I, like many of you, was shocked to hear longtime La Ronge resident and Northern Advocate reporter Valerie Barnes Connell Jordan had passed away.
Val and I talked the day before she died about the next edition of the Northern Advocate. We were a little more than a day away from deadline, and she had a last minute change to a story. It was a very brief conversation, but one filled with Val’s seemingly boundless energy. The next day I walked into the office to find out she had passed away.
Val was one of those people I thought would outlive everyone. Every time I spoke with her she was hustling from one event to another, trying to squeeze in another meeting, another fundraiser, another art exhibit, another interview, or another story. I don’t know where she found the energy.
I was always impressed by how much she knew of La Ronge’s history. I could bring up events or people from years ago and she’d have a store of knowledge tucked away. It was not encyclopedic. Sometimes she’d have to sort through files or talk to another resident to confirm one fact or another. However, her ability to even remember where to go or who to consult always stuck with me.
I was also always struck by her passion for people. The biggest challenge I had working with Val was trying to coordinate her non-work life. I’d call it her social life, but that makes it sound like she was shirking her duties. She wasn’t. She just always had a full calendar of birthdays, anniversaries, funerals, and other gathering to attend. She was always talking about how she had to visit this friend in the hospital or help that friend with an errand. And of course, she always faithfully helped her husband Hugh through various health scares.
I will always be grateful for her contributions during the 2025 wildfire season. Evacuating with Hugh was not easy, but she still found time to send a few stories and columns my way. I’ve seen reporters back away from their role despite their lives being far less chaotic.
It seems a little rude to ask this, but with Val gone the next question is, what happens to the Northern Advocate? Val was a wealth of local knowledge, but more importantly, she was willing to live and work in Northern Saskatchewan. Since taking over as editor of the Daily Herald, I’m finding that quality may be her most important.
It’s difficult to attract young reporters to live and work in Prince Albert, and that difficulty extends north to La Ronge, and Beuval, and Ile-a-la-Crosse, and so many other northern communities. Reporters, I believe, should be embedded in the communities they serve. In this edition, I’ve tried to make a few calls and find a few stories from my desk in Prince Albert, but it’s not the same as being up in the north making face-to-face connections.
I want to see the Northern Advocate continue, as do the people who work with me at the Daily Herald, but that will require finding a reporter willing make the north their home. If we can’t do that, well, the Northern Advocate’s days may be numbered. I hope that won’t be the case. I hope the NA can continue to along the path Val helped us follow. But, you can never be sure.
Jason Kerr is the editor of the Prince Albert Daily Herald and the Northern Advocate.
