Late September 2025

Snow began falling around Arctic Bay in the middle of September, signalling the coming of winter.  The hills & mountains looked like someone sprinkled powdered sugar on them.  Snow fell in the community several days later but most of it melted.  I switched to rubber boots because of the large mud pits along the roads and between houses.  At least dust wasn’t being kicked up by vehicles.  All the roads here are gravel paved.

Construction crews have been hard at work on several projects in town, getting as much done as possible before winter.  Arctic Bay has been experiencing a construction boom and it’s much needed.  Our infrastructure needs upgrades & additions.  The latest Liberal federal government has promised increased attention & investment in Canada’s North, and I hope they follow through.  The territories have already experienced many broken promises.

Daycare site.

Infrastructure projects currently being worked on are a new water pumping station/treatment plant, two large residential complexes, and the creation of lots for a daycare & several rent-to-own houses.  Prefabricated modules for the rent-to-own houses were brought ashore at the beginning of September.  They won’t be installed until next year because the metal pile foundations need to be put it first.  The modules were moved to the site using loaders.  The large & colourful 8-plex residence is nearing completion.  The 12-plex residence next to it still has a long way to go.  Only the bottom flooring & side walls are up.  It’ll be at least another year or two before it’s ready.  As for the daycare, the local contractor has been pouring & flattening tons of earth to create the space needed to lay the foundations.  I’ve been told the daycare modules will arrive on next year’s sealift.    

Prefab house modules.

I think I can say everyone in town is glad we’re getting a new water pumping station with treatment equipment.  Arctic Bay is still under a water boil advisory, now just over a year.  I don’t think this is the first time the community has experienced such an extended advisory.  I’m still the school’s water boy, filling up empty water jugs at the Northern Store and bringing them back every few days.  The alternative is boiling water at school using tea kettles but that takes a lot of time.  Everyone is hoping the advisory will be lifted soon, but I’m not holding my breath.  The new facility will reduce the likelihood of another prolonged advisory.

An even better solution would be to construct a water distribution network that includes a water tower.  Constructing such a network will require a lot of piping because our water source is about 6.5km south of the community, near the airport.  And money, of course.  If the entire system can’t be built in one go, the powers that be should look at building a water pipeline from the source to a refill station near the gas station.  That will drastically reduce the distance water trucks will need to travel to fill up and the Hamlet will save money on gas.     

Terry Fox Run 2025

Inuujaq School held its Terry Fox Run on September 15.  Parents & guardians were invited to attend & participate.  The annual event is held every September, all over the world, as “[a] family friendly, all ages, non-competitive event to raise funds for cancer research.”  The event/campaign has been going strong since 1980 and this year marks its 45^th iteration.

Terry Fox, a Canadian athlete, humanitarian, and cancer activist, ran 5,373km across Canada in 1980 to raise money for cancer research.  He called his initiative the Marathon of Hope.  He lost one of his legs to cancer, but that didn’t stop him from running a marathon a day (42km), for 143 days, raising $1.7 million.  He began in St. John’s, Newfoundland, and reached just outside Thunder Bay, Ontario, before being forced to stop because his cancer returned.  Tragically, he succumbed to the illness and passed away before reaching the Pacific coast.  He was only 22 years old.  His determination & legacy lives on through the Terry Fox Foundation.

The Terry Fox Foundation mailed a box of resources for students & teachers to use during the week leading up to September 15 on the day of the run.  They included posters, activity sheets, and stickers.  Teachers also did their own activities.  The school’s Events Committee organized an afternoon assembly and walk/run around town. 

Terry Fox is well-known in Arctic Bay.  We have the Terry Fox Pass Monument on the Road to Nanisivik, established in the 1980s by the Polar Pacers and the Midnight Marathoners.  Terry Fox’s younger brother once worked at the former Nanisivik Mine.

The assembly began at 1:45pm with a welcome speech from me and an Inuit teacher.  We were the emcees.  I then showed three educational videos about Terry Fox to the audience.  One of them showed Terry’s route from beginning to end.  I then displayed the three walk/run routes created for classes.  They were the same from last year and followed the roads.  The distances were organized as short, medium, & long.  Elementary were assigned the short route, middle school did the medium route, and high school were given the longest route.  Participants could walk and/or run.  Everyone would return to the gym upon completion to get snacks.  Teachers received printed copies of the routes before the assembly.  Participants wrote the names of the people they were running for on large orange stickers and pasted them to their clothing as they headed outside.

