Caring and Volunteering
Billy Lee’s home is here in the NorthWest Arctic Borough. His village of Shungnak is a special place, A drive down the river means seeing the animals in and around it. Flying in means letting the peace and slower pace of life wash over you again. Learning to live the village way opens up happiness. Home is here and he cares about it.
Getting involved in the Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project was a mixture of timing and a leap of faith. SEF, having met and gotten to know Billy, asked if he wanted to be involved. He thought he may as well give it a go. It’s helpful to know that sometimes, getting involved doesn’t mean you have it all figured out or know everything. It means you care about your village and want to help it. It’s as simple as that.
Billy brought what was important to him into his volunteering in the Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project. Tribe buy-in of any project, as well as teaching and building up of the community have always been core approaches to his life and work in the Borough.
Hope and Challenges
When thinking about a favorite part of being involved so far, Billy expresses that he couldn’t choose a favorite part, as all areas of the project so far have been worthwhile, done for the good of the people. Billy understands the hope for jobs, the hope for growth and the hope to keep culture. Listening to the people, understanding what makes it difficult to live in the borough but also what is important, and what people cherish about the borough, it’s all part of how the Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project operates by the community, for the community.
Before volunteering with the project, working with the kids at the high school, keeping traditional sled building knowledge alive and passing to the next generation, had been an important way Billy wanted to be working in the community. A challenge with this teaching opportunity had been having the right materials and tools ready. Not only was it the hope of providing the opportunity to keep the old tradition alive and helping skill the new generation but also working with the community to get the necessary materials and inventory into the village, that allows Billy to bring all those hopes, and understanding of challenges, to the Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project.
Sharing is the secret ingredient
Billy sees the opportunity for the Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project to thrive in the NWAB. When he first came into the Shungnak community, he saw and experienced a sharing community. With this project it is using the knowledge, connections and time of all members of the community that means an increased set of resources to overcome challenges both economically and socially.
Billy sees the sharing culture as a really special part of the NWAB. Sharing knowledge is the key ingredient in overcoming not knowing how to do something. Billy believes when we feel stuck and are able to ask someone that does know, we can do the work to understand and then own the process of moving forward. This is exactly on track with how the Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project operates. It’s bringing together the community, where questions are asked, and through using everybody’s bits of knowledge, someone can know someone else who can help and a person from the community can get unstuck and make their business idea work.
Never Alone
Billy sees that the Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project is for the whole community, and each village, it’s a benefit for all. No knowledge is in a vacuum or only for a few special people. It’s for everyone to come and be involved. Having the support from the community, with so many different skills, friend networks and ability to answer questions, means deeper support to help move past economic and social challenges. This support can mean benefits in running, setting up a business and making changes to help, financially and socially, for every member of the community.
Billy and his family moved to his village decades ago. With his young ones at the front of his and his wife’s mind, they made the move. Still being here to this day makes Billy think that they’re doing something alright, that they have been and will continue to help their community in one way or another. He laughs that they must be doing something right if their community friends have let them stick around.
So as long as he’s in the community he wants to keep helping, in knowledge sharing, in being a part of challenging but good conversations about now and the future. The Piġuqtuq Entrepreneurial Inspiration Project has been a great place to continue having those conversations. Billy would encourage anyone who wants to be involved to do it. No double guessing, you’re ready and already useful if you want to help the community be better with the support of a team around you.