Special Feature Nuitaniqsaq Quliaq Michaelle Jean recovered from her surprise quickly and jumped into the role of dream collector and magician, creating Harry Potter worthy sound effects, her fingers dancing around the child’s head. “What are your dreams?” she asked, “What do you want to be?” The rest of the children all wanted their turn and the Governor General willingly performed her magic for every last one of them. Later, when asked about the dreams she had collected, she said, “it was nice…a lot of them said it’s graduating.” Tuk youth Chelsea Jacobson said although she did not think much of the visit before she met the Governor General , the visit now “meant a lot to me and a lot to the community.” “She just showed all our communities that she really cares and she is just perfect for the job. When she was sitting down with all the kids at the youth center, reading books and singing them a little song, it was so cute.”
“She told us to just go for it and to dream big, and she believes in us and is rooting us on, and it makes me want to…and I am sure it makes all the kids want to just go for their dreams and just do it!”
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TUSAAYAKSAT SUM M ER 2008
Michalle Jean reads with youth at the Tuktoyaktuk Youth Center.