Obituary of Yogi Huyghebaert

Lieutenant-Colonel (Ret) D.F. (Yogi, Jim) Huyghebaert, OMM, C.D passed away with family by his side on August 2, 2018. He was born in Lafleche, SK on May 27, 1944. Yogi was the third son of Julius and Edith (nee McEwan) Huyghebaert. He received his education at Fir Mountain and Glentworth, graduating in 1961. During his school years, Yogi enjoyed playing baseball and curling. Shortly after graduation, he joined the military. Yogi’s dream was to fly but was told that there were no openings to become a pilot. He worked as a telegraph technician until January 1967, when he was accepted into pilot training. Yogi married Phyllis Lineham on July 23, 1966, and they made many moves with the Canadian Air Force. In 1967, Yogi was an Officer Cadet at Esquimalt, BC. He attended pilot training in Moose Jaw, graduating with distinction in 1968. From May 1968 to February 1969, Yogi trained at CFB Chatham, NB and at CFB Cold Lake, AB. From February 1969 to August 1970, he had a tour of duty at CFB Baden-Baden, West Germany. It was during this tour that Yogi and Phyllis’s son Darcey was born, on June 5, 1970. Yogi was then transferred to CFB Cold Lake as an instructor and was the solo demonstration pilot for the aerobatic team. Their second son, Daniel, was born on April 21, 1973. In January 1974, the family moved to CFB Moose Jaw, where Yogi became one of the solo pilots on the Snowbirds. Beginning in August 1976, he was Executive Assistant to the Base Commander at CFB Edmonton, and two years later the family moved to CFB Cold Lake, where he was a squadron pilot on the F-5 Tactical Fighter Plane for four years. He then became the project coordinator between the Canadian Military and the USA Navy to purchase the F-18, which replaced the CF 104. In June of 1984, Yogi was proud to become the commander of the Snowbirds. In 1987, he spent six months at the Norfolk, VA Naval Station as a staff officer, and then a year as Executive Assistant to the Chief of Staff at the base in Heidelberg, West Germany. In 1987, Yogi received the highest award given to military in Canada, the Order of Military Merit, from Governor General Jeanne Sauvé. He then spent the next year at CFB Winnipeg taking French language training. The following three years Yogi and Phyllis were at CFB Moose Jaw, where he was the Base Operations Officer. It was during this time that he was also in charge of the Moose Jaw air shows. They moved to CFB Winnipeg from July 1992 until September 1994, where he oversaw the cadet program for the Western Region. In September 1994, Yogi retired, and he and Phyllis moved to their ranch west of Glentworth. In 1995, Yogi ran for provincial political office on a PC ticket. In 1998-99, he ran for the leadership of the Saskatchewan Party and in 2000, was elected in the Wood River Constituency as MLA for the Saskatchewan Party. He was re-elected in 2003, 2007, and 2011. He chose not to run in the 2016 election. During his time in politics, Yogi served as Minister of Corrections, Public Safety and Policing, and later as the province’s military liaison. He was a strong voice for his Wood River constituency and for rural Saskatchewan. Yogi will be remembered for his love and dedication to his family, the people of Saskatchewan, and Canada. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Phyllis; son Darcey (Jennifer), grandchildren Kyana (Curt) Metallic, McKenzie, Teagan & Aidan, great granddaughter Lydia; son Daniel (Ginnine), grandchildren Dacy & Ayla, grandchildren Jessie, Dylan & Rhylen; siblings Delv (Dolores), Darryl 2014 (Carol), Dean (Jackie), Dulone (Ron) and Don; brother-in-law Tom (Dee); nieces, nephews, friends & colleagues. Private family interment took place on Sunday, August 12, 2018, at Mountain View Cemetery, Fir Mountain, SK. Celebration of Life was held on Monday, August 13, 2018, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., at the Officers’ Mess, Canadian Forces Base, Moose Jaw, SK. Flypast tribute by the Snowbirds took place at 3:30 p.m. Memorial donations to STARS Air Ambulance, 2640 Airport Road, Regina, SK S4W 1A3 were greatly appreciated.