Ready for the rush of the season
Co-ordinator prepares for next summer's tourist season
Michele LeTourneau
Northern News Services
Published Monday, October 20, 2014
UQSUQTUUQ/GJOA HAVEN
Kelly Putuguq's new job is going to be a big one.
As Gjoa Haven's tourism co-ordinator at the Nattilik Heritage Centre since February, she is involved in the planning and logistics to receive tourists visiting the community.
Kelly Putuguq, tourism co-ordinator at the Nattilik Heritage Centre in Gjoa Haven, set up a booth at the Nunavut Trade Show in Iqaluit Oct. 7 to 9. - Michele LeTourneau/NNSL photo |
This past summer, she said, five cruise ships were supposed to come through.
By the end of the summer, Putuguq experienced a mixture of disappointment and relief.
"I had planned and made arrangements for the community to do some performing," said Putuguq.
All for naught as, one by one, the cruise ships cancelled, unable to navigate the heavy ice situation in Victoria Strait to get to the community.
But, in retrospect, the relief came because she wants a bit more training.
Her visit to Iqaluit to set up a booth at the Nunavut Trade Show Oct. 7 to 9 was one such opportunity. Putuguq was happy for the chance to mix and mingle with others at the show and to speak with visitors to the Gjoa Haven booth.
"I got to meet a lot of new people," she said.
Previously, Putuguq was the community liaison officer for the hamlet, a position that was very much an office job.
She was drawn to the tourism position because of the chance to get "elders and youth more involved with each other, like with traditional knowledge."
As the co-ordinator, Putuguq is involved with activities at the heritage centre.
For example, Tuesday evenings, the heritage centre is open to the public. Putuguq works as an interpreter between the elders and the youth.
"We select two elders, we have a list and we rotate them, and we have somebody different every Tuesday. We have them telling, for example, how their parents were brought up."
Welcoming cruise ships will involve greeting and accommodating from 100 to 200 people, the range of capacity for those ships.
"I've never really done it," she said. "I was hoping to experience it at least once this summer because I know we're going to be really busy next year."
Putuguq is referring to the surge in visitors expected in the area in the wake of Parks Canada finding, at long last, one of Franklin's lost ships, the HMS Erebus.
"I'm excited to get more training," she said.
The new tourism co-ordinator will attend the Nunavut Tourism annual general meeting and training session Oct. 25 to 29 in Iqaluit, organized for its members. Aside from an opportunity to network with people involved in the tourism industry, such as hotels, outfitters, airlines and others in similar community tourism roles as her, Putuguq will have the chance to listen to relevant information from representatives of Transport Canada, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canada Tourism Commission and customer service professionals.
Putuguq plans on being ready next summer.
