My name is Pearlie Mae Howard and I am a 20 year old from a small town called Cambridge Bay, Nunavut with a population of 1,788 people. I am more than grateful to be accepted to the Northern Youth Abroad. Being a participant has taught me so many life lessons that I cannot wait to use very soon in my future. NYA has helped me gain leadership skills, they have helped me grow as a young adult all the way through to learning to travel on my own far away from my home community.

I was placed in Chilliwack, BC and I am a supervisor at the Chilliwack Central Elementary School Society with their Summer Fun Day Camp. My job is to look after children around the ages of 5-12 years old. I supervise the children with two very strong and inspiring women at the Day Camp. We plan and engage fun activities like arts and crafts, outdoor games and walks around the community from one park to another.

Chilliwack has a population of 87,000 people and what feels like hundreds of fun places to go; there are multiple water parks as well as lakes we can swim at and not only that but I’ve gone wake-boarding for the first time in my whole life, it was a great experience. There are multiple amusement parks that I’ve gone to, community libraries, skate and bike parks, recreational centres and tons of arts and culture museums. I’ve also gone through a food cycle where my host parents and I biked for 5 hours from farm to farm to learn a bit about what they do there and how they’re contributing all of it with the future. I also got to learn a bit whole bunch about this community; it is filled with bannock-loving Aboriginal people and during the summer breaks they hold pow-wows to show their community that their culture and people are still alive living among them. Archeological records date the presence of Aboriginal people in the area today known as Chilliwack and the Fraser Valley, to be approximately 10,000 years ago. At the time of first contact it is estimated that there may have been as many as 40,000 to 60,000 people living within Sto:lo territory. The Town of Chilliwack was incorporated in 1873, and is the third oldest municipality in British Columbia.

I have enjoyed my stay here and can see myself coming back here later in my future.

Hey, my name is Matt Kanayok, I’m 17 and I’m from Ulukhaktok, NT. I’m currently in the Northern Youth Abroad program at the Canadian phase, meaning that other participants and I are placed all throughout Southern Canada to experience life in the south.

My placement is in Belleville, Ontario. Sadeedi (my placement buddy) and I are staying with Maggie and Billy, our super awesome host parents! Not to mention Monty, the cutest googly-eyed dog I have ever seen. 

My host parents are amazing and kind and I can keep going on, but to summarize they are the best and I can’t rightly express how grateful and appreciative I am of them.

The day after we arrived they took us to Waterfront, which is basically a carnival with so many new things that I never had the chance to try until then. One of our favorite rides was Zero Gravity, that didn’t require you to use any seatbelts because it spun and used centrifugal force to keep you on the ride, so you could just relax with your back against it. Least to say, it was definitely one of the best first day experiences I’ve ever had! We also did other cool things like attending a Pow Wow, going through the entirety of a 5-km run at foam fest, and checking out the nearby beach!

I work at the Quinte Arts Council and I’m currently in charge of managing and improving the online store, but I try to help out where I can. My coworkers are also very nice and welcoming people, and our chats together are always fun!

My time in Belleville has definitely been great and I love every moment of it so far! I’m so glad that I was chosen and that my mentor encouraged me to try in the first place. NYA has really allowed me to grow as a person and cultivate my own identity, meet incredible people I’m
happy to call friends, and to let me make new memories that I’ll definitely look back at fondly.

Thanks!

Being a participant for Northern Youth Abroad has been such an amazing, wonderful, and unforgettable experience. I’ve been placed in Sidney BC with the most amazing host parents Glen and Cathy Brown. They have two daughters Emily and Danielle, and are also hosting two other girls, Anne Marie & Marie Christine, that are from Quebec and also in Sidney for a summer program. We have met most of the family members and have been spending a lot of time with Cathy’s younger cousin Charlene and her 10 year old son Colton. He is such a character who loves being outdoors, going fishing and especially swimming in the pool we have in our back yard.

Recently since my placement buddy Nikki Tutcho and I have arrived on this beautiful side of Canada, we’ve spent our first weekend in Victoria and were invited by Debbie, who is the host mom for Chelsea and Mary, to spend the day with them. We went to the Mayfair mall, swimming at they’re hotel, to a fishery to have supper, along with feeding a seal. Later in the day we took a taxi ferry ride on this little lake area to check out some scenery, and then Debbie was kind enough to show us parts of Victoria and drove us back to Sidney. Nikki and I have also been taking the bus to Victoria regularly to go shopping, walking around experiencing the city, and visiting the pier in  Sidney to see the seals. On Thursdays we’ve been going to the market they have all through Main street buying fresh fruit, baked goods and more.
This Sunday my host dad Glen took Charlene, Colton, MC & I kayaking in Brentwood. I never knew how much I missed it and how beautiful the scenery was. We got to see a family of sea otters which really freaked me out to the point where I almost flipped over because they popped out so close to the kayak, than I got myself stuck in an area surrounded by thousands of jellyfish that scared me even more. Over all it was an amazing beginning to our day that ended with Kira & Nick visiting us.

The last few weekends we have in Sidney our host parents will be taking us on a tour of the University of Victoria, whale watching, and zip lining in Sooke. I work at Adel’s Play & Discover House with 5 amazing little kids Jason, Morgan, Alexander, Marianne & Memphis, who I will miss so much and I’ve been told many times they’ll miss they’re new teacher Chantelle. I also work with an amazing supervisor, Adelina. I have also met her daughter Audrey along with her granddaughter Samoan. They have been very welcoming and loving. Recently we have taken the kids to the Sidney museum, along with the Sidney aquarium twice to see the Octopi. Every Friday we watch a movie and have water play. Within these few weeks we plan to take them to the beach and to the butterfly garden.

I have to say I love it here so much to the point where I’m thinking of possibly relocating here for post-secondary school. I suggest to whoever is thinking of applying to this program, do it! It’s a great experience with an amazing group of staff at Northern Youth Abroad. I’m glad I listened to everyone who supported me to get to where I am right now and I am so looking forward to attending the international program in the future.