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Personal Advancement

Embarking on a journey of self-discovery

It's billed as a nine-month journey of self-discovery in three different regions of Canada. For Toronto student Liam O'Doherty, Katimavik was all that and more, helping him develop lifelong skills through a variety of work and living experiences.

LINDA WHITE

[ 2006-08-02 ]

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Liam O'Doherty, a Katimavik participant, worked in New Brunswick, Manitoba and Ontario.

"When I graduated from high school, I didn't know what I wanted to study and wasn't ready to spend a lot of money studying something I wasn't sure about," says O'Doherty, 20. "Katimavik was a great opportunity to see the country and have some unique experiences."

Katimavik means "meeting place" in the Inuktituk language. The program was created in 1977 by Senator Jacques Hebert and former prime minister Pierre Trudeau, whose son, Justin, sits on its board of directors. It's based on the concept of service learning, which integrates personal and professional development through volunteer work for non-profit organizations.

Each participant contributes an average of 900 hours of volunteer work to community partner organizations. O'Doherty spent his first three months in the French-speaking community of Caraquet on New Brunswick's northeast coast. He worked at a high school, where his duties included helping edit the school's newspaper and coaching its improvisational team.

RADIO SHOW HOST

He then travelled to Manitoba, where he hosted a radio show at the College of Winnipeg and helped with the college's news team. His last placement was in St. Thomas, Ont., where he worked in a childcare centre -- an experience that helped him land his current summer job in childcare before attending the University of Toronto to study general arts this fall.

Other examples of Katimavik work projects include helping seniors and the disabled, landscaping, office work, maintaining hiking trails, preparing and serving meals at community centres and restoring historical sites.

A Katimavik group typically includes one person from British Columbia or the Yukon; two from the Prairies, the Northwest Territories or Nunavut; four from Ontario; three from Quebec and one from an Atlantic province.

Participants are accompanied by a project leader. Katimavik covers the cost of transportation, food, lodging and program activities. Participants receive a daily allowance of $3 and a bursary of $1,000 after completing the program.

Every three months, each member of a group is billeted with a family in the community in which they are working. "It gives participants a better understanding of what it's like to live in that community and it also gives you a break from one another," O'Doherty says.

"I got a bunch of living and job experiences and made friends across the country," he says of the program. "I enjoyed so many experiences that it's difficult to sum them all up. I developed communication, co-operation and conflict resolution skills. I improved my French and developed more confidence as well."

CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY

But perhaps most importantly, O'Doherty learned the value of civic responsibility. "You know you're helping people. Sometimes the work might be tedious and it's not always super-enjoyable, but the people you work for were always very thankful and showed their appreciation ... What you give of yourself, you get back in rewards."

Since completing the program last summer, O'Doherty has worked for Katimavik and been involved with the Canadian Improvisational Games, Green Peace and Toronto Public Space Committee.

Participants must be between 17 and 21 when the program starts and must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents. They are selected based on socio-economic criteria. More than 900 participants are selected each year. Visit www.katimavik.org to learn more.

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QUICK FACTS

Katimavik is a nine-month youth service program for Canadians aged 17 to 21.

Participants live in groups of 11 people from across the country and work as volunteers 35 hours a week for non-profit organizations in three different communities from coast to coast.

In addition to volunteer work, participants can choose from five learning programs: leadership, official languages, cultural discovery, environmental and healthy lifestyle. Applications are accepted year-round.

Visit www.katimavik.org to learn more.