Rankin Inlet (Aug 30/06) - More than a hundred people came out for an afternoon of fun at the annual Kataujaq Society community picnic in front of the Rankin Inlet hamlet office earlier this month.

The event featured numerous games for kids of all ages, lots of prizes and a huge stack of tasty hotdogs.

Society president Rod Hick says the picnic is held every year to promote a sense of community spirit by providing families with the opportunity to spend some quality time together.

Hick says the event is the society's way of thanking the community for supporting its services. "Both individuals and the business community in Rankin are very generous in giving of their time and making donations to the society," says Hick.

"We receive a lot of support for our annual picnic and charity auction, as well as some of the day-to-day operations of our services.

"Those donations help supplement the money we receive through partnerships with the Nunavut government."

The Kataujaq Society runs a day-care centre and a safe shelter in Rankin.

Hick says the two are valuable services in helping to maintain a healthy community and strong family units.

He says in addition to providing an afternoon of family fun, the picnic also raises awareness of society activity within the community.

"It's imperative for us, as a society, to let people know about the services we offer, and to help educate them on the issues surrounding those services. The society was well represented at the picnic from the board-of-directors level, the managerial level, and staff members from both the safe shelter and day care."

The next big date for the society is its charity auction on Sept. 23.

Hick says the annual auction is one of the Kataujaq Society's biggest days of the year.

"The charity auction is our main fundraiser and it's extremely important to our viability as a not-for-profit organization. Once we get past the auction, we'll be looking ahead to our annual general meeting in early October."