Nickel Belt News
Volume 58 Number 11
Friday, March 16, 2018
Thompson, Manitoba
Serving the Norman Region since 1961
Wednesday, October 20, 2021
Providing you with expert advice & friendly service. Book online at speedyglass.ca or try our free app on your iPhone
We look forward to serving you. Ϳͷ-A Kelsey Bay Thompson, MB R;N ͷS Ph: Ͷͺ-ͽͽ;-ͽͶͺ; Fax: Ͷͺ-ͽͽ;-ͽͷͺ
Serving the Hub of the North since 1960
Volume 61 • Issue 40
Two more northerners died from COVID-19 last week, increasing the region’s Book adeath waytolltotopreserve and pass on pandemic 58
memories of growing up in Churchill
BY IAN GRAHAM
EDITOR@THOMPSONCITIZEN.NET
Two more Northern Manitobans died as a result of COVID-19 last week. A woman in her 50s, whose death was reported Oct. 14, and a man in his 60s, whose death was reported the following day, are the 57th and 58th northerners to die as a result of their coronavirus infections since the pandemic began. Three other Manitobans also died of their infections since last Wednesday, taking the total pandemic death toll in the province to 1,231. Manitoba reported 51 new cases of COVID-19
Oct. 18, 36 of them in unvaccinated people. There were two new cases in the north, after 13 from the region were confirmed by lab tests Oct. 16 and 19 Oct. 15. The region currently has close to 400 active cases, 283 of which are in two health districts – Norway House (150) and Pukatawagan (133). Thompson/Mystery Lake had seven active cases on Monday. Ninety Manitobans were in hospital due to the virus Oct. 18, the first day that some provincial government employees would have to begin proving they were
fully vaccinated or submitting to testing before reporting for work. 16 of those in hospital were in intensive care. 10 of the overall hospitalizations and three of the intensive care admissions due to COVID-19 infections were residents of Northern Manitoba. The five-day test positivity rate Oct. 18 was 3.3 per cent in Manitoba. 63 per cent of active infections on Monday, as well as 77 per cent of active infections in hospital and 73 per cent of active infections in intensive care were among unvaccinated Manitobans.
Thompson Citizen photo by Ian Graham
Pay for play The Thompson Community Foundation presented a $100,000 cheque to the City of Thompson at City Hall March 14 for improvements to Eastwood Park. The money, which originated with the Manitoba 150 host committee and its Build 150 grants program, is being used to purchase a Booster Basics play structure for
the park. The Thompson Community Foundation previously provided $35,000 for the splash pad at Eastwood Park and city council agreed in March 2020 to change the park’s name to Foundation Park in recognition of the Thompson Community Foundation’s contributions towards upgrades.
161 computers and other devices donated to four Northern Manitoba First Nations Pukatawagan, Shamat- ners donated 64 refurbished vice-president and zone from going to the recycling great opportunity to high- net and those who are not,” tawa, Split Lake and Ta- monitors, packaging and general manager Sevket stream and instead into the light a more sustainable CCFC founder and presidoule Lake were set to re- logistics services, while On. “We hope that it makes hands of people that need way for organizations to dent Philip Schaus. “Only ceive 161 computers and Siemens Healthineers got a small difference in help- them,” said Quantum Li- dispose of their end of use those who are connected other digital devices on Oct. 30 employee volunteers ing to increase access to fecycle Partners director IT assets and support a true can prosper in the digital 20, designated as E-Waste and family members to computers and the Internet Faris Rassam. “Providing circular economy.” world.” Wednesday during Waste its facility in Ottawa on a in remote communities.” access to technology to our CCFC, which has organ"We are very grateful Reduction Week. weekend to scrub the used In addition to providing remote communities will ized the refurbishment and for this generous donation The 92 laptops, 65 desk- computers of data and re- four communities with com- help them stay connected distribution of over 4,800 of laptops and computers top computers and four furbish them for reuse. Via puters, the initiative also at a time where our world computers to commun- from CFCC,” said Strini handheld personal digital Rail transported the donat- diverted e-waste from the has become so virtual and ities, schools and charities Reddy of the Rotary Club assistants were made avail- ed devices by train as far recycling stream. E-waste is yet ‘disconnected.’ Also, across Canada since 2010, of Winnipeg’s Honouring able through the efforts of as The Pas and Thompson. the world’s fastest-growing we are pleased that this said digital technology is Indigenous People commultiple companies and “We are very proud waste stream, making up donation occurred during no longer a luxury. mittee. “They will be of the registered charity Cor- to have partnered with 53.6 million metric tons of Canada’s 20th anniversary “The pandemic has high- great benefit to students in porations For Community CFCC, Quantum and Via waste in 2020. of Waste Reduction Week lighted a worldwide digital four of our remote northNickel Belt photo by Ianpartner Graham Connections (CFCC). to make this donation,” “We have successfully and specifically on E-waste divide between people who ernNews indigenous Addictions Foundation of Manitoba northern director Gisele deMeulles has written a book about her experiences growing up, mostly in Churchill. Quantum Lifecycle Part- said Siemens Healthineers diverted technology assets reduction day. It’s truly a are connected to the Inter- communities.” BY IAN GRAHAM EDITOR@THOMPSONCITIZEN.NET
