in charge. We had a participant named Pat who had decided life on trail wasn't for him, and after putting up a sufficient stink (refusing to paddle at all, being horrible to the other kids and staff on the trip etc) he was removed from a trip and we were in charge of babysitting him for the day. Out of nowhere, a massive thunderstorm rolled in. We went down to the OFR to watch it's awesome power. There was a kitchen delivery cart on the dock which the massive waves crashing over the dock pulled into Lake Temagami. All the sudden, we had a cart rescue mission on our hands. Tyler and I decided we needed to risk our lives for that cart and ran out in this lightning storm to rescue it as it bobbed in front of the dock quickly being consumed by the massive waves. It was the most epic storm I ever saw on Lake Temagami. The participant Pat who we were minding joined us and we all had a moment on the edge of the dock, having successfully retrieved the cart, where in the midst of this incredibly powerful storm, soaked to the bone, we raised our fists and screamed at the heavens. We were so fired up by the power of the storm. It was the only time that entire session that I saw Pat smile. It was a special and unlikely moment of connection for the 3 of us. We then retreated to the kitchen, soaked and cold and decided it was a good idea to make hot chocolate for ourselves. We were pretty fired up about our cart rescue and convinced ourselves that a hot chocolate session was an appropriate reward. As I was puttering around the kitchen, I noticed that there was a pound of bacon in the microwave that had been forgotten from that morning and to mitigate public health risk, I made the executive to decision to fry up the bacon on the element beside my hot chocolate pot. We heard the roar of Dave's legendary boat, The Magnum, announcing their return to the dock. Tyler, who was hanging with me in the kitchen, realized that this scene may not be the best look for us as management was about to come upon us in the kitchen. He conveniently slipped out the pantry door and took off to the winter cabin to hide just before Dave came into the kitchen. Dave then proceeded to express his extreme displeasure with the fact that we had left all the power tools out in the rainstorm and why the hell was I making hot chocolate and bacon?! The bacon was served for lunch and I had, in my culinary incompetence, undercooked it. Dave asked me if soggy bacon was a Canadian bacon cooking technique! Tyler and I have laughed countless times reliving this story. And most importantly, in spite of my indiscretion, I still got to go out on trail second session. Miss you and love you Dave. You were a beautiful and powerful person in my development from teenage boy to young man. I will never forget the many lessons you taught about showing up, rigor and living life intentionally.”

— John Booth, Langskib alumni

A life in motion

“I remember fondly my days with Dave at the Alternate school. He was warm, dedicated and sincere in his approach to connect with his students. I hitchhiked to Canada, got a bush plane to the island and Dave made the whole journey worth it. I learned so much, worked so hard and experienced things I had never imagined! My life was set in motion at that point. To this day I am forever grateful for this man❤️”

— Dale Wenner, Langston and teacher at NPHS - alternate school

to a friend

“I met Dave when I was student teaching at Springton Lake in 1984. Within ten minutes he had hired me to work up at Langskib as a trip leader for the young Viking boys. He said they needed a more maternal figure, which I wasn’t sure was me, but I jumped at the chance because my payment was going to be doing the Temagami experience. What a wonder that they had put together a workshop that included sweat lodges, the medicine wheel, group and growth experiences in the Canadian wilderness. It felt like I had been waiting for this. From the beginning, Dave was easy to talk to and he spoke from the heart. I trusted him and his word. Over the years, we talked about everything—deep things, shallow things, funny things, nature, dreams, dog training, relationships, workshop designs, spiritual experiences, therapy, family issues, poker, fishing. He always helped out when he saw something was needed. One time I came home and he was splitting a cord of wood in my driveway (which I had not asked for). He was our pond manager. He looked out for what our house needed. He performed my wedding (one of the best days of my life) and supported me in the marriage. He made me laugh often. He made vacations enjoyable. We were just ourselves with each other. It is an understatement to say that Dave and my experiences with him deeply impacted my life. I am forever grateful for that fateful meeting at Springton Lake and his loyal friendship. ”

— Julie Roberts, Langskib, colleague, friend

Thank you

“From a rebellious 7th grade student to a trusted Bowman on the bay trip, Dave saw something in me that I didn't see in myself, he made me part of his family meeting his mother father his brother wife his children, the Mr Knudsen I met in the fall of 1971 believed in me and it took me awhile till I finally truly believed in myself, believe me myself enough to be I believe the only non-swimmer( I truly sink like a rock in water )in the history of Langskib to do the bay trip and I was in lead canoe Bowman for the first two and a half weeks, we both love Elvis and the Dallas Cowboys he was Staubach I was Pearson money in the Bank love you Dave thank you Dave and thank you for giving me a life worth living”

