Rankin Inlet (July 21/04) - Youth attending day camp in Rankin Inlet will be exposed to a number of different activities this summer.

The summer day camp program is run by the Pulaarvik Kablu Friendship Centre's Youth Outreach program in collaboration with the Rankin Inlet Youth Centre.

The Youth Outreach program focuses on promoting leadership, self-esteem and confidence among youth.

The program now features a number of different training camps that will be held throughout the summer.

The first training camp began this past week at the arena, focusing on traditional Inuit games, as well as proper nutrition and exercise for the younger kids.

Having fun while learning

Youth counsellor Andrea Kowmuk has always enjoyed participating in traditional sports, especially the arm pull and swing kick.

Kowmuk says the training camp is a great way for youth to be introduced to traditional sports at a young age.

She says the camp also helps keep the youth busy and having fun.

"There doesn't seem to be enough young people getting interested in our traditional sports and that worries me," says Kowmuk.

"Hopefully, by participating in the camp, the kids will get to know the different sports and, if they enjoy one or two, maybe they'll stick with them. "That would be great if it happens, but the best part right now is seeing the kids happy and not being bored."

Might stick with it

Youth counsellor Kayylynn Kusugak doesn't participate in traditional sports, but she knows most everything about them and loves to watch.

Kusugak used her strong organizational skills to select the games and draw up the schedule for the training camps.

"When I was putting this together, I decided it would be better to put the youth into three groups so they could all learn at their own pace," says Kusugak.

"It's something new for most of them because nobody's ever taken the time to really teach them about traditional Inuit sports.

"If the camp goes well, and the youth really enjoy it, maybe they'll want to keep going with it."