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CORAL HARBOUR
A group of Kivalliq men gathered together earlier this month to share and heal as part of the third annual Angutiit Makigiangninga (Men Rising Up) meeting in Coral Harbour.

The event began in 2009 when Willie Eetuk decided men needed a place to talk.

Noel Kaludjak has been taking part since the beginning.

"Men in the North, especially the communities in the Arctic, never have a place to go talk to someone they trust or a place where they can be open to one another and talk about their problems, their issues and their healing.

"The answers lie within the men's meetings, the men's healing groups. That's where healing starts from," he said.

The meeting was the third held in Coral, but it's the ninth overall, as the group has been holding meetings in other communities in the region over the past few years.

Five men from each community in the Kivalliq are invited to attend the meetings. There are also support workers, counsellors and elders in attendance.

Kaludjak said the purpose of the meeting is to help men heal.

"Our aim is to help the men become a better husband and a better father in the home and if he is in pain, if he's drinking, if he's doing drugs, if he's gambling a lot or addicted to any form, we help him to realize that home is where the most important thing is and the most important person in the home is the child."

The group has had great results already, with men showing positive changes as soon as the weight of their pain is lifted off their shoulders, said Kaludjak.

"You can see the changes right away because they've been carrying this thing for many years and they'll talk about it in the meeting or one-on-one with one of the psychologists. They feel safe, they feel somebody cares and they feel the security that happens in these men's meetings and they come to realize they're not alone."

Kaludjak said the success of the meetings comes from the camaraderie between the participants.

"It's coming from our own people and the people are dealing with their own problems and helping each other and understanding each other.

"We're friends. We're relatives. We know each other by name. It's just awesome knowing I can trust you. You're not going to be here one week and then we'll never see you again."

Although the meetings are creating positive results, Kaludjak said they can't fix everything.Once the men leave the meeting, they need continued support, he said.

"They're going to go back to the communities and they need the support. That's where the programs come in - youth programs, land programs, traditional programs - that's where they come in to keep these men going and help them out where they can."

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