— Carlton O Richardson , Langskib, student friend

Teacher

“In the fall of 1995 I was a brand new public school teacher. Every aspect of my classroom was informed by my time at Northwaters- my desks in a circle, the discussion questions we talked about, the games we played, our wilderness club adventures on the weekend, the quote on the wall: “”It is not your place to cry about the miseries of the human condition….” My Northwaters experience made me a better teacher, but it didn’t make it easy. Sometime in that first year, I developed a tradition. Every morning, before heading to school, I would stand beneath an old silver maple and think about gratitude. I would choose one student - usually whoever was challenging me the most - and picture them in their own home, getting ready for the day. I’d try to picture them through their parents’ eyes, imagining what was best about them. So often, as I stood beneath that tree, I thought of Dave. What would he say to this student? What would he say to me if I asked him about it? I always ended those one-person thanks circles in the same way - I would look at the sky, and repeat a line that Dave had once written to me in a letter: I’m grateful I get to dance this dance. He'd be with me for a moment and I'd head off to school a little braver and a little more ready to confront whatever was waiting for me with teeth-to-the-wind energy. "Time to let you go now," I'd think to myself as I turned out of the driveway. During those years I was teaching in the winters and working at Northwaters in the summers, and Dave would share stories with me about his own experiences as a science teacher. One time, he told me, he had every student take a piece of paper and draw a series of concentric rings. The rings were symbolic of the social circles in their class, with the most popular students represented by the innermost circle. He had the students shade their papers with a hand so no one could see what they were writing, and he asked them each to make one dot representing themselves, then fold the paper and hand it in with no name on it - just the dot. When he hung all the papers on the wall, everyone could see the pattern: not a single student had placed their dot in the central circle: everyone thought that other people were the more popular ones. This opened the door to a more honest conversation about inclusion and exclusion than any of those students had ever experienced. I tried that exercise a few times with my own students, with similar results; but more importantly, I carried with me Dave's central message: create opportunities for teenagers to talk about real things. Don’t be intimidated by big feelings. People want to talk about the big stuff, so be brave enough to make space for it. This lesson has stayed with me through every job I’ve ever had. I moved on to other schools and classrooms and everywhere I went Dave K. went with me, pushing me to get out of my comfort zone and do something dangerous, to give students spaces where they could speak the truth of their hearts, to never stop growing. When I was considering whether to start a new student club or take on a leadership role or try a new project, invariably Dave would say in my mind, “if you want to run with the big dogs, you’ve got to get off the porch,” or some other Davism and I would choose whatever seemed most likely to lead to challenge and discovery. Later in my career I started working with schools all around the country and to my great joy I started leading a project in Washington, with schools right in David and Cynthia’s town of Anacortes. Seeing Dave and Cynthia on the deck of the Viking ship was such a gift - how tremendous to see their beloved faces, and to see yet another vision of Dave’s made real. We sat by the fire and talked late into the night about teaching. I could feel in him the same drive and passion and faith in humans that I had felt when I first showed up at Northwaters at 16 years old. When I said goodbye to him that last time, I tried to express the inexpressible - my boundless gratitude for his influence in every important moment of my life. It is a gratitude I will carry forever. ”

— Kate Gardoqui, Northwaters alum, former NWL guide from 1990 - 2001, co-creator of the Northern Lights program

“When I think of Dave, I am filled with gratitude for crossing paths with him. As a young man, every piece of advice he offered me proved spot on for my life. We should all be so lucky to have a guide into adulthood that understands what is ACTUALLY coming. Being true to his cowboy self, the sage wisdom was always delivered in a way a young man will not forget…and often too colorful to reshare in a public format. He taught me how enjoy my life in its entirety. Seeing the picture of Dave in the Valkyrie puts me at peace with his soul going on to the next. Thank you Dave! ”

— Sam Obetz, Langskib

The most unusual cowboy

“Like many boys I wanted to be a cowboy. Well, I met my first real cowboy in the most unusual place, Sharp Rock Inlet, Ontario. I am a better man for the meeting. Dave taught me the ways of the wilderness and the poker table, the latter lessons of which consumed much of my paycheck at the end of the summer. Dave was the most unusual cowboy. He melded dashing and daring with a deep respect and learning of First Nations traditions. Most of all Dave sought out and lifted up the underdogs. He always made real time and true caring for those who he sensed he could help whether that meant taking in a young person who needed a loving place to live or a job that would change their lives forever. We love you Dave! The world is a better place thanks to you.”

— Seth Obetz, Langskib Alumnj