2017
The late Dr. Herbert Belcourt
Respected Métis entrepreneur Herb Belcourt was the founder of several businesses including Belcourt Construction started in 1965, the third largest power-line company in Alberta that employed 265 in the field. He was the author of Walking In The Woods: A Métis Journey Published October 2006 by Brindle & Glass which topped the best seller list and was nominated for the Wilfred Eggleston Award for Non-Fiction 2007 Alberta Literary Competition.
In 1971 Herb co-founded non-profit Canative Housing Corporation that rented to Métis people in Edmonton and Calgary, started an Urban skills program in Edmonton for tenants, developed a Day Care Centre for their children– working in cooperation with preventive social services– and bought a bus for transporting women and children to these programs. Herb actively worked as operations manager from 1991 to 2004. In 2006 he received the National Aboriginal Achievements Award for Housing.
In 2001 Herb with two fellow co-founders formed Belcourt Brosseau Métis Awards a $13- million endowment with a mandate to support Métis students pursuing further education. To date $17-million is in the endowment, and over 15 years $6- million has been given away to over 1,000 students in over 200 programs in every institution in Alberta.
Herb’s accolades include an Honourary Doctorate of Laws (University of Alberta, 2001), The Order of Athabasca University (2006), Investiture as a Member of the Order of Canada (2010) and an Honorary Diploma from NorQuest College (2014).
