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Dry eyes were likely few among those reading Michele LeTourneau's article in last Friday's Yellowknifer, reliving the horrors of watching her child suffer the ravages of chemotherapy to treat her leukemia.

A mother's personal story will drive the point home more than a government or NGO's news release ever can, and LeTourneau's, a well-seasoned journalist, is particularly galvanizing. Her admitted reluctance to take part in the annual Relay for Life is probably something many people can relate to, and not because they don't care or feel they don't have time.

As LeTourneau explains, dealing with such personal crisis and the potential loss of a loved one is not something most people want to relive. Even if the cancer is beaten, it might be easier to pretend its occurrence was a one-off and put it out of mind, rather than participate in cancer fundraisers and yield to the possibility that illness can strike again.

But cancer is not something that can be ignored. According to the 2013 cancer statistics from Statistics Canada, men have a one and 3.6 chance of dying from cancer in their lifetime; for women it's a one in 4.2 chance.

Some 75,500 people are expected to die from cancer this year. The leading cause of death among men and women - 27.2 and 26.3 per cent respectively -is lung cancer. The death rate has been declining - thanks mainly to a reduction in the number of smokers - but cancer rates overall are climbing as our population ages. The cancer rate for females has risen 0.3 per cent per year from 1998 to 2007.

Relay for Life not only raises money for cancer research, healthy lifestyle promotion and support services for cancer patients, it reminds all of us of the need to remain vigilant in this fight.

Considering the number of lives cancer effects, perhaps it's not all that remarkable Relay teams in Yellowknife raise in excess of $200,000 every year. What is remarkable is the dedication of those who take part. As LeTourneau states in her article, cancer is not a war for cowards.

Det'on Cho Corporation ranked 276 on PROFIT magazine's 25th annual list of Canada's top 500 fastest growing companies last week.

While the distinction is a feather in the cap for directors and employees of the economic arm of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, the success of the corporation and its fast-growing stable of subsidiaries, four of which it wholly-owns, comes as no surprise to observers.

Since launching with a $15,000 grant in 1988, Det'on Cho has expanded to achieve annual earnings of $40 million. In the past five years, the company's revenues have quadrupled.

Having begun at the end of the gold-mining era and adapted to the diamond era, the corporation has demonstrated forward vision and hard work by successfully straddling the latest recession. Now the corporation is poised to lead the way for other Northern companies as it looks ahead to more economic opportunities in the oil and gas sector and other mineral sectors. When it comes time to search for subcontractors from beyond its own holdings, Det'on Cho will hopefully hire locally to provide other emerging companies with a chance for the kind of prosperity and long-term success the Yellowknives Dene's business leaders enjoy today.

Trout Lake is not a place where you want to have a serious accident or injury.

Neither, apparently, is Nahanni Butte or Jean Marie River. These communities don't have runways long enough to accommodate the type of airplane that is normally used for medevacs in the territory. Instead a Twin Otter must be equipped with supplies whenever a medevac is needed in those three communities. The need for a different plane can create longer wait times for people in serious need of medical attention.

The Department of Health and Social Services clearly needs to review its medevac policies and make some changes. The need for a revised system was highlighted by the amount of time it took a medevac to reach Trout Lake on May 22 following a serious boating accident.

The accident occurred around 4:30 p.m. and the first calls to the Fort Simpson Health Centre were made by 5 p.m. Difficulties with communications along with the need for a Twin Otter compounded the problem and according to one source, the medevac plane didn't arrive in the community until just before 11 p.m., almost six hours from the first call. Six hours is an unacceptable amount of time for anyone to wait in the case of a medical emergency.

Trout Lake may be an isolated community, but its citizens deserve more from the territory's health-care system. The long waiting time for a medevac in Trout Lake has become such a concern that approximately a week later, a man called an airline in Fort Simpson to charter a plane rather than wait for a medevac to be approved after his wife's arm was cut with a saw.

It says a lot about the level of confidence Trout Lake residents have with the medevac service if they are willing to potentially take on the cost of chartering a plane themselves, rather than risk a long wait.

