BAKER LAKE - Young and old, traditional and modern – performers of all types took to the stage to strut their stuff in a huge talent show in Baker Lake this past month.

Kiah Hachey and Paula Rumbolt, right, took first place in the talent show celebrating the 25th anniversary of Baker Lake Contracting and Supplies Ltd. in Baker this past month. - photo courtesy of Joyce Lahure

The event was held in honour of Baker Lake Contracting and Supplies Ltd.'s 25th anniversary in the community.

Company spokesperson Joyce Lahure said she and her husband, Al, wanted to do something special to show their appreciation to the community for its support.

She said the actual anniversary was this past April, and they had been pondering what to do for months when a visit by a friend of their son gave them an idea.

"We're really busy in the spring and summer because of the nature of our business, so we weren't able to hold the celebration right away," said Lahure.

"My son had a friend over one evening, and they were plucking away on the guitar and singing songs his friend had written.

"We were sitting there with our mouths open because he was so good.

"That's when we realized a talent show would be really great because it would encourage a lot of young people to take part."

Lahure said there is a lot of talent in the Kivalliq that people aren't aware of.

She said they decided to hold the event at the community hall to give everyone a chance to show off their talent.

"We had a great turnout, and we awarded top prizes of $2,000, $1,000 and $500, as well as all sorts of consolation prizes.

"My son (Jason Shingoose) and I started planning this in October and it turned out to be a lot of work.

"My son was instrumental in setting up the audio and video equipment, and he did a fantastic job."

Lahure said she was pleased with how the event turned out.

She said she received a number of positive comments the night of the show, and people are still talking about it in the community.

"I've had young people tell me they didn't win this time, but they're going to win next year, so I might have opened a big can of worms with this show.

"We haven't made a decision about doing another show, but anything's possible.

"I never say never, especially when it comes to young people and encouraging them to take part in positive activities.

"Baker Lake's been really good to us, so we wanted to do something significant to give a little back to the community and we were able to do that with this show."