Allan Adam became the AHA CEO on March 15. (Adam Allan/Facebook)

By Derek Cornet

top job

‘This is home’: New AHA CEO no stranger to Saskatchewan’s Far North

Mar 19, 2021 | 12:33 PM

For four decades Allan Adam lived away from his homeland of Fond du Lac Denesuline First Nation, but he has returned to take on the role of CEO of the Athabasca Health Authority (AHA).

“I’m glad to be here and I thank the board for giving me the chance to do this work and I’ll just do the best that I can,” he said. “It feels really good. This is home, this is my homelands. I really like being out on the land.”

Adam believes he has the right kind of education and experience to serve as the CEO as he currently serves as a trustee with the Canadian Museum of Nature, a director with the First Nation University of Canada and a governor with the University of Saskatchewan. Adam also has experience as a broadcaster, media spokesperson, translator, writer, negotiator, facilitator, counsellor and spiritual advisor.

Later this fall, Adam will appear on Aboriginal Peoples Television Network’s The Other Side as an Elder. The show is about paranormal investigations in Manitoba, Ontario and Saskatchewan.

“I always have an interest in working with people, helping people and just doing the best that I can with them,” he said. “That’s why I thought I would apply for it because I had the skills being on university boards, national boards and all of these things. I thought I could at least in the latter years of my life, before I get too old, I would give it a shot.”

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Adam, who officially became CEO on March 15, is also fluent in Dene and skilled in community capacity building. He’s also travelled and worked in many parts of the world and hopes to bring some of the ideas he’s learned back to Saskatchewan’s Far North.

Adam received a COVID-19 vaccination on March 15. (Athabasca Health Authority/Facebook)

Adam, who formerly served as chief of Fond du Lac Denesuline First Nation, received his COVID-19 vaccination on his first day on the job. He’s encouraging others to get vaccinated as well to protect other residents in the region.

“Stony Rapids is doing really good for that,” Adam said. “It’s just our reserve communities who really need to look at it and encourage their people, especially the community members, to just go out and get it done.”

The five communities AHA serves are Black Lake Denesuline First Nation, Camsell Portage, Fond Du Lac Denesuline First Nation, Stony Rapids and Uranium City.

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derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno