Arviat marches for hope
Youth leadership camp teaches
Cody Punter
Northern News Services
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
ARVIAT
Arviat held a youth leadership camp for a dozen teenagers looking to make a difference in their community earlier this month.
The leadership camp leads a Hope Walk through the community. The youth leaders are Megan Gavin, far left, Alissa Matoo, Stephanie Aulatjut, Shelby Angalik and Makayla Kuksuk. ?Inuktitut Banner: Charmaine Koomak, Carmen Suluk, Marika Arloo and Ruth Kaviok. - photo courtesy of Michelle Malla
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The camp was organized by the hamlet in conjunction with Taking It Global, a Toronto based non-profit focused on empowering youth.
"We thought it would be nice to get involved with because there's so many youth around here," said economic development officer Michelle Malla, who helped spearhead the initiative. "It's important for youth to see role models."
Throughout the week about a dozen Arviat youth took part in a wide range of activities to teach them hands-on leadership skills.
On Canada Day, the youth undertook a mosaic project, in addition to helping at a barbecue and offering face painting for the younger children. Later on in the week they organized a soccer baseball tournament for 48 children.
They also took part in a leadership and communication workshop, featuring Imaginations Destinations, a reading program organized by recent high school graduate, Shelby Angalik.
Angalik said it's been slow going since the program began earlier this year, but with the volunteers from the leadership camp chipping, attendance rose fourfold.
"With the leadership camps everyone came over. I got like 20 kids," she said, pointing out she usually doesn't have more than five toddlers show up for the Sunday library sessions.
By far the most powerful event of the leadership camp was the Hope Walk. Although it was only planned at the last minute, approximately 200 people participated in the march through town, including children and elders.
"It sends a message to everyone, not to just . . . people in Arviat but in the Kivalliq that there's hope in everything they do," said Malla.
Angalik said it was inspiring to see how many people came out for the walk on such short notice.
"That's when I really realized our town has a lot of hope," she said. "Having programs like that show that people are here for each other. They're willing to help each other."
Another highlight for Malla was getting to write two skits - one about caribou and a modernization of Sedna, the sea spirit from Inuit legend. The skits were then performed and presented to younger children.
"I wanted to write a little skit to involve our culture," she said.
Malla said since the end of the leadership program, youth have been starting up programs for younger children in the community.
"I'm very proud of our youth in our community. They are our future and it's great to see them be leaders to younger kids."
