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News Briefs: Monday, April 23, 2012
Yellowknife mourns Ed Jeske
Yellowknife hockey lost a grandfather this past weekend.
Ed Jeske passed away after a stay in hospital. The longtime junior hockey coach and referee was a fixture at the rink that bears his name, and will be sorely missed by the community, according to Yellowknife Minor Hockey coach Dan Schofield.
"Most people call him him Grandpa Ed. Once he was too old to coach, he still came to the rink. He was always at the old timer tournaments, 'cause those are the kids he used to coach. He meant a lot to hockey in this town."
Jeske was in his mid-80's.
- Jesse Winter
Elections in Tulita
The Tulita Land Corporation elected a new president, vice-president and board of directors last Monday.
Clarence Campbell earned 119 votes to clinch the presidency. Gordon Yakeleya, the only other candidate, trailed behind with 106 votes. Edward MacCauley was elected vice-president, while Leon Andrew, Lorraine Doctor, Sally Ann Horassi and Sarah Horassi were elected to the board of directors. Fred Clement Sr. and Lee Ann McPherson both garnered 87 votes for a director position. Clement later won in a draw for the final position.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
New chief for Lutsel K'e
Lutsel K'e Dene First Nation elected a new chief on April 16.
Dora Enzoe won with 55 votes while incumbent Antoine Michel was a close second with 50 votes.
Five people will be acclaimed to councillor positions, as not enough people submitted nomination forms to merit an election.
The new councillors are Emily Saunders, James Marlowe, Ron Fatt, Stephanie Poole and Sheldon Yamkovy.
A sixth councillor will likely be appointed.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
Energy action awards
The Arctic Energy Alliance has announced the winners of the 2012 Energy Action Awards.
The recipients are Doug Whiteman of Norman Wells (individual), the Yellowknife YWCA (institution), Enterprise (community) and the Yellowknife Co-op (business).
Since 2001, the Arctic Energy Alliance has honoured Northerners for showing initiative and leadership in the areas of energy efficiency and renewable energy.
- Paul Bickford
Restaurant opening delayed in Res
Deninu Ku'e/Fort Resolution
The opening of Ama's Kitchen, a new restaurant in Fort Resolution, has been delayed until May 1.
It had been tentatively set to open on April 19.
The new business, which is being launched by Toni Lafferty, will be the only restaurant in Fort Resolution.
It will be operating in leased space attached to the DKDC Store - the former Stan's Quick Stop now owned by the Deninu Ku'e Development Corporation.
- Paul Bickford
Spotlight on Tsiigehtchic
Tsiigehtchic/Arctic Red River
Last weekend it was Tsiigehtchic's turn to host its annual spring jamboree.
The Arctic Red River Mackenzie Jamboree was set to kick off at 5 p.m. on Friday, according to recreation co-ordinator Bobbie Jean VanLoon.
King and queen contestants Sarah Andre, Cole Maring, Melanie Blake, Ryan Mitchell, Charlene Blake and Wills Storr were set to learn who raised enough money to earn this year's crowns at the opening ceremonies at 5 p.m. A community feast and $2,000 bingo were to follow at the Chief Paul Niditchie School gym. At 9 p.m. the talent show for all ages was to kick off.
Saturday's festivities began with a pancake breakfast at the gym. Rifle shooting, traditional events and children's events, like piggy-back races and three-legged races, were scheduled to start the day, followed by mixed ice chiseling, snowshoe races and snowmobile races. In the evening there was an old time dance scheduled, including jigging and jiving contests with over $1,200 in prizes.
Sunday began with another pancake breakfast, followed by adult events like foot races, four-legged races and the egg toss.
Rope wrestling was included in the jamboree schedule for the first time this year, VanLoon said. In the contest, participants have to try and wrestle their opponent outside a rope circle.