The community of Trout Lake has sent a letter to the Department of Health and Social Services requesting answers to a number of questions related to the delays that occurred on May 22. The department is also conducting an investigation into the response to the accident.

Hopefully, the department will return with some meaningful answers and follow through with solutions that will prevent similar incidents from happening again in Trout Lake or from occurring in the future in either Nahanni Butte or Jean Marie River.

NWT residents who want to live in smaller, more isolated communities should not have to risk their health in the case of an emergency to do so.

It's time to talk a little trash, Inuvik.

I've been impressed over the last week or so at the efforts to clean up the town prior to the start of the Inuvik Petroleum Show. However, it seems to me that it would be a less-arduous task to keep the trash off the streets and ditches to begin with.

I was unpleasantly surprised to see the amount of garbage in our streets as the snow melted, despite the warnings of several people, including Mayor Floyd Roland and Coun. Clarence Wood.

Wood said the situation has improved quite a bit since the town implemented a fee on plastic bags. He added that a few years ago he counted more than 100 of the bags while he was walking from his nearby home to a council meeting.

I'll take his word for it, since I haven't been here long enough to judge that. However, the amount of trash on our streets is still far from desirable and it appears the current approach isn't working.

Residents here seem to have bought wholeheartedly into the disposable lifestyle. If something breaks, throw it out.

Newton Grey, the president of the Inuvik Chamber of Commerce, says he thinks there are more than enough garbage receptacles supplied by the town. However, he said there needs to be a cultural shift toward people being more environmentally aware, which will take some time to develop.

Tony Devlin, the former director of community services, suggested the town, which has a well-intended policy of offering money to organizations to clean up sectors in the town, should re-think its ideas.

He suggested the youth in town should be paid a dollar or two for every bag of garbage they turn in that is authenticated. That would instill some sense of civic pride, he said, suggesting that would also carry over into their families over time.

He said he had been told the town had once used such a policy successfully.

Since the current way of doing things is not working, I am all for trying it.

It should not take the spectre of the petroleum show to motivate people to clean up around our community. We should make more of an effort to keep the trash off the streets to begin with.

That is a more conscientious, environmentally-friendly way of life.

It is time to address the ongoing imbalances between Yellowknife's two school boards.

Recently, Yellowknife Catholic Schools (YCS) has been crying poor, saying without an increase in taxes to supplement funding provided by the territorial government, it may have to cut into program funding as early as 2014-15.

On the other hand, Yellowknife Education District No. 1 board members decided late last month not to support a school levy hike in the foreseeable future. Even though the public board is facing many of the same challenges as the Catholic schools - declining enrollment and funding cuts - it still has a healthy operating surplus of $1.6 million to draw from.

The issue here lies in the fact the two boards have an unwritten rule that one cannot increase their mill rate unless the other follows suit. Although YCS retains the right to apply for an increase on its own, board chair Simon Taylor told Yellowknifer it would be unfair if one district's mill rate was higher than the other.

Unfair may not be quite the right word. What would be unfair would be if both boards collaborate to gouge taxpayers for extra money, regardless of need.

The more compelling question is: Why should public school supporters have to pay more to balance the Catholic board's budget?

Ultimately, the decision on which board to support lies with Yellowknife taxpayers. They get to decide each year how much of their taxes will go to which board. YCS says it needs more funding to maintain the quality of education in their schools. However, if only its rate increases, more Yellowknifers may choose their own bottom line above the Catholic school board's and choose the less expensive option: Yk1.

The current system seems to dictate that the less successful one school board is, the more funding both receive. How is this fair?

There is a history of imbalance between the two boards, which have previously engaged in turf wars over school space. Back in 2007, YCS schools averaged 100 per cent capacity, while Yk 1 schools had an average capacity of a little more than 60 per cent. YCS responded by asking for an extra school, suggesting J. H. Sissons School become Catholic. After a parental uprising, the idea was abandoned.

The previous year, the Catholic board entered into an ill-advised court battle against allowing non-Catholics to serve on its board. The result of this suit may not have been only a legal loss for the board, but resulted in the loss of students. Ever since, both student numbers and tax support has been shifting towards the public board.

The argument that both boards must band together to increase tax levies undermines the idea that these are two sovereign entities.

