Brian and Nancy Pope
Brian Pope came to the Yukon in 1959 with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). He was then posted across Canada and returned to Yukon in 1979. He retired from the force in 1982.1)
Brian was sheriff of the Yukon until 1990 when he and his wife, Nancy, moved to Tagish. In 1992, he became one of the first members of the Tagish Volunteer Fire Department and served as a firefighter, deputy chief, and fire chief. He resigned as chief in 2005 but remained a volunteer. Pope was also supervisor of the Tagish Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and a member of the chiefs' association.2)
Nancy Pope was born and raised in Dawson. She married Brian and travelled with him in his Canadian postings as an RCMP officer. She returned to the Yukon in 1979 with her husband and four children. Following “retirement” in 1990, she moved to Tagish. In 1992, she became one of the original members of the Tagish Volunteer Fire Department. She was also a medic with the Tagish EMS.3)
A special ceremony in Whitehorse in October 2005, recognized five Yukon firefighters, including both of the Popes, with the first annual Fire Service Long Service Award. Other recipients were Jack Holsworth, Yukon Fire Marshall for fifteen years, Bob Atkinson, Ibex Valley volunteer for fifteen years, and Dennis Levy, with the Marsh Lake Volunteer Fire Department for sixteen years.4)