'Long overdue': Inuvik, N.W.T., looks to rename street that commemorates residential school priest

A street in Inuvik, N.W.T., might soon have a new name.

Ruyant Crescent is a short residential loop in the town's west end, named after Father Max Ruyant, a Catholic priest who ran Grollier Hall for more than 20 years. The hall was a government-funded boarding facility, established in the 1950s for children from the Sahtu, Beaufort Delta and Kitikmeot regions in the N.W.T and Nunavut.

Grollier Hall, which closed in the '90s, was the site of "many acts of sexual and psychological abuse," according to the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. Former students have also shared stories of children who died there.

Jak Zheii Place, the suggested new name for the street, was put forward by the town's volunteer naming committee. The name means "blueberry" in Gwich'in, and was proposed after the committee sat down and listened to stories from elders about the history of the area. 

"Before anything was built on that land there was an abundance of blueberries, and it was a place where these three ladies, like local ladies that lived around here, made their home here," said Anna Pingo, resident of Inuvik and member of the naming committee.

Pingo lives on Ruyant Crescent and said ever since learning there was "not a nice history" associated with the priest, she has felt strongly about changing the name of her street. When the opportunity to join the town's naming committee came along, Pingo wanted to ensure her voice was heard.

"You know, because of me being born and raised here in Inuvik, and knowing a little bit of the history — and I have family members that were people that went to residential school — I wanted to have my part and say," Pingo said.

The committee is composed of three local residents and three town councillors, each serving a two-year term. The committee's mandate is to review applications for naming or renaming municipal facilities, parks and roads.

When Pingo joined the committee, she said she was surprised to learn Ruyant Crescent was already at the top of the list.

After learning the history about the blueberry patches from the elders, Pingo said the committee discussed having the name in an Indigenous language and decided on Gwich'in.

"Because there's a few Inuvialuit names already on the streets, the [committee] wanted to incorporate the other culture that are dominant here, which are the Gwich'in," Pingo said.

The majority of residents in Inuvik are Indigenous, according to the town's website, with the most-spoken languages, after English, being Inuvialuktun, Gwich'in and North Slavey.

Work on reclaiming traditional names has been ongoing in the territory, from looking at street names, to community names, to even individual's names. It is all a part of reconciliation, Pingo said. 

The mayor of Inuvik, Clarence Wood, told CBC he is in support of renaming Ruyant Crescent.

"It's long overdue," Wood said.

Residents have a week to offer feedback on the proposed new name, with a public hearing scheduled for May 14 at 7 p.m. in council chambers.

The naming committee has not chosen the next street name to consider, but Pingo said she is ready to work on the other roads that need to be renamed.

"We just hope that if people have stories to share, if they want to come to talk to us, if they want to send us a message on Facebook, we'd be happy to consider anybody's input."