Kugluktummiut take wellness into their own hands

SARA MINOGUE

In April, 2004, about 40 federal government workers who deliver programs to the territory visited Kugluktuk to learn about the community that their programs were designed to improve.

“We educated those 40 federal government representatives about what Kugluktuk feels like, sounds like and looks like as Kugluktuk residents,” said Millie Kuliktana, who was part of the interagency committee hosting the tour. “But during our educating them, we also confirmed with our own team that sustainability is better accomplished by Kugluktummiut working for the cause of Kugluktummiut, and doing away with band-aid solutions that come from the South, outside of our community.”

Instead of letting their hard work expire after a day-long presentation, the group decided to start Tahiuktit, which means “lending hands.” In December, 2004, the group incorporated as a non-profit, volunteer-based society dedicated to improving the lives of Kugluktummiut, on their own terms.

Almost two years later, on Feb. 10, Tahiuktit invited Premier Paul Okalik, Education Minister Ed Picco and Culture, Language, Elders and Youth Minister Louis Tapardjuk to a grand opening of their new wellness and learning centre — an old library building that the hamlet was using as a warehouse, and was willing to donate to the project.

Tahiuktit has since held its first workshops, starting with a music workshop attended mainly by high school students, and a traditional bow-making workshop. This week, the group launches its first two-week project, a “Great Kids” workshop provided by health and social services. That program will bring a week of skills workshops to early childhood workers, followed by a week of programs for mothers with babies.

Education is the group’s main focus, and improving the quality of life for community members is the chief goal.

“We thought that our band aid would be to provide learning workshops for the betterment of the lives of Kugluktuk residents,” says Kuliktana, Tahiuktit’s founder and president, “whether they are people that are well to do, or the middle level people, or the low income families or the families that have not. We want to help people learn different skills they’re interested in to help them do what they do better.”

The only other centre in the community that can address adult learning is the Nunavut Arctic College, says Kuliktana, “but they already have their priorities and their mandate.”

The society’s first big initiative is research-based, Kuliktana said.

The group is sending flyers to all the hamlet’s residents asking “what would make your life better?”

“For some it might be, to help me play better music, or for some to help me skin my foxes better. Or help me be a better dad or a better mom, but we don’t know that information, and for us to prioritize the types of learning workshops, we need to canvass the community.”

With that information, the Tahiuktit Society will write proposals for funding to host the workshops.

Eventually, the group hopes to add language and cultural programming. These workshops would create short-term jobs for elders in the community, hired to teach others their skills.

They’re also looking ahead to the potential mining jobs that could soon come to the region, and to the criminal record checks that could prevent some people from getting hired. Tahiuktit wants to host a pardoning workshop, so that people can start the process of getting their criminal records cleared.

“It’s a long process, but if there’s nobody willing to help the people start the process, then that’s what we want to do,” Kuliktana says.

Part of their initial funding proposal included a promise to develop a kit that other communities in Nunavut could use to start their own non-profit learning societies.

“So that later on we can ask communities to apply to be a selected community so that we can go and teach them how to take this into their own hands as well.”

The society’s board includes former mayor Joanne Taptuna; the youth centre coordinator Grayson Adamache; and David Kaosoni of the hamlet’s wellness centre. Other board members are Lucy Nivingalok, Margaret Joy, Richard Herrington, Ryan Nivingalok and Jeannie Burks. Mavis Adju was hired as centre coordinator.

Start-up funding for the project was promised from the federal government. Now that a new government is in power, Kuliktana hopes that money will still arrive, but was reluctant to name the agency at Nunatsiaq News press time before that commitment was guaranteed.