Eva Henderson Memorial Fund established in Yellowknife

The Yellowknife Community Foundation has announced a memorial fund in honour of the late Eva Henderson to help healthcare professionals further their studies.

When she passed away in January, Eva left behind a legacy of deep care and compassion for her community, the foundation said in a press release announcing the fund this week. 

That legacy will be honoured with a memorial fund that provides assistance to healthcare workers continuing their learning, including in palliative care.

“Eva had an innate ability to discern what was under the spoken words, which gave insight beyond the nursing skills taught in a school,” her daughter, Audrey Henderson, said in the press release.

“People were her passion and she served them well.”

Donations to the fund can be made via the Canada Helps website under the Yellowknife Community Foundation’s name.

Born in 1925, Eva became a nurse and cared for patients in Alberta and Manitoba before moving to the NWT. In the territory, she worked in Fort Smith and Yellowknife, where she was a founding member of the NWT Nursing Association.

She ran a bed-and-breakfast from 1985 to 2014, where she often hosted nurses who came to work in the North.

“It’s an honour for YKCF to establish the Eva Henderson Memorial Fund to inspire and support healthcare professionals to build on Eva’s legacy,” said Laurie Gault, the foundation’s chair, in a statement.