Bruce Hawkenson was inducted into the Prince George Sports Hall of Fame in 2001. Over the years he won medals at almost every level of canoe racing including a gold medal at the first ever Senior World Championship in 1985.
Bruce was born in Regina, Sask. in 1941. The family moved many times over the years and when Bruce was nine years old his mother worked as a substitute teacher in Prince George. He eventually returned to Caronport, Sask. where he graduated from Briercrest high school.
He went to college in Vancouver where he met his future wife Jeanette Kline.
Jeanette was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1941. Her father a Baptist minister in Everett, Washington agreed to send her to a Bible school in Vancouver. Jeanette said, "I met this handsome Canadian in 1959. We were like minded, we fell in love and we got married in 1962. I was happy to become a Canadian."
They moved to St. Paul, Minnesota where Bruce earned his Bachelor of Theology Degree in 1961 and his Bachelor of Arts Degree from the Bethel College and Seminary of Minnesota in 1965.
Over the years he returned to Prince George and worked for the Fichtner Lumber company to help pay for his education.
It was through this work relationship that Bruce got a temporary interim pastor's position at the Fort George Baptist Church. Bruce said, "I enjoyed serving as the minister but eventually I came to realize that it wasn't a good fit for me. I wanted to emphasize principles over religion. I successfully applied for a job with the attorney general's department as a probation officer. I took the four-month training program and for the next three years I worked as a probation officer.
"I met a lot of basically good kids that were in trouble because of a lack of a support foundation. Jeanette and I first took them in as foster children hoping to stabilize their lives.
"By this time, I was in my late 20s and I envisioned a program based on therapeutic principles. We then decided to set up a training program at Trapping Lake similar to an outward-bound program that I was familiar with. I felt the need to work with these unique juveniles by keeping them busy doing something constructive. I started out with eight teenagers who had been in trouble with the law. In order to attend they had to choose to change the direction of their personal lives and Camp Trapping was going to help them do this. They would live in a tent, attend inspirational sessions and enter a rigorous physical training program which included learning to master a canoe on the lake.
"As the program developed my boys proudly became the Canadian Junior Canoe Racing Champions back in the early 70s. Through this and many other successful achievements during their stay in the program, they learned that they were somebody.
"The program was a success and soon I had from 8-10 boys in the program. I believed in the program, Jeanette supported the program all the way from being camp cook (on a wood stove) to being the bookkeeper.
"We needed seed money so we agreed that I would cash in my superannuation of $1,000 and use $500 to buy an old truck and the 12X20 foot cabin on the property at Trapping Lake.
"The attendees had to rough it and they had to work. We had little funding and government assistance was minimal; regardless the program was working. We taught them how to work and when goals were met more goals were set and they succeeded again and again.
"The Forest service gave us tree planting contracts to facilitate our work program. We measured their growth as they improved their bodies and minds and they became proud individuals.
"Based upon my former planting experience I partnered up with two others to form a reforestation company, Tawa Enterprises. The Company grew to the point where we had up to 500 employees during a season. Most were university and very hard-working people.
"A legal society was formed under the name of Cariboo Action Society (CATS) and Camp Trapping officially came into being. It was not long before we had as many as 20 boys in the camp at any one time. Sadly, some of the boys had nothing to go home to so some stayed on as junior counselors' in order to hang on to their new life at the camp.
"Human resources now funded the program, Prince George businesses committed to help out and the community was in favor of it.
"Students throughout British Columbia attend Camp Trapping as a means of fulfilling their court obligations while simultaneously developing the skills necessary to create a positive life when they return to their community or re-enter the public-school system upon their graduation from Camp Trapping.
"After many years I found that I was worn out from the long hours. The camp was well established and I knew it was time to move on.
"We formed Folklore Contracting Ltd. and during that time I invented and patented the Hawk Power Scalper which is a hand-held machine powered by a chain saw motor. To this day it is used for cross country trail making, fire suppression and site preparation for planting trees.
"In 1994 our son took over ownership of the company and I retired at the age of 55. Now I could go back to my love for canoeing, I could build a home on the Fraser River, travel and enjoy my master's basketball team the Silver Bullets."
Bruce and Jeanette have two sons; Kurt and Lonnie (Caroline) who in turn gave them five grandchildren.
Jeannette's joy is her music. She volunteered as a ten-year director for the Sweet Adeline's. The group grew to a membership of 42 and did consistently well in many competitions and local productions. Her new music love is strumming and singing along with the ukulele group at the Elder Citizens' Recreation Centre.
