REPULSE BAY - The community of Repulse Bay held its first official winter carnival this past month.

Matt Nathan Nanordluk is dressed for success and ready for action during Repulse Bay's first winter carnival in March of 2011. - photo courtesy of Peter Torok

The event was thought of and co-ordinated by Bill Kennedy, who partnered with the Northern store and the hamlet to turn his idea into a reality.

The event began with an afternoon of sliding and a fishing derby for students at Tusarvik School, and continued over another two days with teenage dances, a square dance, craft fair, children's movie, dog team racing, a tug of war, outdoor barbecue and a soccer game on the sea ice.

A number of elders also took part in the on-ice activities, erecting a giant tent and serving char and caribou for everyone to enjoy, while Susan Nuluk served tea and bannock for anyone who needed something hot to warm them up.

Kennedy said he wanted to keep the first carnival fairly small and, hopefully, grow it from there.

He said he was fairly happy with the levels of participation at the event, and hopes to grow the carnival ever bigger in 2012.

"We were a bit disappointed with how the craft fair went, but I don't think everyone quite grasped the concept of what we were trying to do with that event," said Kennedy.

"We'll do a better job of promoting the craft fair next year and I'm sure it will do much better.

"The youth of the community seemed to really enjoy the different activities, especially the events out on the ice and the teenage dances we held."

Kennedy said having the Northern store partner for the carnival was extremely important for its success.

He said if all goes well in 2012 the Northern will be involved again and, hopefully, there will more participation from the hamlet.

"It would be nice to get more involvement from the local hamlet, which would certainly help in promoting the event.

"I handled it this year, but, even though I've been in the community for a few years, we'd have a much-better chance of the event being more successful and better attended if we get more local involvement next year.

"But, we'll definitely try it again next winter and, hopefully be able to add a few more activities to the things we had on the go this year."

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