Deb started trying to organize her family at about age 5. We were an unruly lot but that did not stop her from trying.
Born 1962 in Ajo Arizona to her parents Hilah (teacher) and Norman (biologist), Deborah Lee was followed two and a half years later by brother David. She began her teaching career early with her new sibling who was not the best student, but thrived in any case under her tutelage.
In ‘66 the family packed the station wagon and moved to Ft. Smith in the Northwest Territories, an idyllic little town on the banks of the Slave River. Early formative experiences include the summers spent on the banks of the Keele River in the Mackenzie Mountains where Deb was first introduced to the Northern “bush”. Norman was doing research on Dall Sheep for the Canadian Wildlife Service supported by three Mountain Dene families from Tulita, a town on the Mackenzie River. Their guidance was essential to the success of his research, providing expert knowledge on the land, its wildlife and its people. The Simmons clan was treated like family and had the unique opportunity to learn about the traditional skills, stories and philosophies of the Sahtú Dene. These experiences likely inspired what would ultimately become Deborah’s mission in the North, namely to support and strengthen Dene culture, language, and self-governance; and to ensure the participation of the Dene people in the management of their natural resources.
The year 1973 brought her brother Daniel into the fold. In 1975 the Simmons family moved further north to Yellowknife on the shore of Great Slave Lake and a few months later her sister Sarah was born.
During this time, Deb distinguished herself both as a top student and through her many extra-curricular interests such as cross country skiing, camping, and canoeing, the latter a favourite family activity. Her mother Hilah surrounded the family with music and Deb learned piano and played french horn, then flute, in the Sir John Franklin High School band. Between these pursuits she could almost always be found with a book in hand. She was an absolutely voracious reader. In school, Deb befriended the quirky, talented and interesting kids, a trait that would continue throughout her life as evidenced by her sprawling network of unique individuals. Her love of languages inspired her to do a French immersion semester in Caraquet, New Brunswick. At graduation, Deb was second in her class and selected as Valedictorian.
Deb’s post-secondary career was the ground of her true flowering as a thinker, writer, activist, and teacher. She was a committed socialist with a vision to build a just society for all by advancing and amplifying the voices of the dispossessed. Following the completion of her PhD Dissertation on the political economy of Indigenous resistance in the Social and Political Thought program at York University in Toronto, she went on to teach at the University of Manitoba.
After this stint in academia, Deb returned to her childhood roots with a job as a social science researcher in the Sahtú region, working with some of the same families that her father had worked with decades before. Picking up the baton from him, she advocated for the full participation of the Dene in conservation and land management. Her principled commitment to indigenous self-determination brought her, ultimately, to the position of Executive Director of the Sahtú Renewable Resources board. In this role, she was able to effect lasting change, notably by having the co-management of natural resources recognized as a right within the framework of land claims agreements. Along with her tireless struggle to have indigenous rights recognized by the legal authorities that would rule the land, she championed Dene ways of knowing and being, namely by integrating Dene language and oral histories through all projects in which she was involved.
Her colleagues, academic, professional and activist have spoken beautifully of Deb’s passion for her work, commitment to her ideals and innate good nature.(see below). It is clear that her capacity to organize and network along with her joyous, and kind spirit drew many to her to collaborate. She was always gentle but absolutely would not be deterred from her goals. In the end all of this emanated from a huge heart.
Deborah was a pillar of her family and will be sorely missed. We are left with her afterimage as with a
bright flash in the dark that persists in the eye. There is a desire to take possession of her memory but that
cannot be. Her memory must be shared by all whom she touched.
The Trailbreaker with Loren McGinnis: We remember the late Deborah Simmons.
"Last week, I lost a dear friend, Deborah L Simmons, to cancer.
In October 2018, Michael and I spent a night at the Simmons’ ranch near Pincher Creek, Alberta. We awoke to beautiful blue skies and softening early season snow. Deb suggested that we snowshoe up the ridge so we could really see the Gladstone Valley, the place her parents had made their home after leaving the North and a place that was equally special for her. I questioned the suggestion—Deb was in the middle of chemotherapy—but she assured me she felt up for it. I should not have worried. She bounded up the ridge, leaving me scrambling to catch up.
