Title and Physical Description
Glick, Ike and Millie fonds. – 1955-2020,. – 1.3 m of textual records. – 6 compact discs. – 2 audiocassettes,. – 1 photographic film strip
Administrative/Biographical History
Ike Glick was born 30 August 1928 at home near Smoketown, Pennsylvania, the son of Daniel and Lillian Glick. The family’s home church was a Beachy Amish Church near Bird-in-hand, where services were still in German. Ike attended the local school and the Lancaster Mennonite High School. Education beyond high school was not valued, even considered dangerous by the leadership, so Ike transferred to a Mennonite congregation when he decided to to to Eastern Mennonite College (Now Eastern Mennonite University) where he earned BA and Th.B degrees. In 1955, shortly after his marriage to Millie Ager, Ike and Millie came to northern Alberta as Voluntary Service workers. In Alberta they became members of the Alberta-Saskatchewan Mennonite Church. Ike subsequently earned MA and Ph. D. degrees at the University of Alberta. His MA thesis, “An Analysis of “The Human Resources Develoment” in Alberta” focused on a program that became popular in the final years of the Social Credit government in Alberta. His Ph. D. thesis in Education Psychology examined “Factors of Community Well-Being as identified by Residents of a Resource Town.”
Millie Glick was born 11 October 1930 at home near Broadway, Virginia, the daughter of John and Anna Alger. She grew up and became a member of the Zion Congregation near Broadway, Virginia. attended Eastern Mennonite High School and one year at Eastern Mennonite College. After coming to northern Alberta with her husband, Ike Glick, as a Voluntary Service worker, she took writing courses at the University of Alberta while a homemaker, and wrote and published poetry and children’s stories in the United States and Canada.
Ike and Milie Glick came from the United States to northern Alberta in 1955 as Voluntary Service workers. They were appointed by the Board of Missions and Charities in Elkhart, Indiana, and worked in partnership with the Alberta-Saskatchewan Mennonite Church, later renamed the Northwest Mennonite Conference. The objective was to provide teachers in organized school districts which had difficulty finding qualified teachers; develop experimental garden plots to interest local people in producing some of their own food; give instructions in processing food; teach sewing to the girls and women; provide public health nursing services; organize craft and recreational programs; and provide religious instruction through Sunday Schools, Bible studies and religious worship services.
Custodial History
The fonds consists of original records of the Voluntary Service program, created and donated to the archives of the Mennonite Historical Society of Alberta by Ike and Millie Glick. Ike served as Director of the Voluntary Service program from 1955 to 1965.
Scope and Content
The fonds can be divided into four separate parts.
The first contains the extensive correspondence and reports, mainly between Ray Horst, Director of Voluntary Service of the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities whose office was located in Elkhart, Indiana, and Ike Glick, the senior Voluntary Service worker administrato in northern Alberta,
The second part of the fonds consists of correspondence and reports, again mainly between Ray Horst and Ike Glick, but pertaining to specific Voluntary Service units or programs. The first Voluntary Service Unit in northern Alberta was established at Callling Lake in 1955. New units were subsequently established in Sandy Lake, Chipewyan Lake, Anzac, Imperial Mills, and Robb/Marboro, all in Alberta. Some voluntary service workers, mainly tachers and health care workers, continued to work in northern Alberta communities after their terms of service as Voluntary Service workers ended. There was close collaboration with a local businesman, government, educational and health care officials. Also included are reports publsihed in newspapers, periodicals and in-house voluntary service publications.
The third part of the fonds consists of records of Team Products which was established to market aboriginal and Metis arts, crafts and food products. Voluntary Service workers encouraged aboriginal arts, crafts and the processing of northern foods, but quickly learned that promotion of the items required development of markets in which these items could be sold. So, in 1964 Ike established and became program director of Team Products, a non-government, non-church sponsored organization for marketing handicrafts of aboriginals and people of aboriginal ancestry. Federal and provincial government grants of up to $100,000 over a three year period were obtained. Team Products established its first retail outlet in Edmonton in 1965 and made contacts with numerous other potential buyers and retailers. Native artists in the several communities served by Mennonite voluntary service workers were then encouraged to produce high quality Muk Luk boots, moccasins, leather gloves, jackets, minature canoes, snowshoes, carvings and numerous smaller items. The longer-term objective was to train and then transfer all Team Canada operations to local aboriginal people.
In addition to aboriginal and Metis arts and crafts, Team Products also marketed processed northern berry products. Children at the unique Anzac school, and others, were encouraged to pick and prepare jams, jellies and other berry products. “Meensa,” the Cree word for berries, was the name under which Team Products marketed these berry products.
The fourth part consists of 1 film strip with commentary, 6 compact discs, 2 cassettes, pertaining mainly to Voluntary Service work and VS reunions.
