Métis mountaineer from Alberta appointed to Order of Canada
CBC
Barry Blanchard, an alpinist and mountain guide who lives in Canmore, Alta., was among 88 people appointed to the Order of Canada, one of the country's highest honours, late last year.
A release from the Governor General's office said Blanchard "has initiated numerous complex and demanding ascents in the Rockies, the Alps and the Himalayas, some of which have not been repeated. For more than 40 years, he has been a guide, resource and mentor to countless mountain enthusiasts."
At the age of 65 he now runs a bed and breakfast with his partner and does mountain tours with those alpine enthusiasts.
In October, Blanchard got an email from the Governor General's office, asking to organize a call with him.
"So I took a look at it for a little bit and thought, 'Is this a scam?'" laughed Blanchard.
But Blanchard ended up on a call and found out he was being appointed to the Order of Canada "just right out of the blue," he said.
"Just something that I never, ever expected."
Blanchard said his friends used to joke with him that he should receive the Order of Canada.
"I said, 'Yeah, when they go down the list, if they ever get to mountain climbers,'" said Blanchard.
"So this got my heart pounding, took my breath away and made me cry."
His Métis family is from the Qu'Appelle Valley in Saskatchewan, and one of his ancestors was Cuthbert Grant, a Métis leader in the late 1800s. He said his Métis heritage may be where he got his "adventure gene."
Blanchard said he was 17 when he got interested in mountain climbing.
"I often joke that if I hadn't found climbing writing in my junior high school library and high school library, I might be illiterate," said Blanchard.
"I definitely went through all of the climbing information that I could get."
