Dawn Ostrem
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Dec 07/01) - Without government or corporate funding, a camp on Highway 3 is proving to be one way the homeless can have a roof over their heads and tackle their addictions at the same time.

Tucked behind the trees on Highway 3, about 27 kilometres outside of Yellowknife, there is a place for the homeless to stay.

There are two catches, though. First, one has to find a way to contribute to the communal-style camp. The second may be more testing for those homeless hanging out on 50th Street -- absolutely no booze and no drugs.

It is called the Peacemaker Camp and used to be referred to as "tent city". Now, instead of tents three insulated shacks with heat-wafting wood stoves sit on a section of land leased from the federal government. Most have about two beds. One is currently being used by a common-law couple.

"We are trying to keep people together to help one another and get people off alcohol and drugs," explained Ernie Glowach. He started the camp about three and half years ago but can now confidently expand because of the lease.

A business plan

The intention is to start a self-sufficient healing camp. Currently the camp operates without any government or corporate funding.

Glowach, who has been employed as a bouncer at the Gold Range for 20 years, has first-hand knowledge of the addiction problems facing many people in the city and who those people really are.

He said they are not people you can force into treatment centres and expect to be able to churn out positive results.

He also said they are the people that need to know there is a place to go when they hit rock-bottom and are serious about sobering up.

Glowach wants to eventually build a cabin on the site and start a tourism operation, grow vegetables and sell arts and crafts to keep residents busy to keep their minds off addictions and help create some revenue.

Dave Turchinsky is one of about six people staying there right now. He is also one of the biggest contributors.

His shack has plastic stretched on the floor to catch the dust strewn about as he makes stone carvings.

He sells them for between $100 and $250 in town. That money goes toward food and fuel to keep the camp functioning. He said he is the handyman around the place and laughed when it was referred to as a commune.

"I chopped my hippie hair off," he said as he chiselled away on an arctic fox one afternoon last week.

"It has been all right here. There are no distractions from town."

A healing opportunity

Turchinsky, 26, was born in Fort Providence but adopted and raised by a family in Alberta when he was a baby. He returned to the North a few years ago and got involved in heavy drinking.

"It is fun when you are young but as you start getting older you see how foolish it is," he said.

Glowach usually stays in town and works on proposals and funding, although he said he does not want the camp to be something that will get tied up in bureaucratic red tape.

Chris Green stays there with a van, the only link to town. It is used to go to the Salvation Army for food or take residents to doctor of probation officer appointments.

"We are doing this out of our own pocket," Green said.

"They are coming out here to get away from a bad environment and some people have just had bad luck."

Green said at one point he had to tell some people to leave because illegal substances were found on the premises.

He said it was a tough decision because the guests were in need of help, but he had to be strict.

"There are people who choose to drink seven days a week and what are we supposed to do with them?" he said.

"We still have to care about them."

Both he and Glowach used to find comfort in the bottle more than they are proud to admit but know if people want to quit badly enough they can.

"There should be like a graduation or something here," Turchinsky suggested over the crackling of his shack's wood stove and a beat-thumping battery-powered radio in the background.

Right now all three shacks are full but as soon as the Peacemaker Society can get enough funds it will build more.

"I am going to keep this going one way or another. My brain is just ticking on how to get funding," Green said.

"If I have to have a table in front of Wal-Mart to sell things, I will."

With people like Turchinsky helping out, that just may work.

He continuously carves stone into art and keeps a well-tuned sense of humour in the comfort of his living accommodations.

"The cursed kayaker breaks every time I take it to town," he laughed as he explained different carvings.

"And, the dog chewed the head off the seal."