I have told the story of that hike many times because it captured something of who Deb was: a person with limitless energy and enthusiasm; a person with the sunniest of dispositions, unwavering optimism, and a lust for life; a person with a deep love for the land and its caretakers; and a person who was happiest when others were along for the ride, even if it meant she had to help them get where she was going. Like so many in Debby’s network, we were colleagues first. We met in December 2016 when I was working at the NWT Recreation and Parks Association, supporting on the land programs. She approached me about doing some safety planning work with the leadership team for the first Dene Ts’ı̨lı̨ School. I explained my reticence about using conventional risk management tools for land-based programs. Deb liked the idea of seeing if we could do things differently. Over the next few years, we worked alongside Dene and Métis elders, knowledge keepers, and youth to develop a plan for the Sahtú Renewable Resources Board that was grounded in and regenerated Dene and Métis knowledges and practices related to safety. I learned so much through the process from Deb about how to be a good ally, as I watched her create space for discussion, ask good questions, listen intently, carefully document terms and concepts in Dene Kǝdǝ́, and laugh at herself. I was fortunate to be able to continue to work with and learn from Deb on a number of projects that were dear to her, including the Sahtú Nę K’ǝ́dıkǝ́ - Keepers of the Land guardian program; the public listening sessions on conserving caribou; the Sahtú COVID-19 response evaluation; and most recently, the petroleum histories project. The thread through these topically diverse projects was upholding Indigenous self-determination and governance and revitalizing land connections.
I loved how Deb’s brain worked, even if I struggled to keep up. I loved her curiosity, which extended into so many disparate realms. I loved (and shared) her zeal for fifty per cent off food and free books. I loved that when she developed a passion for something, whether it was kefir, a bidet, vermicomposting, or a Biolite stove, she became a proselytizer on par with the most fanatical of religious acolytes (Deb managed to convince me of the value of all of these things). Maybe more than anything, I loved her laugh, and I worked hard to hear it whenever we were together.
Michael and I visited the Gladstone Valley again this fall, this time with our son, Arn. From the time that Deb learned I was pregnant, she was a doting auntie, checking in on me by text and asking to see my growing belly during our Zoom calls. When he arrived in June, she fawned over photos and videos until she was finally able to cuddle him in person in August. I’m so thankful that Deb and Arn met each other; I’d like to think that in their three visits, he soaked up enough Auntie Debby love to last a lifetime. Losing Deb has been so hard. I’ve taken comfort in spending time with others who knew her and reading posts from people in her vast network. I’ve been thinking of all of the things that Deb still wanted to do and I hope that I can help realize some of those visions, but maybe even more importantly, I hope that in my life and work, I can walk as she did, lightly, with passion and a spring in her step, and with deep respect and love for land and people."
"Deborah L Simmons (1962-2022)’s death is such a loss. She grew up in Denendeh (the Northwest Territories) and lived there again for most of the years since 1999. Some of you will know her from her years in Toronto from the late 1980s until 1995, others from her time in Winnipeg (2004-2006). Debbie was an amazing person, as capable in intellectual matters (her regrettably unpublished dissertation on the political economy of Indigenous resistance in Canada is excellent) as she was on the land, befriending people in a way that reflected her wide range of interests, generous, outgoing, energetic. She was a friend and comrade of mine since the early 90s in Toronto, and I was so happy when she moved to Winnipeg a year after I did. After two years she decided to leave academic work and go back to living in the north, which in spite of her urban cosmopolitan side was, I think, where she was most at home."
"Deborah L Simmons was a wonderful client and friend who was deeply committed to improving co-management of wildlife and other natural resources in the Sahtú. Deb was relentless in her work, mustering an energy level that never ceased to amaze me. We pulled more than one all nighter together working on hearings and reports for the Ɂehdzo Got’ı̨nę Gots’ę́ Nákedı (Sahtú Renewable Resources Board / SRRB). Deb followed in her father's footsteps as Executive Director of the SRRB, doing ground-breaking work to help realize their shared goal of genuine Indigenous sovereignty over wildlife and resources in the Northwest Territories. While a force to be reckoned with in her work, Deb was a kind and gentle soul who was an incredible friend and mentor to myself and many others. She was very thoughtful in her efforts to connect people, and always seemed to see the bigger picture in her work and activism. I will miss her laugh, her creativity, and the joyful energy she brought to her life and work."
