Hay River mourns beloved local figure Walter Selamio

Community Remembers Walter Selamio After His Death

For years, Walter Selamio was often seen on a corner of Hay River, N.W.T., next to the RBC Royal Bank. He waved at cars and chatted with passersby. This spot now feels emptier.

“He was always there,” said Nancy Alder, Selamio’s friend and manager of the shelter where he lived. “He would wave at everybody. You would see people coming by and beeping and waving. Everybody knew Walter very well.”

He kept up with local events so well that people called him ‘the mayor’.

The town’s actual mayor, Kandis Jameson, did not mind this title.

“Oh yeah, I was teasing him, if you want the job it’s yours! We used to tease back and forth,” she said.

The RCMP found Selamio’s body in an abandoned house in Hay River on December 27. They are still investigating his death with the coroner service.

“I was just devastated,” Jameson said about learning of Selamio’s death. “It’s like, how did this happen? He had options. Was he impaired and decided that maybe this would be a good place to sleep?”

Selamio was born in Aklavik in 1966. He had a family and worked in construction in Tuktoyaktuk.

Alder recalls a story Selamio shared about a family vacation to Hawaii.

“He got there and it was way too hot. So he flew himself back after two days. His family stayed, and he said I’ll never go to a hot place again.”

After moving to Hay River, Selamio struggled with addictions and housing. He did odd jobs for people like Elaine Laroque’s family. He spent so much time with her parents that he started visiting just for coffee, calling them “granny” and “pops.”

Elaine Laroque said Selamio wanted to give her a Christmas gift last year that he received from the Friendship Centre.

“I said, ‘I can’t take your gift, Walter, that’s for you.’ He said, ‘I want you to keep it because it reminds me of granny.’ So he gave it to me. It was an angel, a tree-topper,” she said, tearing up.

Laroque mentioned that Walter sometimes slept at the CIBC ATM. In early December, the bank started locking the doors overnight. She believes more support is needed for people in Hay River struggling with addictions and housing.

“Hopefully they can start a program where people have something to do. Even if it’s school or learning about addictions. Something like that would have helped. I know it would have helped Walter.”

Kandis Jameson noted that the town already has a 15-bed homeless shelter open around the clock. She believes transitional housing is needed for people in recovery from addictions.

“You know, wraparound services, to make sure that they’re successful,” she said.

But for the mayor, the discussion ultimately returns to the person the town has lost.

“I know Walter will be deeply missed by this community.”