INUVIK - After a meeting with the Interagency Committee last week, Inuvik Works will apply to become a non-profit society so it can open its doors again.

The Inuvik Works program shut its doors last week after its funding from Service Canada through the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership didn't come through, leaving the organization to restructure in order to find funding. - NNSL file photo

Inuvik Works can no longer receive federal funding under Service Canada or the Aboriginal Skills and Employment Training Strategy as the organization didn't meet the proper criteria. Inuvik Works previously offered training that led to employment, but now focuses on helping marginalized people with career development.

To become applicable for funding again, the organization will have to become a non-profit society, which could take at least four or five months.

"We know what funding we want, we just have to change to get it," said Margaret Gordon, chair of Inuvik Works. "One of the options we're looking at to have Inuvik Works open is to look at partnering with other non-profit societies."

Originally Inuvik Works had requested a partnership with the Interagency Committee, but that did not work out because the committee just finished a partnership with the homeless shelter. The committee spent nine months working on that, which is now an independent body with its own board of directors.

Taking on Inuvik Works right before the committee closes for the summer and while it won't have a full-time staff member would have meant a further delay in the process for Inuvik Works.

"They need time to re-tool and apply to the Societies Act," said Mary Ann Ross, chair of the Interagency Committee. "We're winding down now, with our last meeting in June. We just got the homeless shelter fully independent and don't feel it's a good time to take on Inuvik Works."

Becoming a society has a lot of benefits, including becoming more appealing to funders because of the stability of an organization. Inuvik Works has already started to search for people to staff its board of directors. Under territorial law, five or more people are needed to incorporate Inuvik Works as a society.

Gordon hopes that board of directors will be people who are willing to form a partnership.

"If they are people from the community, they can be from businesses, organizations. We can use all these people and their ideas and help from their own business," Gordon said. "We're taking it one step at a time. We want to open as quickly as possible, but we need to have a plan in the works for a few years to come."

Ross also hopes to create a partnership, or coalition within the community. Since a lot of the social services organizations serve the same clientele, joining forces could benefit a large part of the community.

"The food bank, the homeless shelter, Inuvik Works and the women's shelter - if we form a coalition, then everybody's working together," she said. "If we had a coalition, we could talk specifically about people's needs."

And that's what Gordon hopes people recognize, that they will be there to help people once Inuvik Works is organized again.

"We're not shutting down," Gordon said. "We're not forgetting about people and the services we provide to serve people. We just need to make sure we have a plan in place."

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