"I am so saddened by this news. Deborah L Simmons was a unique and wonderful woman, as sweet yet as strong as a person could be. A committed and brilliant socialist, Deb was equally passionate about wildlife – and about the wellbeing and future of the Dene people she worked with (taking after her father Norm). The last chapter of her working life was as Executive Director of the Ɂehdzo Got’ı̨nę Gots’ę́ Nákedı (Sahtú Renewable Resources Board) in the Northwest Territories beginning in 2012. She kicked ass, and always had a blast doing so. Rest In Power, Deb!"
"Rest in power Debbie Simmons. The wonderfully sweet, smart, feisty and dedicated socialist, feminist, anti-racist and fighter for indigenous rights died in Pincher Creek, Alberta last night. In the late 1980s, Deb had gobbled up deconstruction, earning an A+ from Jacques Derrida as a Masters student in a course at Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. She then came to York U, where she soon moved into activism on the socialist left and into campus unionism as well. Undergoing a series of intellectual and political shifts, she asked me to supervise her Ph.D. thesis on the political economy of indigenous oppression in Canada. It remains a landmark piece of historical materialist research. Deb also connected with the great Métis Marxist, Howard Adams, and brought him into contact with many of us on the Left in Toronto in the early 2000s. Deb was personally tough and resilient but had an eternally soft, kind heart. She toughed it out as an itinerant academic, largely in Manitoba, for some years. But the academy never really suited her. Like so many smart, outspoken women, she never found her place there. Increasingly, she gravitated to life in the Far North. Many of us from "the old days" had only the most distant contact with Debbie in recent years. But she remained in our hearts. And there she will remain, with her boisterous laugh, her impish smile, her big, big heart, and a passion for social justice that will never burn out. Rest in power dear comrade."
"Hard to imagine that this woman won’t be around anymore, she’s been such a force to be reckoned with, her tenacity and dedication to her work is incomparable, her courage and strength is undeniable, she’s changed the face of wildlife management in the sahtu and has tried to revitalize the dene language, she’s done amazing work and has shown so much compassion for the people of the sahtu, my thoughts and prayers go out to her family, Rest In Peace Deb Simmons, your legacy will never be forgotten."
"It’s so wonderful to see how many lives Deborah L Simmons touched. But, it’s also been really hard to see everyone’s posts about her. Her passing has hit me a lot harder than I expected.
She meant a great deal to me and I will be forever grateful to her. She always believed in me, especially when I didn’t. She called me a few days after I left Calgary because she knew that I felt guilty about leaving her for work. She told me how important my work is and to continue fighting for our people. I’ll do my best not to her her down.❤️"
Well my friend ... I am having to say goodbye much too soon. You have both inspired and frustrated me as you pushed me to expand my often narrow mind and perspectives ... I see you smiling and hear you laughing because, while you may have driven me to distraction, you have always known I usually need a push to see clearly. As found family and a heart relation, I will treasure our all too-short visits and our last call. I shall miss you ... but I know your intellect, grace, strength, and beauty of heart and soul will live on.
"I raised my head and set myself, In the eye of the storm, in the belly of a whale, My spirit stood on solid ground, I'll be at peace when they lay me down .... When they lay me down someday, My soul will rise, then fly away, This old world will turn around, I'll be at peace when they lay me down.
I first met Deb 20 years ago when she came to teach at the University of Manitoba and right away we got working on projects, navigating through the excitement and challenges of the early years of our careers. Deb was deeply interested in social issues and had a unique ability to capture and synthesize immense amount of information. She loved to learn from people most, whether they were ranchers, hunters, elders or scholars, she was able to transpose, translate, connect and elevate what was said. She didn’t miss a word or an idea and from these ideas, she moved mountains. She wrote letters, briefing notes, proposals, conference proceedings, journal articles and brought in the resources needed to help move the agenda forward. She contributed her talents to many endeavors, and found beauty in all she touched. Her latest contributions embodied new paradigms in wildlife conservation through indigenous-led conservation and interdisciplinary research. Although this seems simple on paper, new ways had to be forged for all aspects of the work, from defining the objectives to deciding on how the projects would be governed. Among other things, she initiated a series of community-led conservation plans, Indigenous guardians training programs and public listening sessions in the Sahtú region, which are considered by many to be the new models.
In reflecting on her too short journey, it is inspiring to see how much she contributed to people’s lives. She was happy helping with firewood, cooking dinner, cleaning fish, making dry meat, hiking and skiing in the mountains and ski-dooing across Great Bear Lake. She brought family, friends and colleagues together for meals and outings at every occasion. She will be greatly missed.