Former Cochin resident leaves estate to charity, honoured by Luseland museum

LUSELAND — Approximately 200 people turned up at the Luseland Museum July 1 for the grand opening of the Vic Pearsall Wing, Home of the Whooping Crane Center, with 100 or more crowding into the new addition to hear guest speakers lawyer Harvey Walker of Battleford, naturalist and writer Trevor Herriot of Regina, Canadian wildlife biologist Brian Johns and entrepreneur Jimmy Pattison of Vancouver, B.C.

Vic Pearsall divided his estate amongst the Battlefords Union Hospital Foundation – 60 per cent; Kinsmen Telemiracle – 14 per cent; the Rotary Club of the Battlefords – 13 per cent; and the Luseland and District Museum – 13 per cent.

Two initial payments from the estate to the museum totalled $94,714.28, which funded the addition of the Vic Pearsall Wing. During the opening ceremonies of the Vic Pearsall Center, Walker presented Val Finley, board and founding member of the Luseland and District Museum, with a third installment of $45,500.

Vic Pearsall was born in Luseland March 31, 1915 and died at Edam Sept. 25, 2011 at the age of 96. Walker was both a friend of Pearsall’s and his lawyer. Walker said, “Vic’s warm memories of Luseland continued to his death. When he was preparing his will, he made it clear he wished to benefit Luseland and that the best vehicle for doing so was the museum.”

Pattison, who is the owner and CEO of multiple businesses world-wide, including JayDee AgTech in Saskatchewan, announced that he was also making a $100,000 donation to the museum. Pattison was born in Luseland as well and both he and his father were friends with Pearsall.

Pearsall was an avid aviator and is a member of the Saskatchewan Aviation Hall of Fame. He also received a lifetime achievement award from the Canadian Owners’ and Pilots’ Association for his contributions to aviation in Canada.

Walker said that when Pearsall first received his pilot’s licence, he was the youngest person in Canada to do so. He took his flying instruction in Saskatoon at the age of 15 and passed all of his tests while still 15. The government would not issue his pilot’s licence, however, until after his 16th birthday.

Walker added, it was only not long before his death that “Vic acknowledged he misled the government when he applied for a student pilot’s licence,” saying he was 16 when he was only 15.

In November, 2007, Pearsall decided not to renew his licence, although, according to Walker, “his MD said he would pass the medical.” He was 92 years old, the oldest pilot in Canada. Pattison added to the story, saying that Pearsall had mentioned to him on the telephone that it was no use renewing it as no one would fly with him anymore.

Pearsall held a private pilot’s licence for 76 years. No one in Canada has held one longer. Unfortunately, Walker said, they were unable to get Pearsall’s name in the Guinness Book of World Records due to a couple of days’ tardiness in renewing the licence in occasional years.

Pearsall began flying commercially into the north shortly after the Second World War. He was one of the first people to establish a fly-in fishing camp. His was located on Cree Lake. Many of his American customers came back year after year. He lost his Cree Lake fishing camp to a forest fire in 1980.

At one time, Pearsall and his wife, Lydia, ran the bar at Cochin, along with Lydia’s Café.

Other awards received by Pearsall during his lifetime included the Saskatchewan Order of Merit, the Queen’s Centennial Medal, being inducted into the Battlefords’ Wall of Fame and being named Pioneer of the Year by both the Western Canada Aviation Museum in Winnipeg and the Luseland Museum board of directors.

Luseland resident and a friend of the Pearsalls, Shirley Honeker said Pearsall donated many artifacts to the museum during his lifetime. “At least once a week, I would get a call to come to Cochin to Vic’s home to get something for the museum.”

On one of those visits, Pearsall told her privately he was “leaving some money to the Luseland Museum to build on.”

“Vic,” she said, “you have left us a legacy and the Victor Pearsall Wing will always be a great memory of you. Thank you.”

The wing houses a new nature preserve at one end, including a rare whooping crane specimen. The only other museum in Saskatchewan to have a whooping crane among its exhibits is the Royal Saskatchewan Museum in Regina. An early bush plane and other artifacts, including Pearsall’s many awards, are also displayed in the wing.