GRAVELBOURG, Sask. — Saskatchewan celebrated those who have contributed so much to the province by awarding Protective Services Medals at Government House. Tracey Lagasse was among those who received the prestigious award for 25 years of service.
The Assiniboia Times and SaskToday carried a 2025 story on a previous award the Gravelbourg woman received, here.
Tracey Lagasse has been a searcher, team leader and executive member of Wood River Search and Rescue since its inception in April 2000. She has also served as a member of the SARSAV board continuously since 2013, including a term as secretary from September 2014 through March 2020. Since then, she has remained on the board, now serving as Saskatchewan’s AdventureSmart co-ordinator.
Outside of SAR and her regular job as a high school teacher, Tracey has also worked as a casual emergency medical responder for 30 years.
In a celebratory Facebook post on the Wood River Search and Rescue page, it states, “In a three-year provincial SAR role from 2021 through 2024, Tracey managed a SARNIF (New Initiatives Fund) project meant to enhance capacity in rural, remote, northern and Indigenous communities throughout Saskatchewan.
"As part of this NIF, she facilitated the publication of North America’s first Hug-a-Tree and Survive colouring books and videos in five Indigenous languages, an initiative designed both to support language revitalization and to get the lifesaving messages of Hug-a-Tree into more communities.
"This has brought Tracey endless fulfillment; one of her most memorable moments was hearing a Dené searcher in La Loche tell her, ‘When I was taken [to Residential School], I was beaten for speaking my language. Now it is being given back to me. I am so grateful.’
"This program has been so effective that resources in other Indigenous and newcomer languages are being developed throughout Canada.”
Lagasse is an active instructor for both the searcher and team leader courses throughout the province. She helped develop the province’s first hybrid searcher course, combining virtual modules with an in-person field training day. Her efforts also resulted in a shift in mindset — one that is more inclusive of Indigenous ways of knowing.
The Gravelbourg woman also spearheaded the development of an Indigenous engagement guide to assist chapters throughout the province that find themselves searching on sovereign nation lands; the impetus for this guide came from her experiences working with elders of the Red Earth Cree Nation during the Frank Young search.
“Tracey is no stranger to the risks associated with emergency response. Many of the searches she has participated in have occurred during the worst possible weather — either scorching heat or paralyzing cold.
"She recalls one February callout that occurred with temperatures nearing -35 C, which meant that not only were the lost subjects’ lives at risk, but also her own and those of her teammates. She stresses to all on a search the importance of one’s own wellness, reminding all that ‘we can’t help the potential survivor if we become sick or injured.’
"This extends into her team’s mental wellness as well; during the COVID-19 pandemic, her team started SAR Sunday, a way to virtually touch base each week to maintain connection. This continues today, with members sharing both happy milestones and challenges with one another almost daily,” acknowledges the Wood River SAR social media post.
Lagasse has also been instrumental in seeing SAR members receive official recognition from the province through their inclusion in the Saskatchewan Protective Services Act. This, too, helps bolster members’ sense of worth, which she says is key to recruitment and retention of volunteers.
Tracey credits her family’s patience and her teammates’ dedication for continuing to sustain her efforts throughout these 25 years of service.
