Pipe Major Brad Heath presented Lori Clark with the Pipe Major Floyd Adlem Award at the NWT Pipe Band's annual Robert Burns Dinner & Dance on Saturday, January 25, 2020. Photo by Matthew Yap
The Pipe Major Floyd Adlem Award recognizes outstanding service to the Northwest Territorial Pipe Band.
The NWT Pipe Band created the award to commemorate Floyd Adlem’s 30th year as a member of the NWTPB. The trophy was presented to Floyd at the NWTPB’s Robert Burns Dinner and Dance in January 2006.
During his more than four decades with our band, Floyd has been both a drummer and a piper, served as Pipe Major for 10+years, organized our annual Robert Burns Dinner and Dance, taught numerous would-be pipers and, of course, performed on hundreds (if not thousands) of occasions with the NWT Pipe Band.
Recipients of the Pipe Major Floyd Adlem Award to date are:
Lori Clark, 2020: Information to come!
Lorie Crawford, 2012: Lorie Crawford joined the NWTPB in the spring of 1988. Lorie played in Grade 1 bands in Ontario while still in school, including the Erskine Pipe Band and the Toronto and District Pipe Band. (For those who are unfamiliar with pipe band ratings, Grade 1 is highest level.) After several years in Grade 1, she was moved to the Open or professional level. She won the North American Championship at Maxville twice – and many, many other trophies over her years as a competitive piper. During her more than 25 years (and counting) with the NWT Pipe Band, Lorie has served as Pipe Major and Pipe Sergeant and has taught many of the pipers in our band, both past and present. She has also provided our band with the strength of a professional piper – and has gotten us out of more than one sticky situation during the literally hundreds of public performances she’s made with the NWTPB.
Don Finnamore, 2011: Don learned to play pipes with the Canadian Forces Europe Pipes and Drums in Germany and was the last band officer for them before they closed down and Canadian Forces Europe was shut down. Don moved from Germany to Yellowknife where he joined the NWTPB in 1993. He served on our band’s Executive as Quartermaster for at least five seasons. Don developed a taste for the Great Highland Bagpipes at a young age because a neighbour played the pipes for the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada. Don has marched many, many miles in the military but he prefers marching to a pipe band. “They march a bit slower, but with more style. The kilts are swaying, the drone cords and pipe banners flap in the wind and the music is more stirring.”
Jeff Phillips, 2010: Jeff first joined the NWTPB in 1995 and drummed with the band until he was posted “south” with the Canadian Armed Forces in 1999. Jeff and his wife Boerny (also a drummer with the NWTPB), returned North to Yellowknife and the NWTPB in 2002. Jeff has served as the band’s Drum Major/Lead Drummer from 2005 to 2016-2017 season.
Jennifer Wahlroth, 2008: Jennifer started piping lessons with the NWT Pipe Band in 1992 and began performing with the NWTPB in 1994. A certified accountant by profession, Jennifer served as the NWTPB’s secretary/treasurer from 1998 to 2015-2016 season.
Brad Heath, 2007: Brad started piping lessons with the NWT Pipe Band in 1993 and began performing with the NWTPB in 1996. He served on the band’s executive as Public Relations Officer for seven years before being elected Pipe Major/NWTPB President in September 2006 when Floyd announced he was stepping down as Pipe Major but would continue to pipe with the band.