Lögberg-Heimskringla - 05.02.1982, Blaðsíða 5

WINNIPEG, FÖSTUDAGUR 5. FEBRÚAR 1982-5
Hjalmar Valdimar Larusson
by Doris Baker
By the time this memorial is
published, approximately two years
will have passed since the death on
January 18, 1980, of Hjalmar
Valdimar Larusson. It is an honour
and a heartwarming experience for
the writer, who knew him as a
fellow student, as a professional col-
league, and as a personal friend, to
recall for readers of The Icelandic
Canadian the life among us of this
fine Canadian of Icelandic descent.
When recalling the life of Hjalmar
Larusson (known as "Valdi" by his
family and Icelandic friends) it
seems particularly fitting to be, as
the writer is, looking out over Lake
Winnipeg which was, throughout
his life, a source of renewal to
which he returned year after year.
Here it is easy to see again in the
mind's eye. Valdi Larusson walking
along the breakwater — or when
water levels permitted — along the
sand in front of his summer home —
feeding the gulls whose antics never
ceased to fascinate him. Even death
did not separate him entirely from
his beloved lake, for as he wished,
his ashes were buried in the family
plot in Gimli cemetery.
Born in Gimli on November 21,
1912, Valdi Larusson was always
keenly aware of his heritage, and
his links with Iceland were both
numerous and strong. In the early
1890's, his parents, Palmi Larusson
of Hunavatnssysla, grandson of the
great national poet Hjalmar Jonsson
(Bolu-Hjalmar), and Gudrun
Steinsdottir of Skagafjordur, had
decided to join those seeking a bet-
ter life in New Iceland. Like other
piorieers, they were forced not only
to say farewell to family and friends
but to leave behind many of their
possessions. Thus they had packed
what they could take of their
belongings, including the spinning
wheel that had been Palmi’s first
gift to Gudrun, in the old wooden
chest that travelled with them to
their new life. This chest, with its
traces of blue paint, and the spin-
ning wheel were treasured by Valdi
and kept in his cottage home at
Gimli. At the tinre of their coming to
Canada, Palmi and Gudrun had two
children — Sigridur and Osk. Seven
more children — Palmi, Sigursteinn,
Benedikt, Anna, Jonina, Brynjolfur
and Hjalmar (Valdi) — were born to
them in Canada. All eight brothers
and sisters predeceased Valdi but
their children and grandchildren
were a continuing source of joy and
interest throughout his life, possibly
the more so because he himself
never married.
After completing his elementary
and secondary schooling at Gimli,
he obtained his teacher's certificate
by attending the Winnipeg Norrnal
School. Thus began what was to be a
very satisfying and highly suc-
cessful career. He had wisely
chosen a life’s work that enabled
him to give expression both to his
love of learning and his empathetic
interest in people. His early
téaching years, which were spent in
the north, were the basis of many
vividly told stories that revealed his
affectionate understanding of his
pupils, his appreciation of the
relative freedom of life in the north
and his awareness of the beauty of
the unspoiled countryside that was
always nearby. He left the mining
town of Sheridan (later to be moved
across Lake Winnipeg to become
the town of Lynn Lake) only when
he felt it was time for him to begin
his university studies.
Returning to Winnipeg, he joined
the 'Class of '41' at Wesley College
(soon to become 'United College'),
affiliated with the University of
Manitoba. Although older than the
majority, he soon became a much
appreciated member of his class.
"H.V.", as he quickly came to be af-
fectionately called by his fellow
students, gained recognition as a
keen and able student of English
language and Iiterature, particularly
of the middle English of Chaucer.
Nor did he neglect other aspects of
college life. His keen participation
in college dramatics was a forecast
of his later interest in community
amateur drama groups such as the
Little Theatre.
Like many other men in his
graduating class, Valdi volunteered
for war-time army service and as a
student took some training towards
a commission in the artillery. After
obtaining his B.A. he was posted as
an artillery officer to New-
foundland, and attained the rank of
captain. For the rest of his life, New-
foundland and its people held a
special place in his affections. The
stories he told so vividly of his New-
foundland experiences revealed the
extent to which he had been able to
communicate with the people of the
then island colony. Following the
end of the war, 'Larry', as he was
called by his army friends, returned
to Manitoba and his teaching career,
joining the Winnipeg school staff.