Source of Acquisition
Donated by Ike Glick
Finding Aid
Part 1. The fonds can be divided into three separate parts. The first contains the extensive correspondence and reports, mainly between Ray Horst, Director of Voluntary Service of the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities whose office was located in Elkhart, Indiana, and Ike Glick, the senior Voluntary Service worker administrator in northern Alberta.
Box 1
1-1 Letters from Elkhart, 1955-1956
1-2 Letters to Elkhart, 1955-1956
1-3 Letters from Elkhart, 1957
1-4 Letters to Elkhart, 1957.
1-5 Letters from Elkhart, 1958
1-6 Letters to Elkhart, 1958.
1-7 Letters from Elkhart, 1959.
1-8 Letters to Elkhart, 1959.
1-9 Letters from Elkhart, 1960.
1-10 Letters to Elkhart, 1960.
1-11 Letters from Elkart, 1961
1-12 Letters to Elkhart, 1961
1-13 Letters from Elkhart, 1962.
1-14 Letters to Elkhart, 1962
1-15 Letters from Elkhart, 1963,
1-16 Letters to Elkhart, 1963.
Box 2
2-17 Letters from Elkhart, 1964.
2-18 Letters to Elkhart, 1964.
2-19 Letters from Elkhart, 1965.
2-20 Letters to Elkart, 1965.
2-21 Letters to and from Elkhart, 1966-1973.
2-22 Correspondence, reports re Voluntary Service and Missions programs. 1965-1871.
2-23 Ike Glick letter re Service and Evangelization, 1966.
Part 2. The second part of the fonds consists of correspondence and reports, again mainly between Ray Horst and Ike Glick, but pertaining to specific Voluntary Service units or programs.
2-24 Calling Lake Monthly Reports, 1955-1958.
2-25 Calling Lake Annual Reports, 1956-1957.
2-26 Calling Lake “Beginings,” 1956.
2-27 Calling Lake Community Meetings,m 1965-1966.
2-28 Calling Lake, “Evergreen” Yearbook, 1966/67.
2-29 Calling Lake, Nursing Services 1956-1970.
2-30 Mobile Medical Unit, 1963-1965.
2-31 Sandy Lake, 1957-1960.
2-32 Chipewyan Lake, 1959-1964, 1988.
Box 3
3-33 Anzac, 1959-1964.
3-34 Marlboro, 1960-1965.
3-35 Imperial Mills, 1963-1964.
3-36 Alberta Map showing locations of VS units and ex-VS workers.
3-37 Kindergarten at Calling Lake and Marlboro, 1963-1966.
3-38 Northern School Division Correspondence, 1962-1963.
3-39 Athabaska Chamber of Commers and Kiwanis.
3-40 Alberta Voluntary Service Newsletters, 1962-1967.
3-41 Articles/Reports by Ike Glick on “Helping.”
3-42 Agape, Voluntary Service Newsletters, 1955-1961.
3-43 Agape, Voluntary Service Newsletters, 1960-1966.
3-44 Mennonite Periodical and Newspaper reports.
3-45 Alberta Voluntary Service Workers reunion, 1985.
3-46 Alberta Voluntary Service Workers reunion, 2006.
3-47 Alberta Voluntary Service Workers retreat, 2013.
Part 3. The third part contains the records of Team Products, established to promote and manage the amrketing of aboriginal and Metis arts and handicrafts and of berry products marketed under the trade name of “Meensa,” the Cree word for berries. Team Products files dealing with the marketing of northern Alberta aboriginal and Metis arts and handicrafts are arranged alphabetically by correspondent, company or agency. “Meensa” material is contained in subject files.
Box 4
4-48 Pamphlet “Native Handicrafts in Perspective,” by Ike Glick, 1975
4-49 Team Products, Correspondence and Reports, A-J.
4-50 Team Products, Correspondence and Reports, K-S (T-Z missing)
4-51 Meensa -First Year, 1964.
4-52 Meensa – Small Fruit Survey, Northern Alberta
4-53 Meensa – Anzac Berry Co-op, 1964-1965,
4-54 Meensa – Anzac Berry Co-op, 1966-1968.
4-55 Meensa – Wild fruit, bulletins, correspondence, invoices 1964-1966.
4-56 Meensa – Berry recipes
4-57 Meensa – Published information.
4-58 Meensa – Newspaper clippings.
Part 4 Placed in Accession 2021.014, Box 4.
-1 film strip with commentary about Voluntary Service, 2 cassettes on the 1985 reunion of Voluntary Service workers
-1 CD marked “Glick slides ’50s – 60s”
-1 CD marked “Suter VS Anzac 1965”
-2 CDs marked “VS Reunion 2006”
-1 CD marked “Ray Horst, given by Paul Nafziger”
-2 cassettes marked “VS Reunion 1985.”
“Teamed with Purpose” Film strip – a 90 frame color filmstrip in photography with a 16-minute narration written by Millie Glick, and produced by the Mennonite Boardof Missions and Charities, Elkhart, Indiana.