Maria Canton
Northern News Services

IQALUIT (Sep 13/99) - More than 30 people turned out last Wednesday night to try and figure out why volunteer agencies seem to falter in Iqaluit.

Organized by Bill Riddell, the meeting was a workshop of ideas, suggestions and new hope, including the possibility of a United Way starting in town.

"I've seen so many agencies fall apart and I wanted to see what other people thought about this," said Riddell.

"I think what most agencies here lack is a solid general membership. Too many times all of the responsibility falls on the board or one or two people."

The meeting was held in the Sailivik Centre, which housed the soup kitchen until Aug. 13, when the Canadian Mental Health Association dissolved.

"It wasn't the soup kitchen that failed, it actually did pretty good," Riddell said.

"It was the board that faltered. We seem to have some systemic problems with volunteer agencies in Iqaluit, but I think we can solve them."

Other ideas that came from the group were centralized fund-raising, a central bank of all volunteer agencies and making use of local expertise.

Brian Willoughby, who was a volunteer with the Canadian Metal Health Association for many years, thinks people are afraid to get involved.

"I think people feel as though they are taking on a second full-time job by volunteering," he said.

"But it takes the community as a whole to realize they have to work together to benefit from volunteering."

Willoughby says a stable source of funding would greatly improve the situation.

"I can tell someone volunteering will be great and rewarding and fun, but if I can't guarantee that the same agency will be there in three months what good is it," he asked.

From the meeting, two groups of volunteers emerged -- one wanting to get the soup kitchen up and running again and one that was interested in long-term planning for the future of Iqaluit's volunteer situation.

"I plan to meet with those interested in long-term planning and bring the idea of getting a United Way established here out in the open," said Riddell.

A United Way organization traditionally acts an umbrella organization with one mass fund-raising campaign a year for all of the volunteer agencies in a community.