Snowmobile races were to be held in the evening, followed by closing ceremonies at the river. The raffle draw, with $4,500 in cash prizes, concluded the jamboree.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
'Walk and Bike' in Fort Smith
Thebacha/Fort Smith
Ecology North and Fort Smith EarthFest will sponsor a 'Walk and Bike' event from April 23-27 as part of Earth Week.
Residents of Fort Smith are being encouraged to leave their cars at home, and walk or bike to school or to work.
Members of Ecology North and Fort Smith EarthFest will be out on the street during rush hour to hand out prizes to people who are walking or biking.
- Paul Bickford
Inuvialuit in London
Ulukhaktok/Holman
Emily Kudlak and Helen Kitekudlak of Ulukhaktok were in London, England, last week to examine traditional tools, clothing and objects at the British Museum.
Their work is part of an ongoing literacy project in partnership with the NWT Literacy Council and the University of Lethbridge.
"People who still know the importance of these objects to the traditional way of life will have a chance to see some of them," stated Helen Balanoff, the council's executive director, in a news release. "We hope to be able to capture language and stories about the objects, as well as the skills involved in making them."
Kudlak and Kitekudlak, as well as representatives from the Kitikmeot Heritage Society and Cambridge Bay, got the chance to see artifacts dating back to the first encounters between Europeans and ancestors of the Inuinnait.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
A weekend on the Peel
Tetlit'Zheh/Fort McPherson
The 2012 Peel Jamboree wrapped up on April 15 with a talent show featuring Louie Goose and the Big River Band.
Events began on April 12 with the crowning of jamboree king and queen Phillip Kay and Jayda Andre and continued all weekend at the river and the community complex.
Events included feasts, old time dances, indoor games, snowmobile races and traditional games.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
Fisher's paradise
Deline/Fort Franklin
Deline is in the running to be named Ultimate Fishing Town by the World Fishing Network.
The television network is hosting an online contest to see where the best spots to fish are and where local residents have the most passion for the sport.
The winning town will receive a $25,000 donation, have a television feature produced about the town and earn the title Ultimate Fishing Town. Voting goes from May 1 until May 31.
As of last week, Fort Providence, Whati, Ulukhaktok, Yellowknife and Gameti were all nominated as well.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
Celebrating their heritage
Lli Goline/Norman Wells
Students at Mackenzie Mountain School in Norman Wells had the chance to show off their heritage fair presentations to the public on April 17. Students set up for the fair on April 16 in preparation for judging and public viewing.
High school students received their report cards, as well as parent-teacher conference times, on April 19. Conferences will be held on April 23, which means senior students have the afternoon off that day. Students in kindergarten to Grade 8 have regularly scheduled classes.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
Busy Beluga Jamboree
Tuktoyaktuk
Hundreds gathered at the harbour in Tuktoyaktuk from April 13 to 16 to celebrate the annual Beluga Jamboree.
Events included bingo, a drum dance competition, square dancing, traditional dress contests, an adult talent show and snowmobile races. The closing ceremonies were held at Kitti Hall on April 16.
- Nathalie Heiberg-Harrison
Grocery store drug dealer pleads guilty
Iqaluit
Eager to "get his matters dealt with," Putuliq Qumak pleaded guilty April 16 to selling drugs outside the Iqaluit NorthMart despite a court order to stay off the premises.
Qumak will spend two months in jail for the charge selling less than three kilograms of cannabis after undercover police busted him and five others in a drug trafficking and bootlegging bust called Operation Vegas March 19 to 24. Breach of probation charges were dropped after the guilty plea.
Qumak also pleaded guilty to selling liquor to the undercover police. For those charges, he was sentenced to 21 days already served, and must pay a $5,000 fine.
Operation Vegas ran in response to complaints from the public about drug trafficking at local businesses, police said last month. Iqaluit residents frequently complain on social media sites about drug deals taking place outside NorthMart and Arctic Ventures.
The five others have yet to speak in court to their charges and were released conditionally when charged. They are to appear in court May 7.
