 |
|
|
|
|
  
|
'We're saving lives' Nicole Veerman Northern News Services Published Wednesday, August 17, 2011
The Yellow Ribbon Campaign was launched Aug. 5 during the Kivalliq Suicide Prevention Walk and Camp in Rankin Inlet. The walk, camp and campaign were organized by KayyLynn Kabluitok, Kandace Kusugak, Tara Green and Randy Kataluk, this year's summer students with Kivalliq Counselling and Support Services. The Yellow Ribbon Campaign is a way to show people that they're never alone. When a ribbon is worn by an individual, it signifies that that person is willing to listen or talk to a person who needs to share. "We want people to know that we are there for them," said Kabluitok. "We're expecting something as small as a yellow ribbon to save lives, because it could, if (a person) recognizes that, 'Wow, this person at the grocery store is here, they're saying that they could talk to me.' "We're saving lives, something as little as this." Kabluitok said it's important that people know they're not alone. She said they need to know that their families, friends and communities are there when they need them. During the weekend, the ribbon wasn't the only evidence that residents of the Kivalliq region are prepared to help prevent future suicide attempts. Another sign was the more than 80 people who gathered at the Rankin Inlet community hall to take part in the approximately 13-km Suicide Prevention Walk. The event, which took participants to Elders' Cabin, was meant to raise awareness. The steps taken were taken in remembrance of those that have been lost. They were also taken as a way of showing support "We're taking this step forward to show the young people there are solutions," Kandace Kusugak told the crowd before embarking on the awareness walk. "We've lost enough. We're all gathered here to show it has to stop." Donna Adams, who helped the youth organize the walk and camp, said it was important to have these powerful messages coming from young people because it is territory's youth that are most likely to take their own lives. When asked why that is, she said it's a number of things: "isolation, family issues, and they think it's an option, almost like a fad, because they've seen others do it." The idea that suicide is a fad is something the walk, camp and campaign wanted to combat, said Kabluitok. "Suicide is not the answer in any way or form, and it should never even be considered," she said. "It's a permanent solution to a preventable problem. You can solve every problem." Kabluitok said she hopes the dozens of 16- to 20-year-old youth who took part in the two-day camp at Elders' Cabin now understand that life is worth living regardless of the trials we face. "I want them to see how life is fun and I want them to know what it's like to live and know how awesome it really is," she said. Although the camp and walk are now complete, Kabluitok and her colleagues hope that this is just the beginning. "I consider this the first of many," she said. "We hope to have it in different parts of Kivalliq each year. "It's going to be even better next year and the years to come."
|
