By: Sonia Mendes
Ingenium - Canada's Museums of Science and Innovation
A living legend: Saying farewell to Johnny May’s sweet tradition
Photo Credit
Isabelle Dubois
Onlookers watch as Johnny May flies his aircraft overhead during a Kuujjuaq Christmas candy drop.
A special custom will be glaringly absent for the children of Kuujjuaq this year.
This is the first holiday season in half a century that won’t include a Kuujjuaq Christmas Candy Drop — a special delivery for the village residents. Last year, legendary Inuit bush pilot Johnny May made his final candy drop before saying goodbye to a sweet tradition.
“For more than 50 years, May faithfully dropped a medley of candies and gifts for the residents of Kuujjuaq – a village in Nunavik, Quebec,” explains Linda Brand, an interpretation officer for community programs at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum. “It was a beloved tradition, and last Christmas marked the end of an era.”
Photo Credit
Linda Brand
Johnny May flew his first solo flight at age 16.
May was born in Kangiqsualujjuaq, at the mouth of the George River in northern Quebec. The 75-year-old pilot is a long-time resident of Kuujjuaq, and is well known among the town’s population of roughly 3,000 residents for his Santa-like drops every December 25.
“It started with just candy in 1965, but over the years it really evolved,” says Brand, explaining that the Kuujjuaq recreation committee fundraised money to buy items for the drop by holding bingo games. “Over the years, May has dropped winter clothing items, and sometimes envelopes with coupons to redeem for big-ticket items.”
A hero of the North
As special as those candy drops have been, May is even more revered for his countless heroic search-and-rescue missions in the harrowing North. For most of his career, May flew in areas where topographical maps didn’t exist. Often, he would land his bush plane on tundra or ice, depending on the time of year and the weather, to rescue those who had lost their way in the harsh conditions.
Photo Credit
André Levesque
Johnny May with his wife, Louisa (left), and children’s author Linda Brand (right).
In 2013, the National Film Board produced a feature documentary, The Wings of Johnny May. The film details many of his adventures during more than 35,000 hours of flight time he’s logged, as well as the rugged beauty of the Nunavik territory. However, makers of the film said it was a challenge to convince the very modest May to agree to the creation of a film about his life.
Ontario-based Bush Pilot Brewing Company even named their third bottled release in May’s honour. The beer, named “Pengo Pally,” means “I miss you” in the Inuktitut language. This message — in English and Inuktitut — was stenciled on the fuselage of Johnny May’s De Havilland Beaver, as a tribute to his wife, Louisa.
Photo Credit
Linda Brand
Johnny May stands next to his trusty aircraft.
An inspiring story
At the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, staff have their own way of honouring May. Brand authored a colourful children’s book, The Kuujjuaq Christmas Candy Drop, which was published in 2015.
“It’s an uplifting and inspiring story, written for Inuit youth across Canada,” says Brand, adding that a shipment of the books was donated to more than 30 Inuit classrooms in Labrador in 2017. “Johnny May is a wonderful role model. Although he has hung up his candy sack, the legacy of this exceptional man will most certainly endure for many years to come,” says Brand.
For details on holiday programming, visit A Special Delivery from the Canada Aviation and Space Museum.
Photo Credit
Isabelle Dubois
Onlookers watch as Johnny May flies his aircraft overhead during a Kuujjuaq Christmas candy drop.
Photo Credit
Isabelle Dubois
Linda Brand, author of the children’s book, The Kuujjuaq Christmas Candy Drop, presents the story to a class of Inuit schoolchildren.
Photo Credit
Linda Brand
Staff at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum sent a box of pilot-themed teddy bears to Johnny May in Kuujjuaq, to be included in his final flight.
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