Update: Mitimatalik Midwives with exciting news

Tessa Lochhead, co-director of Pirurvik Preschool, recently wrote to us here at J4IW about the midwifery project:

“We have some exciting news that I am happy to share with you! As of last week, (March 10, 2023) we were able to secure a $23,000 grant from NTI (Nunavut Tunngavik Inc.) to film Inuk traditional midwife Regilee Ootoova, so she can go back to Arctic Bay, and do an interview (on camera with her trusted videographer Jamie Griffiths who has done all of our other film work) with an extraordinary midwife in Arctic Bay. Together, we believe their conversation will be a lively one like it was the last time, but this time it will be recorded and we can’t be more excited. Regilee is thrilled.

The remaining $12K from your funds will be used towards Regilee’s travel, and the $23K from NTI will pay for the filming cost. So once the film is put together we will be contacting you with regard to your logo, and having you on the credits of this short film. We believe it will no doubt serve as an awareness film to highlight all of the issues surrounding the barriers of midwifery, and to capture the thriving knowledge network that is in the communities.

It is our understanding that NTI is now taking a hard look towards the issue of midwifery in Nunavut, and are putting funding behind it, also with the support of Pauktutiit.”