KANGIQLINIQ/RANKIN INLET
One of the Kivalliq's most endearing role models was in Rankin Inlet to take part in a number of events to mark World Suicide Prevention Day this past week.

Kathleen (Ivaluarjuk) Merritt, left, helped recording artist Susan Aglukark hold a number of events to mark World Suicide Prevention Day in Rankin Inlet on Sept. 10. - Darrell Greer/NNSL photo

Recording artist Susan Aglukark, formerly of Arviat, choreographed a dance routine performed at the Rankin airport terminal, led a discussion and arts-related workshop, and took part in a candlelight walk to show her, and the community's, commitment to choosing life.

She was aided in a number of the events by Rankin's Kathleen (Ivaluarjuk) Merritt, herself an Inuit throatsinger, poet, writer and collaborator who recently released the CD Ivaluarjuk: Ice Lines and Sealskin.

Aglukark hit number one in Canada with her single, O Siem, and had a pair of Top 10 hits in Song of the Land and Hina Na Ho.

She also topped the Canadian charts in 1995 with her album, This Child, which is now a three-time-platinum seller in Canada.

Aklukark said she's made sure her time on World Suicide Prevention Day has been pencilled off for Nunavut during the past two years.

She said she planned the flash mob that performed at the terminal building through her own Arctic Rose project.

"We had about 20 people take part in the traditional dance at the airport, and I held an art-journal workshop later that evening to work with young people in changing our dialogue around loss," said Aglukark.

"We started with a bit of history on my own journey, because everyone assumes your life is easy as a celebrity and it's often really the opposite.

"I talked about how being given a second chance meant I really had to step up and understand what I'm so afraid of, and figure out how to confront, and use, those fears to keep my career.

"I wanted to be an artist, a singer-songwriter, but it wasn't going to happen on its own, so I had to figure it out by talking to people, taking singing lessons, learning to write and figuring out my English."

Aglukark employs some of what she learned in calming her own personal fears to deliver her workshop.

She found a way to deal with the clutter in her head that kept her from slowing down enough to truly make a moment hers.

Aglukark said she likes to help youths identify the normal stages of being a teen.

She said teenagers deal with many of the same issues, even those who come from a well-to-do family.

"That's a given, but, due to very different circumstances in small town Nunavut, there's all these other challenges or social factors that compound those feelings for our young people.

"We have no control over what may happen in your life, but we do have control over how you handle it.

"And that's what the workshop focuses on: how do you want to handle these challenges from here on?

"I walk them through little writing exercises and art projects that will calm down the clutter in their minds and help them deal with everyday challenges."

Aglukark sparks healthy conversations among the youths and tries to discover the reasons why some of them feel angry.

She then tries to get them to change their emotions into something positive.

Aglukark said she remains optimistic the day will come when suicide is brought under control in Nunavut, and is no longer an option to the vast majority of the territory's youth.

She said she's never doubted it can be done, not for one second.

"There are so many wonderful people, whether they're Inuit or not, who are working towards the same end.

"The biggest hurdle we face -- and this is what I hope the Arctic Rose project will evolve into -- is we really need to understand what happens when someone decides not to go on living.

"We know residential school has something to do with it, and we know colonization has something to do with it.

"We know what the effects of residential schools and colonization are, but what are we doing about them?

"Then there's the big key, parenting, and I've been saying since 2008 that we have to get our young parents to step up and become more engaged, because, without that, all the programs are pointless."

Aklukark said the key, in Nunavut, is to understand how to teach, help and mentor young parents -- including herself -- to become more engaged during the life of the next generation.

She said people are starting to recognize that parenting is a big element in dealing with many issues, particularly suicide.

"We can, ourselves, take many of the necessary steps to make positive changes in our territory for the future.

"But, for us to get ahead of if, we need to see many different departments doing their part.

"We'll work on the social issues and the challenges being faced by young parents, but we all know the other underlying issues are the very basics of healthy living in the housing crisis, the cost of living and the cost of food.

"Changing our young people goes all for naught if we put them back into an unchanged environment."

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