Rev. Dr. Alfred James Vale (also known as A.J. Vale) was born on October 17, 1876 in Waterloo, Ontario. He entered Wycliffe College, Toronto, in 1903 and graduated in 1906. He was ordained in 1906 and appointed assistant to Reverend C.H. Marsh ub the parish of Cameron and Cambray.
In 1907 he was ordained priest and appointed missionary in charge of Hay River, in the Diocese of Mackenzie River, North West Territories and made principal of St. Peter's Indian Residential School (Hay River, N.W.T.). During his 20 years at St. Peter’s, he oversaw the replacement of the original primitive school buildings with a large new structure, which was built by the Church in 1917. He also secured federal money to remodel an old mission building in 1925, moving it next to the school and outfitting it as a fully equipped hospital. He served in Hay River until 1927.
In 1927, he was transferred to Chapleau, Ontario where he became the principal at the St. John's Indian Residential School . On October 15, 1946, A.J. Vale retired and moved to Vancouver, B.C. Between 1947 and 1957, he served as honorary assistant to the Rector of St. Mary's Church, Southill. In 1952 Wycliffe College conferred on him the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity. In 1956, Vale was invited to spend a month at St. Peter's Mission, Hay River, N.W.T. and to be the Chaplain of the Bishop of the Arctic, Reverend D.B. Marsh at the dedication of the church there.
