DORLAND

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DORLAND McKAY January 23, 1961 - January 9, 2004 After a lengthy battle with HIV / AIDS, Dorland McKay died peacefully at the Health Sciences Centre in the early hours of January 9, 2004. Dorland is predeceased by his mother Nora McKay and by his son Ian Brown and is remembered fondly by friends, colleagues and family including his wife Marina; his father Solomon; brothers, Dean, Gerald, Graham, Pierre, Solomon Jr., and Wesley and sisters, Brenda, Joanne, Joanne Ledoux, Joyce, Marcia, Ruthe Smallwood and Sandy; as well as his many nieces, nephews and great nieces. The family would like to thank the staff at the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg for their care of Dorland during his time in Hospital. The family would also like to thank Alley for her unswerving dedication to Dorlands home-based care and to Bruce for being a great support to Dorland. After learning he was HIV positive, Dorland dedicated his life to helping others living with HIV/AIDS and to raising awareness about the AIDS epidemic. Dorland spent countless hours in school gymnasiums, community halls, and health centres reaching out to people to help them understand the hardships faced by people living with HIV/AIDS and to implore them to learn about this disease so that they could protect themselves from infection. Dorland found particular joy in speaking with Aboriginal young people about AIDS and was considered one of the leading Aboriginal voices for HIV prevention in Canada. Dorland was a dedicated community volunteer and served on the boards of the Manitoba Aboriginal AIDS Task Force and Nine Circles Community Health Centre. He was also involved on the national level serving on boards and committees for the Canadian AIDS Society, the Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network and the Canadian AIDS Information and Treatment Exchange. Dorland was also a committed gay rights activist and an active member of the Snowy Owl Monarchist Society. It is with sadness that we say goodbye to this gentle soul with an open heart that loved his family and friends unconditionally. A memorial service will be held at Thomson Funeral Chapel, 669 Broadway, at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 10. Dorland will be buried in his home community of Rolling River Reserve on Monday, January 12 immediately following a gathering at the home of Solomon McKay - House #37, Rolling River Reserve at 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers the family asks that donations be made to Nine Circles Community Health Centre, 705 Broadway Ave., Winnipeg MB, R3G 0X2.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Jan 10, 2004