Though she’s now written a book about her experiences growing up in Churchill, Addictions Foundation of Manitoba northern director Gisele deMeulles said writing wasn’t something she always thought she would do. “In my youth I never felt good at writing,” she said. “But when I moved to Thompson to get into the school of social work, at that point I had to write for university and realized, ‘Holy, I’m not bad at this, right?’ I certainly developed a lot of skill in university and came out of there with a very strong skill in my writing and confidence in my writing. I write very clear and that’s it. It’s there. Some people say it’s kind of blunt or direct. I don’t tend
to write things that you have to figure out. It’s pretty clear when I get through.” DeMeulles said she wrote her book, titled Whispers in the Wind: Stories from the North - Life in Churchill for a couple of reasons. “I just sort of thought, you know what, this history, this stuff that’s in my head, it’s going to be gone if I don’t write it down,” she said. “My kids are not going to get it if I don’t do it and it’s something I’ve always wanted my mom to do. My mom’s an elder and she’s an artist, she’s got so many wonderful stories because she always tells her stories at Parks Canada in Churchill and I’ve always hounded her, ‘Please, just put it on tape, I will write it for you because your story is going to be lost,’ and she’s never done it and I thought,
‘Oh, I’m just as bad, right?’ I have all these stories and I need to capture them for my grandchildren really because they will be lost if I don’t.” She also has a reputation as a storyteller herself. “I had such a varied history and I would tell people stories and they would go, ‘That’s not true, is it?’ I’d go, ‘Yeah it’s true.’ They’d go, ‘You didn’t do all that, did you? You’ve got to be really old.’ I was like, ‘No, actually I did all that before I was 27,’ and they went ‘What?’” Looking back, some of those experiences are things she might not do again. “I did some pretty bizarre stuff like fuel hauls into the high Arctic at -35,” said deMeulles. “It didn’t dawn on me until after. That was a very dangerous thing to do. Being on a plane full of fuel
was not a very safe thing to do but I jumped at it. I thought that was exciting until the plane landed and they started throwing the fuel off and I realized, ‘Holy cats, I was probably sitting on a bomb.’” Another thing that spurred her on was the hard times facing Churchill since the Hudson Bay Railway suspended operations north of Gillam last spring. “It used to be a really thriving large community and it’s just dwindled down to such a small population now,” deMeulles says. Though she’s not there any longer, her parents and her sister and other family members still are. “My cousin owns the hardware store there,” she says. Because of that, deMeulles finds it hard to
swallow when people say that Churchill residents should just find somewhere easier to live. “To say, ‘Those people choose to live there. They should just leave,’ is quite simplistic. It’s quite disrespectful. If we were in the same boat in another area I think we would scream about that so why don’t they have the option to do that? I think right now they’re feeling like they’re pawns in a political game and that’s really sad for them because I think the people of Churchill really want to thrive. They’ve built their worlds there. How would we feel if someone came to you and said, ‘I’m sorry, you have to leave your home community and we’re going to displace you somewhere else and all your loved ones and your history is gone?’”
For all the harsh weather and the dangers of polar bears, deMeulles said if it had been viable she would have moved back to Churchill in a heartbeat. “I miss the shoreline, I miss the rock, I miss the polar bears even though they’re very dangerous and I really miss the Hudson Bay,” she says. “When I go back home, standing on the Hudson Bay looking out on the bay, it just gives you an incredible sense. You feel so small and you feel great.” Now that she’s got one book under her belt, deMeulles says she may try to produce another. “I have another book in me,” she says. “It’s a darker story, more about personal growth and struggles. Maybe in the next fi ve years TURN it’s something I’ll focus on doing.”
CALL FOR DELIVERY
(431) 754-1111