Celebrating Sam Bosum’s life-long involvement in mining

Former Oujé-Bougoumou Chief Sam Bosum may have been honoured as the Aboriginal Developer Award of the year for his decades of work in the mining industry, but he has no intention to rest on his laurels.

For nearly 50 years, Bosum has worked with mining companies in the region providing line-cutting and geophysical services. His experience and expertise is highly regarded in the industry, which honoured his career during the Quebec Mining Exploration Convention in Quebec City in November.

And he’s not ready to retire. “I can say I have never really seen a Cree Elder retiring,” Bosum observed. “Cree Elders don’t really know what retirement is and for myself I’m looking ahead to try to keep the work going and continue training young people.”

Bosum’s first jobs were in exploration near Chibougamau. “I took mining exploration because I had dropped out of school very early and exploration work was available in the 1960s,” Bosum recalled. “My dad worked as a labourer and I worked alongside him. He was the one who taught me how to start line-cutting at an early age.”

Later, through his role as director of several mining exploration companies, Bosum was a major employer for the Cree of Oujé-Bougoumou, making him a prime candidate for the Aboriginal Developer Award. “I’ve attended many of these mining conferences, but I never thought that one day I would win the award until I received a letter informing me that there was an award for me at this year’s conference,” he acknowledged.

Although mining work played an important role in his life, Bosum’s main focus is his community of Oujé-Bougoumou, where he was elected Deputy Chief in 1986. In 2001 he won election as chief, a position he held for eight years. He is still a member of the band council. “For 37 years, I’ve worked in the community as Deputy Chief, Chief and councillor,” Bosum said, “When I was Chief though, I had someone who worked with me to help in the business because I didn’t have much time to handle all of that work.”

For Bosum the mining award serves as way to inspire the youth of his community. Although he has made a career in mining, Bosum encourages youth to continue their education and achieve the goals they set for themselves.

Bosum plans to continue his work training youth in mining exploration when they return for summer vacation. “There are a few youth who are interested in working in the bush,” Bosum said. “I am still hoping that the youth would finish their training or finish up school. The Cree Nation needs trained Cree geologists.”

As the industry evolves with new surveying technologies and responds to a changing regulatory environment, Bosum feels it is more important than ever that Cree youth participate in the region’s rapid economic growth. Ultimately, Crees will be able to fill a growing number of skilled and managerial roles, helping create a stronger and more self-sufficient Cree Nation.