The Order of Yukon
I’m going to start this post off with a screenshot from a Yukon government press release from December 7th:
In my post on November 30th I said “Many weeks ago, I got 3 requests for engagements of various kinds, and I declined all of them – I simply didn’t feel up to it. Talking to Cathy, she convinced me that I still have things to share and perhaps teach, so I called them all back.” I explained what two of those things had been but didn’t tell you about the third thing. This was it – a request to accept a nomination for the Order of Yukon. While I was hugely honoured by the request, I expected that the group was wasting their time, and that was the end of it. I was shocked to get a call from the Commissioner’s office 3-4 weeks ago, telling me that I had been accepted.
I was given 2 or 3 choices of how I would like to receive the award. I chose a small ceremony in Commissioner Bernard’s office in the historic Taylor House, on December 7th. I was allowed to invite 10 people, which I did.
My friend Karla Scott shot a couple of videos of the ceremony. The first, 8 minutes long, is the presentation by the Commissioner.
The other is my thank-you – 1½ minutes.
Me with my daughter, Andrea, who came up from Calgary for the event, and Cathy. The entire event lasted an hour – or at least after an hour I had to leave, and was soon in bed. The whole thing has been quite overwhelming, which is why it’s taken me a week to tell you about it.
The medal comes in a leather presentation case, and Commissioner Bernard had beaded cases created to hold them. Each of the cases created is different – mine, with beaded fireweed and an abalone button and bone closure, was created by Karen Lepine of Whitehorse.
The tiny button is an “everyday” symbol of the Order for my jacket. It’s rather like the “secret handshake” of some groups, I suppose – only members will know the meaning. I’m the 28th person to receive the award since it was created in 2018. There was an initial flurry of inductions in 2019 and 2020, but by legislation it is limited to 3 per year now.
The Commissioner said there’s no protocol about when the medal can be worn, so I suppose it’s whenever you feel that LOOK AT ME!! is appropriate 
– which means it’s unlikely to ever again come out of the display case. I still haven’t really wrapped my head around being honoured at this level for just doing what I do. Pretty incredible…
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Congratulations guy! Well done!
Thanks very much, Stew 🙂
Well done Sir!… thanks for sharing that with us…
Thank you, Brad 🙂
Yes, congratulations to let the outside discover the Yukon!
Thank you, Joel. I often wonder whether I should have kept it a secret 🙂
There’s this phrase ‘those that can, do’ but not everyone does it well. Very nice recognition.
Thank you, John. I still really haven’t got my head wrapped around getting honoured at that level.
Congratulations Sir Murray, a sourdough, colourful 5 percent, Order of Yukon, honoured for what you do and what you have done, keep on truckin eh🍻
Thanks, Paul. Who would thunk back in the early ’90s, eh? 🙂
Congratulations, it is a well deserved honor.
Thank you, Patsy 🙂