There were two areas that peaked my interest when researching this project; finding out how the school board was able to use well-known names—local and non-local. It left me questions such as, did they contact the person directly? and how did they decide on which person to honor? Going through the research, I noticed a theme throughout some of the names that left me with more questions; was it intentional? or were they chosen because they were seen as Canada’s role models during that specific period?

When it came to naming schools after the local Abbotsford figures, the school board had easier access to contacting and communicating with the person directly—unless they have already passed, like John Maclure. For an example, the board had approached Dave Kandal in the 1990s to request an elementary school be named in his honor, in recognition of his service to Abbotsford.

I was not able to access the school board minutes prior to 2007, instead, was able to find a more recent board meeting discussion of the process of naming a recent new school on Eagle Mountain in Abbotsford. Although you will read the process of how the three chosen schools had their names chosen, this one example of the naming process provides a glimpse of how the School District had organized themselves into naming previous schools. On March 9, 2021, the Board of Education had appointed four community members in addition to the two Trustees, the school Principal, and the Communications Manager to become the naming committee. For this school, the community members chosen consisted of: an elected councilor for Sumas First Nation, a resident and school parent of Eagle Mountain, a resident of the Eagle Mountain community, and a grade 12 student from the High School in the catchment. The naming of the school is currently in process as this research is being done, but it is intriguing to be able to see how those involved with the surrounding community were chosen to help name a school.

For the non-local Canadian figures, there are a few names that do not quite have a connection with each other, but none the less have made an impact on Canadians. A few examples of Abbotsford schools that have been named after honorary Canadians: Dr. Roberta Bondar, the first female Canadian astronaut and world’s first neurologist in space in 1992; Robert Bateman, a well-known Canadian painter; and Chief Dan George, the chief of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, author, actor, and musician. As British Columbia’s recognition and acknowledgment to England, Abbotsford interestingly has a school named after Prince Charles.

Connections Between Historical Athletes

One of the major connections that I was able to make was found in four notable schools in Abbotsford. Out of these four, three of them have previously participated on the same sports team. Eugene Reimer, Rick Hansen, and Terry Fox participated in becoming members of the wheelchair basketball team—the Vancouver Cable Cars—in 1972. Having both Reimer and Hansen as athletes who were wheelchair bound and Fox athleticism with a prosthetic leg, these three have made an inspirational impact on both sports history and for Canadians. A connection with the previous three, Gordie Howe was also involved with sports. He was known by the name “Mr.Hockey” and was considered the most complete player to ever play the game and one of the greatest of all time. One of the main connections I was able to make between Terry Fox, Rick Hansen, and Gordie Howe–besides sports–was their connection of creating a foundation. Fox, Hansen, and Howe have created a foundation towards research—Fox with Cancer research, Hansen with Spinal Cord research and Howe with Alzheimer’s research. Interestingly enough, the time span between each of the schools opening sparks curiosity. Terry Fox Elementary opened in 1983, Hansen High School opened 10 years later in 1993, and Gordie Howe Middle opened 8 years later in 2001. Although Eugene Riemer Middle opened in 2002, there is curiosity if the School District will in the upcoming years, honor another Canadian Sports person to a future new school, or even replace one of the older school names, such as John Maclure?

Sources Used For This Page:
abbotsfordcf.org, abbyschools.ca, robertabondar.com, Wikipedia.org photos also taken from site.