Unless they are careful, these two boards could create an excuse by the territorial government to return to the debate over whether or not we should have only one publicly-funded board in Yellowknife.

Let it never be said we Northerners don't catch on fast.

But do we always have to catch onto far more illadvised activities than productive endeavours?

Bad enough our government wants to conduct its affairs like Stephen Harper on antitransparency steroids, but now we're ripping pages from one of the most damaging play books that ever was.

Only man can let his greed reach the point where he willing turns a renewable resource into a nonrenewable one, and is willing to break the law to do it.

It's a sucker's game of shortterm gain against the almost total annihilation of a species in the long term.

George Santayana, borrowing from a phrase by Edmund Burke, famously wrote, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

Over the years, Santayana's expression was edited by the common tongue to become more commonly known as those who ignore history are bound (or doomed) to repeat it.

Given the actions of our territory's fledgling fishing industry; time to bastardize Santayana's work once and for all and put it in terms even we here in the North can understand. Those who cannot remember the past are idiots!

One can only despair over the report of two Nunavut fishing vessels facing charges under the federal Fisheries Act earlier this month.

Capt. George Hudson has been accused of taking his vessel, The Suvak, to borrow from our neighbours before being charged with fishing in Greenland waters.

The second no-no comes to you courtesy of Capt. David Dempsey, who is charged with taking his crew for a little sail on the Sikuvuto to allegedly fill her pens with Greenland halibut.

Unfortunately, according to authorities, they happened to be in the narwhal overwinter area and the cold water coral zone off of Baffin Island.

Fishing is strictly prohibited in the area.

It comes as no surprise that both vessels are owned by Nunavut entities sporting the names of coalition and alliance.

In layman's terms those words often translate to too greedy and really too greedy.

The Suvak belongs to the Oujukoaq Fisheries Ltd., part of the Iqaluit-based Baffin Fisheries Coalition, while the owner of the Sikuvuto is the Qikiqtarjuaq-based Masiliit Corp., proud member of the Arctic Fishery Alliance.

Those working in the fisheries industry should be made to read every word ever written on illegal fishing and overfishing.

And they can start with an account of the East Coast ground fishery, which was also entrusted to coalitions, alliances and their draggers from hell.

Hopefully, Nunavut Minister of Environment James Arreak is paying close attention to the situation.

It will be interesting to see where our Department of Environment's Fisheries and Sealing Division is going with its priority on the Nunavut fisheries strategy.

The division prides itself on its work to maximize economic opportunities for Nunavummiut.

Let's hope it also prides itself on pushing for the proper punishment for those who refuse to uphold the principles of conservation and sustainability!

Videos of Behchoko's grad weekend posted to Facebook this past month are not what one would expect. Instead of images of young grads celebrating or walking the aisle in caps and gowns, the videos circulating are shockingly violent.

The videos show multiple youths engaged in a brawl, sometimes two or three ganging up on one person. Punching, elbowing, and even chairs wielded as weapons make the videos disturbing and hard to watch.

The RCMP responded to four assault complaints within a 25-hour period that weekend.

Behchoko is not the only community that deals with youth violence. Communities all over the country, big or small, contend with physical bullying. But putting the proof online is not only shocking, it also tarnishes the image of the community.

Is it good that these negative messages can be spread far and wide so easily these days? While the content in the Behchoko videos is very violent, it is better that the violence is uncovered and sees the light of day versus simmering in secret. The issue being online for anyone to view offers a wake-up call to parents and the community.

The actions of the youth in the videos shouldn't label an entire community.

There's a lot more footage that can be applauded and allows Behchoko to shine. A search on YouTube shows a medley of videos ranging from handgames and weddings to snowmobiling and drum dancing.

There is also plenty more information out there that illustrates the positive contributions of Behchoko's young people and other NWT youth to the territory. Flipping through the pages of News/North, youth successes abound: from Fort Smith high school students being honoured for pictures they took in a photography challenge, to Inuvik's young girls curling team accepting Team of the Year award at the Sport North Awards dinner recently and the young Behchoko athlete on today's front page competing at the NWT Track and Field Championships.