A few staff members & I brought out more tables after everyone left and set out juice boxes, granola bars, and trays of Bannock.  The school hired Elders to prepare Bannock all morning.  Students, teachers, parents, & guardians slowly trickled into the gym after some time and helped themselves to snacks & juice.  Students & teachers returned to class after they finished eating & resting.  Several high school students & teachers stayed behind to help clean up the gym.

 

School Picnic & Community Service

Inuujaq School held a picnic for students, staff, parents, guardians, and community members on the afternoon of September 5.  The event gave people the opportunity to meet & greet the teachers, new & returning, and enjoy delicious barbecue food.  The event also allowed the school to test the 2 new BBQ machines it bought on sealift.  I must commend the local Northern Store for successfully delivering two large food orders for the first day of school and picnic since these events occurred close to each other.

The school’s Events Committee handled the planning & staging of the picnic.  The original plan was for the event to be at Uluskan Point, like we did in 2023, but circumstances beyond our control made this impossible.  Thankfully, the committee had a Plan B: the school.  (The school is heated, has washrooms, and provides shelter against bad weather).

Several high school teachers & students set up the BBQ/food station just behind the school after lunch.  The weather was sunny.  Staff found alternate parking spots for their vehicles.  Tables, chairs, barbecues, garbage cans, utensils, cleaning supplies, juice boxes, frozen hamburgers, hamburger & hot dog buns, and condiments were all brought outside and set up.  The hot dogs would be prepared inside on an electric powered hot dog rolling machine the school bought last year.  The BBQ staff immediately got to work cooking food so there would be some to serve right from the start.  You don’t want a long line up.

The picnic began at 1:30pm and there were 2 food lines.  The wait time was manageable & tolerable.  The two new Coleman barbecues worked well, leading me to conclude that another two need to be purchased.  The volunteer cooks did a great job preparing hotdogs & hamburgers.  Running 4 barbecues & 1 hot dog rolling machine proved effective because everyone in attendance went through the food line in a shorter period than I thought.  Seconds were offered to everyone.  Everyone had fun.

The barbecue ended early.  High school students assisted the BBQ staff with cleanup.  Students & teachers returned to class and then were dismissed early for the weekend.

The army cadets of 3045 Corps performed community service on September 6, cleaning a section of shoreline between the gas station & airport.  Performing community service is part of the Canadian Cadet Program, and taking care of the land follows the Inuit IQ Principle of Avatimik Kamattiarniq.

The cadets & I arrived at school in the morning for breakfast, consisting of prepackaged meals shipped by the regional cadet support unit.  I held a quick briefing after breakfast, going over the plan for the day.  The cadets then gathered the equipment we would need and placed it in a waiting pickup truck.  The cadets found safe spots in the back of the truck, and I drove them to the staging area.

We reached the staging area after a 15-minute drive.  We unloaded the equipment from the truck and placed it in a designated spot.  We equipped ourselves with disposable gloves, garbage bags, and walkie-talkies.  We split into two groups and began ridding the shoreline of garbage.  The amount of garbage is less than behind the airport, but still noticeable & unwanted.  Most of the items we picked up were pop cans, chip bags, discarded toys, plastic bags, and clothes.  Very large items like wooden boards, logs, and rubber tires, were organized into large piles. 

An RCMP officer stopped to greet us.  After I explained what we were doing, the officer offered to take several filled garbage bags and drop them off at the local landfill.  We agreed to the offer.  Thank you!

A curious dog crossed the road and followed us around.  I think they are a part of a team of sled dogs just down the road.  The dog didn’t cause trouble and stayed with us until after lunch.

The cadets prepared their lunches at noon, firing up a Coleman stove, and cooking Meals-Ready-to-Eat (MREs).  Lunch lasted an hour.

We moved closer to town and continued picking up garbage along the shoreline.  We were surprised to find a discarded fridge & wooden ladder.  The cadets removed the door and placed large objects inside the old beat-up fridge.  Smaller items were placed in black garbage bags.   

The shoreline cleanup finished at 3:00pm.  I took a group photo of the cadets standing behind the garbage bags they filled.  We packed everything up and drove to the landfill to drop off the garbage bags.  We put away all the corps equipment at Frank’s Shop.  I thanked the cadets for participating in the activity and doing their part to keep the land clean.  I drove them home.

