Wall of Honouree Ione Langlois (BEd'82)
Ione Langlois was recognized by the College of Education for her service to the community and her lifetime achievements in education
The College of Education is pleased to recognize Ione Langlois (BEd'82) as a 2023 Wall of Honour Alumni Award recipient. Ione was recognized at the Pinning Ceremony and Wall of Honour Celebration on April 3, 2023.
Ione Langlois was born in Midale, Saskatchewan where her family farmed. She was active in sports and drama in school, and choir and piano at church. Following graduation, Ione attended Teachers College in Regina before beginning her studies in the College of Home Economics and the College of Education at the University of Saskatchewan. Following her marriage to Herve Langlois, Ione taught home economics in Clavet, Pangman, Avonlea, and Ogema before leaving the profession for 17 years to raise their four children.
Ione continued her education via night classes, eventually earning her Bachelor of Education degree in 1982. She continued to take library science classes and returned to the classroom as a teacher librarian in Clavet, Thorton, and Saskatoon. For four years she was co-editor of The Medium, the Saskatchewan School Library Association publication, as well as Library Consultant for the Saskatoon Public School Division.
A significant benchmark for Ione was joining the Waskesiu Heritage Group in 1993 and ultimately becoming the founding director for the Waskesiu Heritage Museum in 2005. For over 20 years, Ione was inspired to collect and write several publications on local history. She helped the heritage group collect three volumes of contributors’ memories of the area, assisted in the publication of two brochure guides introducing tourists to the area: Driving to the Narrows and A Walking Tour of Waskesiu. Through research in the local Parks Canada archives, she collected information on the local park wardens, compiled two volumes of photographs and data on community businesses over the last 90 years, and wrote a memoir of her tenure as curator of the museum. She also initiated the video recording of several oral history interviews with seniors in the community to capture their memories about the park.
As curator, she researched and established standard procedures and policies for collection development, and catalogued over 2,000 donated artifacts of diverse types. Two years into her tenure as founding director and thanks to countless fundraising initiatives by a legion of volunteers, the museum leased one half of the Friends of the Park building to showcase several indoor and outdoor displays including an original shack tent and a fire tower from the last tower in Prince Albert National Park.
Ione received the John G. Wright Distinguished Service Award from the Saskatchewan School Library Association. In 2011, Parks Canada recognized her commitment to the Waskesiu community by awarding her one of the 100 volunteer awards given nationwide for the organization’s centennial. She retired as curator in 2014 and retired from the board in 2015.
In her chosen summer community of Waskesiu, Ione employed the education, skills, and talents she acquired over her 33-year career as an educator and teacher librarian to advance and preserve Waskesiu’s community spirit, vibrant culture, and unique history.
Ione was thrilled to receive her award in front of over 750 students and their family and friends at the college's annual pinning ceremony. She had these words of advice for the group assembled:
"It took me 20 years to complete my Bachelor of Education degree and another 10 years to really find my passion as a teacher. If there was one thing I would advise you it is to find your passion and work hard. My passion is history and the end result is a world-class museum in Waskesiu. I may be biased, but I think we did well to start from a humble beginning."