The Force in the North

Staff Sergeant Art Deer

Much of Art’s career with the RCMP was a “yo-yo” ride that rolled him in and out of Whitehorse, a place he inevitably recognized as home and devoted his life to after retirement.

Art was sworn in as a Mountie on July 26, 1948, in Ottawa, at the age of 20. His first postings in Winnipeg, Brandon and Virden, Manitoba, were brief. He landed for the first time in Whitehorse, Yukon, in June, 1949, after which he lived in three more Yukon towns, including Haines Junction, Watson Lake and Burwash Landing, as well as Frobisher Bay, (now Iqaluit, Nunavut), Baker Lake and Inuvik in the Northwest Territories. 

In 1956, Art married his childhood sweetheart, Faye, and together they made an adventure of his northern postings. The couple is together still and has two sons and two daughters who also continue to make Whitehorse their home.

Art was posted to Whitehorse for the second time in 1964 and for a third time in 1969. He retired in 1973 and decided to stay. He and Faye built a house on the picturesque Marsh Lake outside the city but also maintain a residence in town.

Immediately upon retiring from the force, Art worked for eight years as the head of security and safety for the Yukon territorial government. Additionally, between 1973 and 1991, Art served for a total of 14 years as a city counselor.

Art is a member of the Yukon Transportation Association, which he joined in 1970. He serves on the Yukon Housing board of directors and is active with the Masonic Lodge and the RCMP Yukon Veteran’s Association, of which he is a past president.