SASKATOON -- A Saskatoon punk band has raised money to buy food, hygiene products and school supplies for remote northern Indigenous communities in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.
Alien to the Ignorant said it got the idea to do this after seeing a tweet that showed a photo of how much pencil crayons and scissors in the north cost.
“I’ve known about northern access and the difficulty of living up north for a long time, but something just kind of clicked this time. And I figured that we had enough of a platform to do something about it,” said Swade Orchard, who does lead vocals and guitar.
So, the band decided to sell some shirts and give all the proceeds to northern communities who have to pay far more for supplies because of where they’re located.
Myk Ulan-Hohol, who plays bass and does background vocals, said it also felt like the right timing because of the pandemic.
“Everyone’s kind of struggling with COVID and it’s a good way to help regardless of what’s going on but maybe particularly now if we can just give a little bit then we’re more than happy to do so,” he said.
The band posted a video to Tik Tok showing its members shopping for the items. They were able to buy nine boxes full of supplies for the communities.
“It’s really nice to see people that are so excited about it and willing to help too. So many people were like, ‘how can I help? Can I donate?’ and it was like wow, awesome. So we sort of started something a little bit around here. It’s being done elsewhere but it seems like we kind of have something starting here in Saskatoon which is awesome,” Orchard said.
He said the band plans on making hoodies next and using the proceeds from those to make more donations.
