'Fun-loving, active, and lively' Gwich'in man found dead near Dempster Highway

A hunter from Fort McPherson, N.W.T., has been found dead near the Dempster Highway following an all-night search for him.

William Thompson, 40, had been hunting caribou in the Yukon near the N.W.T. border. He was reported overdue to the RCMP on Saturday evening.

The weather turned from rain to snow, and then to blizzard conditions, leaving between 20 and 25 centimetres of snow, according to a news release from the Yukon Coroner's Service.

A search party worked through the night to find Thompson, who was found dead around 9 a.m. on Sunday.

Diane Koe, a family member, confirmed to CBC News that Thompson is the deceased.

"He was a fun-loving, active and lively, smart Gwich'in man," said Koe. "People always wanted him around."

He sat amongst us women and he picked the berries ... for his mom.- Diane Koe

She said Thompson was born and raised in Fort McPherson, was taught the traditional way of life and was a good hunter.

"All the traditional knowledge he had, he passed on to younger children," she said.

She remembers that just a few weeks ago, she called Thompson. 

"I told him, 'Your mom is not well now,'" said Koe. "She enjoyed picking berries."

So, Thompson went with Koe to go pick berries for his mother.

"He sat amongst us women and he picked the berries … for his mom," she said.

"That's the kind of person he was."

Always there to help

Koe said Thompson's family is working on making arrangements for the funeral. There is no date confirmed as of yet, but the family is trying to set it up for next week, to be followed by a traditional feast.

Thompson's parents asked Koe if she and her sisters would set up a fundraiser for Thompson. In one night, they raised $8,000 to help cover costs for the feast and the funeral, she said.

People are already out hunting in preparation for the feast, said Koe. Someone has already donated a moose.

"William was always there to help others when anything like this happened," Koe said.

"He sure got that back through the donation program, and through the contributions of caribou and moose, and prayers, and love, and support to his family."

Koe said most of all, she wants people to remember Thompson as a "well-experienced, traditional Gwich'in man."

The Yukon Coroner's Service is leading the investigation with the help of the N.W.T.'s coroner's service and Fort McPherson RCMP.

With files from Mackenzie Scott