By Diane Luckow

Christine Harper is preparing for the biggest day of her year— Canada Day on July 1.

That’s because Harper, secretary to the chair of SFU’s economics department, has an alter ego:  Mrs. Canada.

For the past dozen years, she and her partner Jack Hetherington, aka Captain Canada, have been waving the maple leaf far and wide in their enthusiasm for all things Canada.

Dressed in imaginative red and white outfits, they are instantly recognized wherever they go.

Several times a month they participate in, and support, community events and fundraisers, often at the request of local Members of Parliament. Last year, they began a new tradition, handing out Canada toques and mitts to the homeless on Christmas morning in the Downtown Eastside.

Earlier this year, SFU acknowledged Harper’s contributions to community with a Staff Achievement Award for humanitarianism.

“I feel proud to know [Christine], who is so giving of her time for charities and civic and national holidays,” says one nominator.

Harper’s self-proclaimed title sprang from a boisterous 2001 Canada day afternoon on the couple’s decorated sailboat at Bowen Island’s marina, where they played Oh Canada, God Save the Queen and Happy Birthday every 30 minutes.

“The marina was packed, there were people from Australia, Britain and the U.S., and they stood at attention and applauded us,” recalls Harper.

“That’s when the idea was born—we thought maybe we should do this all the time.”

Since then, she and her husband have reinvented themselves, their vacations and their wardrobes. 

Always dressed in red and white coordinated outfits, they have spent Canada Day and Remembrance Day in a different Canadian city every year.

This year, they’ll celebrate Canada Day for the first time in Vancouver, and hope to arrive downtown in time for the welcoming ceremony for new Canadians.

Harper suspects they may be the most-photographed couple in Canada.

“Everyone wants their photo taken with us, we chat with people about Canada, it’s a big thing for the tourists—it really seems to add to their experience.”

For Harper, who has worked at SFU for 30 years in a variety of departments, the Mrs. Canada persona is a labour of love that includes maintaining a website, captainandmrscanada.ca, that features a blog, information about Canada and its history, photos and testimonials.

 “We’re proud of our country and we probably go overboard to show our patriotism,” says Harper, “but it gives us great happiness and joy and it gives other people happiness and smiles.”