He did, however, retain a commis-
sion in the arrny reserve and spent
several summers as adjutant at an
army camp at Dundurn, Saskatch-
ewan.
As a teacher he was noted for his
ability to work effectively with the
young adolescents of the junior high
school grades. His sincere interest in
the individual, his lively sense of
hurnour and his insistence upon
disciplined behavior earned him the
reputation of being a very effective
teacher of his age group and he was
often called upon to work with
classes considered particularly dif-
ficult to manage. His skill in work-
ing with adolescent boys certainly
stood him in good stead when, as an
exchange teacher in England, he
found himself posted to a "second-
ary modern" school in the
Hjalmar Valdimar Larusson
notorious east end of London!
In January, 1955, he accepted an
invitation to join the staff of the
Manitoba Teachers College as a
teacher of English. Here 'Walt’ as he
was known to fellow teachers, soon
carved a place for himself as a par-
ticularly effective instructor. In
1965, when the Teachers College
was incorporated into the Faculty of
Education at the University of
Manitoba, he continued his work in
teacher education, holding the rank
of assistant professor.
Always central in his life was his
interest in everything Icelandic, par-
ticularly Icelandic history and
lánguage. Further, he was complete-
ly bi-lingual. In a memorial article
published in the January 31, 1980
issue of Morgunblaðið, and reprinted
in the Lögberg-Heimskringla of
March 14 of the same year, Pro-
fessor Sveinn Skorri Hoskuldsson
attested to the excellence of his
Icelandic, declaring that he spoke it
better than any other North
American Icelander he had ever met
— in fact — as if he had never left
the northern pass where his mother
had been raised!
Valdi's interest in things Icelandic
did not in any way limit his interest
in other cultures. As an exchange
teacher in England he found time to
explore sites associated with English
history and literature — explora-
tions which he continued on later
visits. He also explored nruch of
western Europe and travelled wide-
ly in every Canadian province, as
well as making several trips to
Iceland.
Wherever he travelled, Valdi was
always much more interested in
people than in places, a fact clearly
demonstrated in his travel
photography. His souvenir
photographs almost invariably in-
cluded people as they carried out
their ordinary activities. Thus he
photographed people waiting for
buses, walking along esplanades,
and working in their gardens. He
photographed bus drivers, shop-
pers, barmaids, and children at
play.
His interest in language was,
essentially, an interest in in-
dividuals and what they were trying
to communicate. His fine collection
of pictures, reflective of many styles
and mediums, showed his apprecia-
tion of the graphic arts as avenues of
communication. His personal
library, in which Icelandic and
English books were almost equally
represented, reflected his wide
ranging interests. He saw nothing
incongruous in having a book of A1
Capp or Giles' cartoons next to his
novels of Jane Austen: all were valid
communications!
His knowledge and appreciation
of Icelandic language and history
led to his becoming a part-time lec-
turer in the Department of Icelandic
Language and Literature at the
University of Manitoba. His work in
this department and his association
with its head, Professor Haraldur
Bessason, greatly enriched his life
and gave hinr a sense of purpose
that might otherwise have been
lacking, especially when ill health
began to exact its toll. In the
February 8, 1980 issue of the
Lögberg-Heimskringla, Professor
Bessason paid tribute to Valdi’s con-
tribution to Icelandic studies in
Manitoba.
It was Valdi's misfortune to be the
victim of a cardiac condition which,
from its first appearance in the lat-
ter months of 1954, just at the begin-
ning of his career in teacher educa-
tion, until its sudden final victory,
exacted stringent conditions in ex-
change for his life. On many occa-
sions over the years, an attack
would mean another anrbulance trip
and another stay in hospital. He
faced these crises and their inherent
threats of death with an equanimity
bordering on the stoic. Few could
have equalled his self-control or
could have accepted the realities of
such a condition without being
defeated by them.
So it is that we can lookback from
this point in time, almost two years
after his death, and give thanks that
Valdi - H.V. - Larry - Walt -
Larusson lived among us, enriching
our lives and strengthening the
fabric of our society. Truly, it can be
said of him as it was of Chaucer's
clerke — "Gladly wolde he lerne
and gladly teche."
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