The First Few Weeks & Sealift

Inuujaq School staff, new & returning, assembled a few days before the start of the academic year to meet, collaborate, and prepare the classrooms & school for students.  School Administration held a morning staff meeting to go over many essential items.  I won’t bore you with the entire list, but it included schedules, duty assignments, policies, upcoming events, and important due dates.  We also introduced ourselves and gave brief bios.  The next 2 & half days were spent getting ready.  A few teachers assisted me setting up the gym for the first day assembly.

The first day for students was August 18.  Staff arrived early in the morning to prepare food for breakfast.  The menu included various fruits, granola bars, cheese, meat, yogurt tubes, and juice boxes.  The food was moved to the gym where it was equally divided onto paper plates.  The food would be served at the morning assembly.  It’s best to prepare plates ahead of time to make distribution immediate & easy.  You don’t want to keep the audience waiting.

The first school bell of the 2025-26 school year rang and excited students came inside.  Students were welcomed over morning announcements.  Everyone proceeded to the gym for the morning assembly & breakfast.  Parents & guardians were invited. 

The principal opened the assembly with a short speech.  She welcomed everyone and wished the students the best for the school year.  A Minute of Silence was held for two students we tragically lost over the summer.  I won’t include details out of respect for the families involved.  An Elder blessed the food and the principal instructed all staff to help with distribution.  The plates went fast and the food was delicious. 

Staff members introduced themselves and stated their assigned roles.  Parents & guardians were invited to take leftover food home in takeout boxes.  Teachers escorted their students back to class at the end of the assembly.  High school students stayed behind to clean up the gym.

The first few weeks were spent establishing student routines, expectations, learning outcomes, proper behaviours, reviewing the IQ Principles, and beginning the curriculum.  High school students were told they only had the first few weeks to decide if they wanted to change classes.  I will be spending most of my time in the main office as vice principal – my second year – but also teaching high school drums.

The annual sealift shipping season began early in Arctic Bay with ships from NSSI & NEAS arriving near the end of August.  They usually arrive at the beginning of September.  Earlier is better.  NSSI offloaded my crate and then I hired a local business to move it to my place.  I spent a few hours on the weekend opening the crate with a crowbar, moving everything inside, sorting, and putting my supplies away.  My residence now looks like a well stocked fallout shelter.  I would spend the next several days moving the school supplies I bought to school.

The school’s sealift order also arrived, taking up a large space in front of the Northern Store.  The order was divided into many wooden crates of various sizes.  The school contracted a local moving company to move them closer to school.  Staff & students spent several days opening the crates & moving the supplies inside.  The main hallway looked like an aisle in a warehouse.  I assisted the secretary in checking all the products that arrived against the order lists.  We received most of the requested items.  The items were distributed throughout the school.  We should be good for most of the year.  If we need to order anything, it’ll have to be shipped by air.

 

Field Of Arctic Bay Dreams

I returned to Arctic Bay in early August to get a head start on preparing for the upcoming school year.  My first year as vice principal taught me extra time is needed for anything & everything.  Staying ahead of duties & tasks by a large margin pays dividends in the long run.  I did take a day or two to reacclimatize living in Canada’s Arctic.

Arctic Bay residents headed to Victor Bay on the afternoon of August 8 for the grand opening of the newly constructed baseball diamond.  The artificial turf diamond was built in 2023 with the Toronto Blue Jays providing a $46,000 donation through its Jays Care Foundation (JCF).  JCF representatives were present at the ceremony.     The original plan was to have the diamond in the community, but the chosen spot proved unworkable. 

The principal & I drove out to the field in the late afternoon.  There were a crowd and barbecue happening when we got there.  Kids & teenagers were playing baseball on the field.  The field looks nice in my view.  A bright blue wooden hut and 2 sea containers are also on site.

The ceremony was led by the hamlet’s recreation coordinator.  CBC News North sent a film crew to record the event.  The coordinator stood near the pitcher’s mound and welcomed everyone in Inuktitut & English.  The JCF representatives joined her on the field.  She called on all youth to come onto the field and receive Blue Jays t-shirts.  The youth then stood in two lines near home plate, holding the flags of Canada and Toronto Blue Jays.

Two Elders did a song & drum dance, followed by two lady throat singers.  Speeches were made by the recreation coordinator, JCF representatives, and deputy mayor.  The ceremony ended with a ribbon cutting. 

Youth continued playing baseball on the artificial turf and the recreation staff carried on with the barbecue.  I stayed around for a bit taking pictures and then got a ride back to town with the principal. 

Arctic Bay now has its own Field of Dreams . . . minus the cornfield.