Rankin Inlet says goodbye to three lost men

Rankin Inlet’s Mary Our Mother Catholic church is expected to reach capacity Feb. 9 as residents attend the funeral mass for three local men who drowned in a Jan. 21 accident. (PHOTO COURTESY DIOCESE OF CHURCHILL-HUDSON BAY)

Almost three weeks after three Rankin Inlet men drowned in a deadly sea ice accident, the community finally gathered Feb. 9 to say goodbye and seek much-needed closure from the tragic loss.

Schools, organizations and a number of businesses in Rankin Inlet closed at lunch today to allow residents of the Kivalliq community to attend the funeral mass for the three local men.

Patrick Kaludjak and three relatives, James Mucpah Kaludjak, Billy Kaludjak and Corey Panika, were travelling by Bombardier snow machine from Rankin Inlet to Arviat Jan. 21 when their vehicle went through the sea ice near Whale Cove.

Only Panika survived.

Search and rescue crews were only able to recover the bodies of two of the men: Patrick Kaludjak and James Mucpah Kaludjak. The funeral service had been delayed until authorities returned the bodies to their home communities.

The delay created a strong need for closure among the victims’ family members and the wider community, said Catholic Bishop Anthony Wieslaw Krótki, who presided over today’s funeral mass at Rankin Inlet’s Mary Our Mother Catholic Church.

“I’ve seen the community struggle with this—it was too long,” said Bishop Krótki, who is visiting Rankin Inlet this week from Churchill, Man., where he heads the Catholic Diocese of Churchill-Hudson Bay.

“The grieving has been very painful. It’s a large family and they would like to move forward.”

The Kaludjak family are active members of the church, he said, which has been an important source of counselling and support for people in Rankin Inlet impacted by the tragedy.

With only two coffins at the service, Bishop Krótki said the family prepared something to serve as a symbol of Billy Kaludjak, who is presumed drowned but whose body has not yet been recovered.

“I have been to many funerals in the North, and I can see just how painful this is,” he said ahead of the afternoon service. “But saying goodbye will be very important.”

Rankin Inlet’s Mary Our Mother church is the largest of the Churchill-Hudson Bay diocese, with a capacity of about 600 people. Bishop Krótki expected the church to be full for the Feb. 9 service.

And the bishop’s message to the community: guard hope and faith, even in times of despair.

“I want to tell people that there is hope; that those who left are not leaving for good,” Bishop Krótki said.

“There is hope for the family that their loved ones are not abandoned; they are not suffering,” he added. “They are awaiting them in a new life.”

The national Inuit organization, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, also expressed its sympathies to the Kaludjak families in a Feb. 9 statement.

“You are in our hearts today and we share your profound loss and grief,” ITK said. “Now, in our time of sadness, we must come together to love and support each other. Our unity is our strength.”