School may be out for summer, but for Jack Frimeth, a teacher at Centre Wellington District High School (CWDHS), there is much work still to do, as he sets off on a journey to raise funds and awareness for Aboriginal diabetes through a program called PADDLE, (Paddle Against Diabetes Display Love for Earth).
“I have an interest in Aboriginal issues and the promotion of Aboriginal culture and the ‘building of bridges’ between our two worlds,” explained Frimeth, who acts as academic advisor for the Centre Wellington Aboriginal Club.
Through the student club, which organized student exchanges to remote Aboriginal communities, Frimeth worked with several groups and learned more about the prevalence of diabetes in Aboriginal communities.
“Diabetes is a very serious issue in Aboriginal communities,” Frimeth said.
He teamed up with the Southern Ontario Aboriginal Diabetes Initiative (SOADI) and most recently, the Innu Integrated Diabetes Initiative (IIDI) to form a partnership to promote PADDLE.
The program combines the emphasis to promote community building through paddling, and to raise awareness and funds for Aboriginal diabetes through the sport of paddling.
“Last summer, I initiated my first PADDLE and canoed solo up the Kattawagami River to James Bay and over to Moose Factory. I managed to raise a small amount of money for the Weeneebayko Diabetes Unit in Moose Factory.”
On June 28 Frimeth packed up and headed to Schefferville, Quebec to launch another solo paddling journey for approximately 19 days to the final destination of the remote community of Natuashish, on the northern coast of Labrador, situated 185 miles north of Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
Frimeth said CWDHS did a school exchange in Natuashish in 2008.
“I am once again going solo and taking on the very remote Notakwanon River and Atlantic Ocean in northern Labrador. I will be attempting to raise money for the Innu of Labrador and the Natuashish Diabetes Health Unit,” Frimeth said.
The excursion, which has taken two years to plan, will include driving to northern Quebec, then catching a small plane to get him to the launch point.
“I’m looking forward to seeing the land,” said Frimeth. “I have been thinking about this trip for seven or eight years.”
He is planning to be gone most of July.
“It depends on the weather and the wind … maybe 19 days,” said Frimeth, adding he estimated between 12 to 15 days on the Notakwanon River and a 30 mile paddle along the Atlantic Coast.
“If it is an east wind, I’m not going anywhere,” he said.
The endurance and solitude are part of the excitement for the paddling enthusiast.
“I’m looking forward to the challenge of the river,” he said. “You have to be mentally there and mentally focused 100 per cent of the time. It’s life or death,” he said, of the white water route. “The consequences are huge. It’s a very remote area.”
The Atlantic coast portion of the trip is also a challenge to which he looks forward.
Overall, his real goal is raising funds, and Frimeth said this year’s fundraising has been more successful, though he hopes the momentum of his trip will bring more funds.
“Most of the money I raise will be towards education, for the young people,” Frimeth said. “Type 2 diabetes is a major problem and that’s an acquisition because of lifestyle. We want to promote healthy, active living. Paddling itself is an active lifestyle.”
Returning to see old friends and extend support make the final destination of his trip an important one.
“I’m excited to get back to the community and help out,” Frimeth said.
To track Frimeth’s journey or make a donation visit www.paddlingagainstdiabetes.wordpress.com.
