Three Albertans given awards

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When original host Graham Greene called in sick to the 1997 National Aboriginal Achievement Awards, there were no regrets when Tom Jackson stepped into a role that he's practically made his own. Backed by another magnificent John Kim Bell set and surrounded by the cream of Canada's Aboriginal communities, Jackson and his co-hosts from North of 60, Tina Keeper and Gordon Tootoosis, were joined by Dances With Wolves' star Tantoo Cardinal.

Arctic Rose Susan Aglukark opened the show with "Hina Na Ho" and closed it with her huge hit "O Siem." Supported by an energetic troupe of Inuit dancers, both songs were big production numbers that delighted the sell-out crowd. Or they would have, if they had gone according to plan. Although it didn't make it to the edited CBC special aired six days later, Aglukark was forced to begin "O Siem" three times, and battled through the song against at-times-shrill feedback.

Fortunately, but for a few long delays, the rest of the evening went well, and the show biz provided a brilliant background for honoring the 14 Aboriginal achievers on the day.

Young country sensation Rebecca Miller, a 20-year-old Iroquois woman from Six Nations, entertained with a lively version of her song "Listen to the Radio." She received the 1996 YTV Youth Achievement Award for vocals and is currently recording her first album.

The other performer was youthful balladeer Fara Palmer, who performed "Somewhere Out There" from the movie An American Tail. Her appearance was another break for the rising star, who sang with the legendary Buffy Sainte-Marie as a 12-year-old.

All of this took place on the stage at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, which was filled with the rectangular splendor of Bell's reinterpretation of the historical 10th- to 15th-century city Cahokia, an Aboriginal metropolis which was located near the site of present-day St. Louis. Bell moved the city north to the Canadian Arctic, adorning it with West Coast iconography and Inuit sculptures. Through it, the audience was able to imagine Cahokia appearing as if the ancients had melted the glaciers of the North, revealing the city's wonders.

The glittering pyramid took on fantastic colors as it was transformed from icy blues and greens, to burning yellows and reds, to fantastic purples. The spectacular scrim, a semi-transparent curtain which dropped in front of the pyramid to focus attention on the hosts and award winners at the front of the stage, featured Inuit art.

Presented by the Canadian Native Arts Foundation and sponsored by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, as well as 24 other public-and private-sector sponsoring bodies, the awards show was the fourth-annual celebration of excellence all across Aboriginal Canada. There were 12 achievement awards given out, as well as a youth award and a lifetime achievement award, bringing the total recipients of the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards to 55.

The lifetime achievement award was presented to historian, journalist and teacher Olive Dickason. Long a resident of Edmonton and a professor at the University of Alberta, Dickason recently moved to Ottawa. She was given her award for her 20-year campaign to right the historical record so that it includes the contributions of Aboriginal people to Canada.

Alberta film maker Gil Cardinal from Edmonton received the award for film and television. The Metis producer and director is best known for his work on Come Alive, a weekly Access production in the 1970s. Since then, he's directed episodes of North of 60, and produced and directed many award-winning feature documentaries, including his autobiographical breakthrough film Foster Child.

Court worker Chester Cunningham from Edmonton was honored for his work in law and justice. Cunningham created the Aboriginal court workers' program while an employee of the Canadian Native Friendship Centre in Edmonton. The pogram has inspired other, similar programs across the country, and has also inspired many other Aboriginal people to take an active interest in the law. Cunningham is also a board member of the Aboriginal Multi-Media Society of Alberta, the organization that operates Alberta Sweetgrass, Windspeaker, Saskatchewan Sage and CFWE-The Native Perspective.