- Casey Lessard
Iqaluit waits to assign deputy mayor
Iqaluit
Iqaluit Mayor Madeleine Redfern is hoping for a full complement of councillors to help her decide who wants and is able to replace the late David Ell as deputy mayor.
"Under the bylaws, it's up to me," to choose a replacement, Redfern said, "but I value the guidance and support of council."
With only about 10 meetings before the next election, she said the city needs a deputy mayor for the times when she is unavailable, which has not been often, but she plans to take a two-week vacation soon. Also, she will be attending Tuesday's meeting by telephone as she attends the International Polar Year conference in Montreal, and the deputy mayor would typically chair in such situations.
She isn't sure that all councillors will be able to attend as several are dealing with the passing of family members and personal issues, so the decision may have to wait.
- Casey Lessard
Union and energy corp. reach tentative agreement
Nunavut
Qulliq Energy Corporation employees will vote on a new collective agreement as the corporation has reached a tentative agreement with the Nunavut Employees Union.
The collective agreement between the energy corporation and its approximately 160 unionized employees expired on Dec. 31, 2010.
The three-year tentative deal would see wages increase 2.5 per cent retroactively for 2011 and two per cent each for 2013 and 2013, according to information posted on the corporation's website.
It adds all QEC employees at date of ratification will get $1,100 and overtime would be allowed to be bank up to a certain limit. If ratified, the agreement would be effective retroactively to Jan. 1, 2011. Both parties will sent the tentative agreement for ratification but no timeline could be provided.
- Jeanne Gagnon
Cool and calm in Grise Fiord
Ausuittuq/Grise Fiord
It's cool and calm in Grise Fiord - unusually calm, according to Jimmie Qaapik.
"It's been a very calm winter. The weather has been too nice," Qaapik said. "Clear, sunny weather for weeks now."
The Grise Fiord resident says he can't remember such a calm winter, though he notes this has been the longest cold winter the hamlet has seen in at least a decade.
"Not much wind. It's been like this for a while," he said. "Usually we get some good winds during full moon and new moon. I can recall one storm that shook the buildings a bit, in mid-winter, maybe in January. But not too much after."
He's noticed that the weather has shifted this year, at least in terms of temperament.
"We had bad weather all through the summer, and good weather all winter. It's kind of reversed. But nobody's complaining."
- Casey Lessard
Quluaq school learns on the land
Kangiqtugaapik/Clyde River
Students at Quluaq School will spend the rest of the term on the land, at least part-time.
Starting April 1 and until June 13, all classes are spending one day in rotation, so each class spends a day every few weeks learning to build iglus, hunt and sew with elders hired by the school, co-principal Graham Field said.
"From grades 4 to 12, they'll hunt seals, ptarmigan and rabbit, and kindergarten to Grade 3 students go to the lake in the morning to fish for char and go out in the afternoon," Field said. "The (girls) who do not go hunting will be sewing mittens and various projects."
The elders taking part are Martha Enuaraq, Martha Tigullaraq, Jayko Ashevak, Limikie Palluq, Teema Qillaq, and Elijah Palituq.
- Casey Lessard
Pumphouse update and new reservoir
Kugaaruk/Pelly Bay
A potable water reservoir is in the works for Kugaaruk as a permanent remedy to salt water getting into the fresh water, said a territorial government official.
A dryer-than-normal summer and high northeasterly winds coupled with a full moon meant the high tide forced more sea water up the river than normal late last year.
Generally, the community gets some salt intrusion yearly, but this past incident was the worst in some 20 years, explained Darren Flynn, assistant deputy minister for the community support branch with the GN.
He said the territorial government built a temporary pumphouse about three kilometres upriver with a generator and an ice road for water trucks to bring fresh water to the community. During spring break, likely in mid-June, the temporary pumphouse will be demolished, said Flynn.
"With the spring runoff, we're hoping the river will flush itself at that time and we'll be back to good quality fresh water," he said.
