Tuktoyaktuk (Apr 28/03) - Rebecca Pokiak had the adventure of a lifetime this year, thanks to the Katimavik program.

The 19-year-old recent graduate of Mangilaluk school got a lucky break last summer when she was chosen as one of the Katimavik participants from the Beaufort Delta region.

Rebecca Pokiak returned home to Tuktoyaktuk April 9 after seven months of volunteer work in the South, thanks to the Katimavik program. - NNSL photo

"I was really lucky to get picked because you get picked randomly and they have so many people applying," she said.

Katimavik is a government-funded program that allows Canadian youth to travel to three different provinces to volunteer with non-profit organizations.

Pokiak was sent to work at a Boys and Girls Club in Black Diamond, Alta., a nature centre in Granby, Que., and a retirement home in Penticton, B.C.

Although she had a good time overall, Pokiak was not impressed with her Quebec experience.

"I didn't enjoy it too much. I just decorated and put sparkles on paper for three months. It wasn't too much fun," said Pokiak.

But she was quite taken with the community of Black Diamond, where she felt right at home.

"It was a small community and I got to know a lot of people. Everyone was really nice there," she said.

Her experience at the retirement home in Penticton, where the residents were age 92 on average, was by far the most interesting.

"They were so funny and they really enjoyed my company.

"They are very different than the elders here. It was a big change," she said.

During her time in B.C. she had the opportunity to see a Buddhist temple in Vancouver and also visited a monk living in a cave.

But besides that, Pokiak said, she didn't really learn that much about other cultures.

"We got to see a bit, but it wasn't as much a cultural experience as I expected," she said.

She did share her culture with the others though, speaking about hunting on the land and also cooking up some caribou meat.

Although not every day was filled with fun and excitement, Pokiak has no regrets.

"I learned a lot about myself and the way I am around people. My people skills and communication skills are a lot better now because I have worked with so many different people," she said.

Pokiak plans to attend university in the fall and hopes to become either a teacher or a social worker.

"After the trip I just thought that I might enjoy that," she said.