It's unfortunate that these particular youth were so violent, and that the incident occurred.

But we hope the community takes action in response to these violent videos in a positive way, by talking to the youth and offering support.

The Community Counselling Services in Hay River has undergone growing pains in the past nine months, but has come out stronger and ready to help more residents in their times of need.

This past fall, the Hay River Health and Social Services Authority moved counselling services in line with the territory's recommendation - requiring counsellors to have at least a master's degree in the field.

At first, this change put a sour taste in residents' mouths. The four staff members whose jobs were affected left, and community members cried out that the transition time to recruit the qualified people for the positions would be detrimental in their treatment process.

No doubt the months when the positions were vacant were difficult, but with patience comes reward and the community is reaping the positive results of the change in staffing model.

The authority has harnessed a strong team of six health-care workers - including three mental health and addictions counsellors with at least master's degrees - four of which are from the North and two of them hail from hay River.

The number of people on the waiting list for addictions or mental health counselling have also plummeted from 100 in February to zero as of April due to the counsellors being hired in March. Some who spoke out in distress when the change in counselling standards took place, such as Georgina Fabian who uses the counselling services, are now satisfied with the results of the transition. Fabian said the additional experience held by the counsellors is noticeable and valued.

One of the largest issues in the territory is the struggle with mental health and addictions. Any steps to improve assessment, crisis intervention, treatment and followup for NWT residents is welcome and other regions that are making such a transition in the future can look to this as an example with positive results.

While mining has the potential to bring Nunavut billions of dollars worth of jobs and infrastructure, the territory is also looking to the sea for quicker gains and more sustainable prosperity. Commercial fishing in the territory has experienced enormous growth over the past six years.

Six years ago, there were no commercial fishing vessels owned by Nunavut entities. Today, there are five vessels wholly-owned or partially-controlled by Nunavut interests under the umbrellas of Baffin Fisheries coalition, Arctic Fisheries Alliance, Qikiqtaaluk Corporation and Pangnirtung Fisheries Ltd.

Nunavut Fisheries Training Consortium's recent purchase of a bridge simulator system - at a cost of $170,000 - to help train Nunavummiut to work on the bridge of large vessels, is an investment that should be applauded.

Not only will the system improve the chances of Nunavut residents to work on fishing boats it will also help improve their wages which will in turn attract more interest to the industry.

Between turbot, Arctic char and shrimp stocks the fishing sector is now worth in the range of $100 million.

The bulk of those dollars came from turbot which raked in $70 million last year after a harvest of 9,500 metric tonnes. With a total allowable catch of 13,500 metric tonnes there is plenty of room for growth.

Harvest levels for shrimp also fell well short of the quota with 3,000 metric tonnes caught compared to the quota of 10,000 metric tonnes.

Nunavummiut see the potential in the fishing sector and their growing involvement in the industry is evidence of that. Last year, between 100 and 120 crew members returned to work in offshore operations on Nunavut-controlled vessels, according to the GN.

Ship captains such as Pangnirtung's Peter Kilabuk, who is featured in Nuanvut News/North this week, is also capitalizing on the opportunity. Owner of the first private fishing vessel, he has invested in growing his business with the purchase of a larger ship to help him increase his harvest.

The GN is also showing a commitment to improving opportunities in the industry for Inuit.

Personnel training has improved, particularly since the Nunavut Fisheries Training Consortium was launched in 2005. The organization provides training for Inuit beneficiaries for various roles in the fishing industry. Training offered has evolved from entry-level skills, to advanced training that creates the opportunity for more Inuit employment.

Pangnirtung's multi-million-dollar small harbour craft project - worth more than $40-million -- will also help significantly boost fishing off of Baffin Island. It will offer improved infrastructure for ships fishing the water and additional employment.

Although the capacity of the fishing industry isn't limitless, it has a long way to go before its full potential is met. Additional investment in the industry is money well spent and perhaps one of the best industries in the territory to maximize sustainable Inuit employment.

As a renewable resource, fishing, if managed correctly, can provide jobs well into the future. It's also a two-fold win for Inuit, who not only get the benefits of employment but also work in an industry that can help maintain their connection to the land and sea.

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