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Alberta has long benefitted from the talents of our Maritime friends who leave the Atlantic provinces for brighter employment prospects in the West. It’s impossible to thank them all but, by pure coincidence, at least two of those individuals will be recognized for their contributions when the Association presents Kathleen Murphy-House and Patrick Duffy with honorary memberships at its Annual Representative Assembly this May long weekend.
Murphy-House came to Alberta from Cornerbrook, Newfoundland in 1979. She began and concluded her service to the teaching profession as a respected administrator and instructional leader. Employed by Fort McMurray Catholic Schools, she was a principal at St Paul, Sister Mary Philips and St Anne schools. She shared her expansive expertise with principals across the province through participation on many Association committees and especially through the dedicated leadership she provided to the Council on School Leadership from 2000 to 2012, when she retired.
Duffy may have returned to his home province of Prince Edward Island after retiring in 2013, but the extraordinary depth and breadth of his commitment to the teaching profession has ensured his lasting legacy in Alberta. In 1981, he came to Alberta and launched his career in Fort Vermilion. Later, he settled in Grande Prairie where he taught at Holy Cross Catholic School from 1992 until his retirement. He held the posts of school representative, chair of the negotiating subcommittee and local president with Grande Prairie and District Catholic Teachers Local No 42 before being elected to Provincial Executive Council as District Representative (DR) for the North West geographic district. As a DR, Duffy was highly regarded for the integrity, knowledge and passion he demonstrated while serving on numerous committees and specialist councils and for performing the task he took most to heart, representing the teachers of Alberta—particularly those of the North West.
Honorary membership, the ATA’s highest award, is reserved for members of the Association or other persons who have given meritorious service to the teaching profession or to the advancement of education. ❚
