Profile: Elsa Jacobson / Christine Firth

Agents brave Arctic blizzards for outreach services

Most of us get to work by car, by bus, by bike, or on foot—but what about by plane? 

On the second to last Wednesday of every month, either Elsa Jacobson or Christine Firth—citizen service agents from the Inuvik Service Canada Centre—travels 150 kilometres by plane to the shores of the Arctic Ocean.

Here, at the northernmost edge of Canada, they offer outreach services to the 900 residents of Tuktoyaktuk—or “Tuk” as it is known to locals—and to the communities of Aklavik, Sachs Harbour, Tsiigehtchic, Ulukhaktok, Paulatuk and Fort McPherson.

Elsa and Christine ensure that residents in these northern regions have access to a full range of government services and benefits, including social development, employment and passports.

Reaching these remote communities can be hazardous, particularly in the winter months.

“In the winter, Tuk gets blizzards that last for days,” Elsa says. “My return flight can get cancelled, and then I’m stranded there. There are no hotels in the community, but luckily I lived there for 18 years, so I know everybody.”

Hardships of the North

The North presents other hardships, including limited daylight for three months. But this doesn’t faze Elsa, who has lived in the North all her life. In fact, she barely notices. In the summer, the going doesn’t get that much easier. Heavy fog can roll in off the ocean, making flights impossible.

Elsa says she loves her job despite the hardships. “I like that we’re helping people. They can be so grateful, especially some of the elders who don’t know how to read or write and need help with different forms.”

Frequent requests

The recent launch of the Common Experience Payment program has made the Service Canada office in Inuvik a lot busier. This program is a component of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, which provides payments to former students of the Indian Residential School system.

Elsa says both the outreach site in Tuk and the Inuvik office have been swamped. “We had a line right out the door!”

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