Diamond Tooth Gertie and her girls love to climb on the fire engines. Photo by Dan Davidson

DISCOVERY DAY PARADE 2004

by Lambert Curzon

Yes, another successful Discovery Day Parade, amidst the smoke and ash, Dawsonites and visitors enjoyed the day. The Parade Marshal this year was able to get them rolling at 12:00 Noon' with The Mounties arriving just in time to lead the Parade; they always look so smart in the Red Serge, and are certainly a crowd please. This year they had a couple of smartly dressed special constables which added color to their contingent.

The Judges this year were Angie Senft, Betty Davidson, Judith Blackburn and Stephen Johnson, and I must say, they did a very fine job.

The prize of $750.00 went to the best all around entry, which was won handily by the FOOP'S, There attire reminded us what Discovery Days were all about, and the ladies certainly were entertaining. Great Float Ladies! Congratulations!

First. Prize of $500.00 went to the Pioneer Women Second. Prize of $ 300.00 went to the Tr’ondëk' Hwëch’in. A Third Prize of $200.00 went to the Mudbog Mascot -Tamika Knutson - who drove the whole parade and truly did a great job.

The above money was donated by THE CITY OF DAWSON and I know the recipients will make good use of it. Thank you.

The Klondike visitors association donated a special prize this year, a $100.00 bumble bee, which went to Bob Courtwright, who very richly deserved it especially for his many years of putting his antique car in the parade and this year was very special, as Mr. & Mrs. Yukon were chauffeured in it.

Rumor has it that Bob's antique car was once owned by John Gould's father? John, is it true?

Northern Superior's Donations of $50.00, $30.00 & $20.00 checks went to the following bike entries.

1 st. S S Keno - Jared Stephenson 2 nd. Gold City Bus - T J Fitzgerald 3 rd. Can Can Gertie Girl - Lindsay Cahoon

Each bike entries received a twoonie which was donated by the Bank of Commerce. It is great, when local businesses come through like this and make the day so special for all those who participate.

Honorable Mention in the Bike Category went to Dylan Everton - (miner) flashlight, Cody Stephenson - (Klondike Fireman) art shoppe, Kassie Atkins - shirt, Rila Magee - (Discovery Days Miner) bean bag hippo, Andre Gaudet (Buff Gold City) shirt, Kirstyn Atkins - (Clown ) soap & Bath Pkg.

Of Special Attention The Judges Awarded the following.

Dick North Entry received 7 hats. The Do North Entry Jeremy Lancaster and friends- paint tray & stencil set; Dancing Moose/Wine Makers of Dawson - soap set and 4 mugs; Van Every Group - 3 Gift Certificates from Riverwest; Mud Bog - 3 Gift Certificates from Riverwest.

The Teen Queen contestants did a great job, and riding in a red convertible I am sure was a highlight, especially here in Dawson.

A Great Suggestion for next year, have all the floats and entries wind up in Minto Park, that way everyone could better appreciate the hard work that has gone into the entries. We feel that with the kids games, and the firemen's bucket brigade all happening in the same area, we should be able to keep folks around longer. Some feedback would be great on this suggestion.

It would also be great to have some elected town officials to make speeches and MC the event.

The Discovery Day Parade Marshall, and the Judges wish to thank all those who participated, and the following contributors who helped to make the day such a huge success.

City Of Dawson; CIBC; YOOP; Raven's Nook, Klondike Nugget & Ivory, Arctic Inland, The Gift Box, Riverwest, Northern Superior, Aurora Bookkeeping, Maximilian's, Klondike Visitors Association, The Gold Poke, Dawson City General Store, Pied Piper Group, Dawson Trading Post

Once again a sincere thank you to the Judges and everyone who contributed and participated.

Celebrating the Arts Along the Dike

by Dan Davidson

A look at the tent full of items for sale ant the Yukon Riverside Arts Festival and you might be tempted to think it was nothing more than an outdoorsy sort of bazaar, another sales opportunity for artists.

It’s a bit more than that, though. Any artists entered in the festival have to be prepared to spend several days teaching and demonstrating how their work is done, while volunteers look after any sales in the market tent.

Lorraine Millar adds colour to a blob of glass to make a coloured bead. Photo by Dan Davidson

This year’s event was the fourth in the series, and the tents along the dike were full of activity from Friday to Sunday as visitors and locals took in the sights.

In the heat of the day you could bake for a few minutes in the human sized camera obscura and see the street reflected in the inverted pinhole image on the opposite wall, an outgrowth of an earlier pinhole camera project at the ODD Gallery.

In the market tent there was a wide array of art on sale, from painting to fabric art, carving, pottery, sculptured assemblies of wood and stone, intricate wood carvings and photography.

Festival organizers at the Klondike Institute of Art and Culture intend that the weekend should stir up and nurture an interest in the arts, so the workshop tents feature the artists either demonstrating their techniques or actively teaching them to others.

The tents and the artists were busy for much of the weekend, whenever other Discovery Days events weren’t beckoning the folks elsewhere.

Seven-week-old’s death results in murder charges

By Sarah Elizabeth Brown

Whitehorse Star August 17 & 18, 2004

A young Dawson City mother is accused of murdering her infant after police found the seven-week-old girl dead in a trash can on the morning of August 16, 2004..

Shortly before 2 a.m. Monday, Justina Kirstin Ellis, 22, notified the Dawson City RCMP that her baby girl was missing, detachment commander Sgt. Tim Ashmore said in a statement.

The young woman told police at that time that she’d been looking for her daughter for about an hour, to no avail.

Ellis was taken into custody and has been charged with second degree murder of the infant, Samara Olson.

The case came up again in court Wednesday afternoon in Whitehorse where it was decided that her case would be adjourned until September. Ellis wasn’t in court for her second appearance before a justice. However, the defence duty counsel asked that the second-degree murder charge next show up on the Sept. 10 docket in Whitehorse.

A publication ban on any evidence presented at a bail hearing has been ordered. The young woman has not yet applied for bail and is currently in custody.

Ellis had been living with her common-law husband, who is the dead baby’s father. He isn’t implicated in any way, said Ashmore.

Though a search was immediately started after the initial report, police quickly suspected the young mother was involved in the girl’s disappearance, Ashmore said.

“There were suspicions from the get-go there,” the sergeant said, though he wouldn’t say if it appeared the young woman had been drinking when she made the missing baby report.

Some 6 1/2 hours after making the initial call to police, the mother led officers to a trash can near a local restaurant within a few blocks of her home.

Inside was the infant’s body.

The seven week old child was named Samara Olson.

Police have their suspicions as to just how the baby died, but are waiting for an autopsy to be conducted to determine the cause and time of death.