The permanent pump house is set to be upgraded this year - put on the power grid, with twin water intakes installed. Just under $3 million is earmarked for it this fiscal year, said Flynn.
"It's happened in the past. We know we have issues and the likelihood of it happening again is probably very high," he said. "With the community, we've identified the need to build a reservoir. We are currently looking at a design that would involve being able to carry about nine months of capacity for the community."
Flynn said, depending on the approval process, a reservoir could be built in 2013 or 2014.
- Jeanne Gagnon
Aqsarniit School celebrates Education Week
Iqaluit
Premier Eva Aariak was set to kick off Education Week on Monday at Aqsarniit School in Iqaluit, principal Don Peters said.
The premier, the deputy minister of education and RCMP representatives were scheduled to attend the event, which included a screening of the school's film club's anti-bullying video, which is being used in schools across Nunavut, Peters said.
"It's a music video that the kids have done, and it's quite good," he said, noting the video was shown to teachers at the Nunavut teachers' conference in February. "The idea is that the premier is going to invite kids to put together small two-minute videos of how they learn. They're going to show the video Aqsarniit has made and hopefully the kids will make videos on learning for Education Week."
- Casey Lessard
Exchange trip with the Prairies
Uqsuqtuuq/Gjoa Haven
Visitors from Saskatchewan will be in Gjoa Haven as Qiqirtaq Ilihakvik hosts students in an exchange program with the prairie province.
Twenty students from Davidson, Sask. - close to 100 southeast of Saskatoon, about halfway to Regina - will visit Gjoa Haven from April 22 to 28, said Paul Cipriano, a Grade 9 teacher at Qiqirtaq Ilihakvik.
Next month, 23 Grades 8 and 9 students from Qiqirtaq Ilihakvik will visit Saskatchewan from May 12 to 19.
The visit is part of the YMCA Youth Exchanges Canada Program, a reciprocal home-stay program geared towards youth aged 12 to 17 and funded by the federal government through Exchanges Canada.
While in Nunavut, the Saskatchewan students will participate in traditional events such as drum dancing and dog sledding, wrote Cipriano in an e-mail.
"It's a really good learning experience: A group coming up to learn about the Inuit culture and our group to learn about farming culture," said Cipriano.
- Jeanne Gagnon
Survival course and fishing trips
Kugaaruk/Pelly Bay
A handful of Kugaaruk School students will learn survival skills this week before the whole school goes ice fishing the next.
Principal Michael Bartley said about 10 high school students will build iglus and learn survival skills during a two-day course the school is offering for the first time. He added the students will overnight on the land.
"Language and culture are very, very important to us. We look for any opportunities we can to increase our students' exposure to it," he said.
During the week of April 30, students will spend a day ice fishing two grades at a time, said Bartley. He said the elders will choose the fishing spots in lakes around the community. The common catches in the area are Arctic char and trout.
"Go fishing with the elders and drill holes in the ice and having fun," said Bartley. "It's not just math and English and Inuktitut. It's also how to be nice to others and how to learn things like surviving on the land."
- Jeanne Gagnon
Info meeting
Kangiqliniq/Rankin Inlet
The Kivalliq Energy Corp. will be holding a special information session on its Angilak Project in Rankin Inlet on Today from 7 until 9 p.m. at the Coop's Turaarvik Inns North
The Angilak Project is home to the highgrade Lac Cinquante uranium deposit, located about 235 km southwest of Baker Lake.
- Darrell Greer
Rising profile
Arviat
Arviat's blossoming Community Ecotourism Initiative received a recent boost when the community was featured in the new spring issue of Explore Magazine.
The G Adventures company is offering its first tour to Arviat this coming summer, and Explore Magazine has included the summer visit to Arviat on its list of best adventures in 2012.
The ecotourism initiative is being led by Arviat tourism development officer Olivia Tagalik under the guidance of The Tourism Company.
- Darrell Greer
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News desk 
