Remembering the Very Rev. Roger Briggs (1936-2024)

The Very Rev. Roger Briggs, 87, a former Dean of the Diocese of the Arctic who helped establish and nurture the Inuit congregation at St. Margaret’s Vanier, passed away on June 27, 2024, in Comox, B.C.

Born in Horsforth, West Yorkshire, England, in 1936, Briggs attended and  graduated from the London College of Divinity. He felt a calling to the ministry in the Canadian Arctic where he and his wife Carole emigrated to live, raise their children and serve amongst the Inuit of Whapmagoostui, Que. (formerly Great Whale River), Churchill, Man., and Puvimituq, Que. (formerly Povungnituk), from 1961 to 1973. From 1974 to 1978, he served as Rector at Holy Trinity in Yellowknife, NWT.

Along the way, Briggs learned to speak Inuktitut and his family writes that “the connection he felt with the Inuit became a vibrant thread of continuity throughout his life.”

In Ottawa, while serving as a rector at All Saints Sandy Hill (Ottawa), he and a team of volunteers established a day hospice which later became the Hospice at Maycourt.

Briggs returned to the North in 1995 to serve as Dean of the Diocese of the Arctic and Rector of St. Jude’s Cathedral Iqaluit before retiring in 2000.

In 2002, he was awarded Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee Medal, given to Canadians who made outstanding and exemplary contributions to their communities or to Canada as a whole.

Bishop Peter Coffin said Briggs played a significant role working with himself and the Rt. Rev. Andrew Atagotaaluk, Bishop of the Diocese of the Arctic, to establish the Inuit congregation at St. Margaret’s Vanier. It is the only Inuit Anglican congregation outside of the North. Bishop Coffin said that Briggs was always there for us “when we needed help and encouragement to go along with the project. We couldn’t have really done it without Roger,” whose knowledge and experience of the Arctic, Inuit culture and Inuktitut were vital. He fondly remembered Briggs’ forthright opinions and generosity of spirit.

The Rev. Canon Aigah Attagutsiak said Briggs was the first to ask her if she was interested in the ministry when she was a reader at St. Margaret’s and encouraged her in her journey to becoming an ordained priest.

“When All Saints Sandy Hill merged with St. Margaret’s Vanier in 2014, the new arrivals were happy to find our former Incumbent Roger Briggs a key part of the community, mentoring the Rev. Aigah Attagutsiak and building the Inuit congregation,” said St. Margaret’s Warden Jane Waterston.

“When COVID sent us all to our corners, he set himself the task of writing and sharing a regular, weekly, 1500-word (!) biblical commentary called “Hidden treasure.” He wrote more than 20 of them—challenging and comforting us with their depth and regularity. We came to know Roger’s thoughts and opinions much better. He himself was a hidden treasure.”

Briggs was predeceased by his wife Carole and is lovingly remembered by children, Rosemary (Jane), Mark (Mary) and Sara (Andre); grandsons, Luke, Mark and Matthew; sisters, Sue (Lynn) and Jayne; brother-in-law, Roger; and all their children and grandchildren.

His funeral will be held at St. Stephen’s Anglican Church in Ottawa on Sept. 14. The family welcomes donations to St. Margaret’s Vanier in Roger’s memory by e-transfer to [email protected]

(With files from the Briggs family)