Four youth and three chaperones went on the trip. (Submitted photo/Christopher Merasty)

By Derek Cornet

Canoe Trip

Men of the North project raising confidence in tri-community youth

Aug 31, 2020 | 1:37 PM

It was a trip to remember for four boys who participated in a tri-community clean-up challenge and were rewarded with a three-day canoe trip.

The project and trip were arranged by Men of the North, who encouraged youth to assist in the cleaning of 60 yards for Elders, single mothers and families. The challenge occurred from early June to July 20 and the youth, as well as organization volunteers, successfully completed 47 yards.

“It was really a lot of commitment and dedication,” Men of the North Founder Christopher Merasty said. “A lot of the members of Men of the North work full-time jobs, so for them to do pick up a couple of youth after they are done work, we were spending two to three hours just on one yard alone.”

The trip itself was held Aug. 22 to 25 and involved four youth and three chaperones. Two guides were also hired and they were in charge of everything from preparing meals to setting up the camp. Merasty mentioned his most memorable part was visiting with the youth, as well as watching them and helping them learn different skills from the guides.

The weather also proved to be a challenge and the first night they were away there was a storm. Due to all of the rain, their tent and blankets became wet.

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“The young guys who were in the tent were a little upset about the situation,” Merasty said. “We just reassured them, and they hung up their towels and blankets to dry for the day. By the evening, everything was dry and they had a wonderful experience.”

Guides set up camp and served meals. (submitted photo/Christopher Merasty)

One participant on the trip was Anthony Isbister-Thompson, who said he assisted in cleaning between 15 to 18 yards. He decided to take part in the challenge because it was the summer and he lacked activities to do.

By getting himself involved, Isbister-Thompson said he not only made new friends, but was able to push himself to do a trip he didn’t think he could.

“My favourite part was pushing myself through it,” he said. “There were a lot of times I wanted to give up. Now I know, if I can get through [that], I can get through anything else.”

Merasty would like to continue the initiative and arrange a similar project every year. The next project involving cleaning yards could occur as early as this winter.

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derek.cornet@jpbg.ca

Twitter: @saskjourno