Ottawa concert to raise funds for St. Jude's reconstruction

What was considered the heart and soul of Iqaluit, St. Jude's Cathedral,and Ottawa are 2,000 kilometres apart, but theywere joinedWednesday night as efforts to rebuild the church continued with a fundraiser in the nation's capital.

The igloo-shaped Anglican church was one of the most recognizable buildings in the North. But in November 2005, the interior of St. Jude's was destroyed by a deliberately set fire. The final blow came this summer when the cathedral was demolished after it was deemed structurally unsound.

Many in Iqaluit say the fire did more than destroy St. Jude's; itdamaged the heart and soul of the community. In addition to its religious purpose, the church was home to drug treatment programs and family outreach and counselling services.

Garth Hampson, a former RCMP officer who once served in Iqaluit before the cathedral was built, heard about St. Jude's through his own church, Christ Church Cathedral in Ottawa.

Christ Church Cathedral is popular with people visiting Ottawa from the North and Hampson was stuck by how important St. Jude's was to them.

Hampson said he was shocked that someone could torch such an important part of the community and decided to help in the reconstruction effort, so several months ago he decided to organize a fundraising concert to help raise a portion of the estimated $6 million needed to rebuild St. Jude's.

The concert was to feature traditional Christmas music performed by the National Capital Concert Band and a group of young Inuit, who are studying in Ottawa, will perform traditional throat-singing and drum-dancing.

The cathedral was insured, but due to high construction costs in the North, the policy will cover only about 20 per cent of the rebuilding.

Another stumbling block is Nunavut's population. While many people have donated gifts, there aren't enough people in the territory to raise the kind of funds needed to cover the shortfall.

Hampson admits there is a lot of work that needs to be done before St. Jude's can be rebuilt.

"Whatever we make [Wednesday] is going to be a drop in the bucket," he said.

Residents confident church will rise again

Rosie Naulak, a former member of St. Jude's choir visiting Ottawa, said she was pleased to hear about the fundraiser for her church.

"I have heard that a lot of people are donating money, southerners especially. I have faith in God that He can help us. We'll get a church."

Retired bishop Paul Idlout, the first Nunavut-born resident to be elected bishop in the Arctic, made a special trip to Ottawa for the concert.

"We need help, the prayers need to be answered. I know God has a plan for me here," the 71-year-old said.

Hampson said it was important to him that people from the North are involved in the fundraiser.

Anyone who wants more information can contact Gath Hampson at garthandeleanor(at)rogers.com or call him at the church at 613-236-9149.