A8 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, November 1, 2006 _ Massive job awaits. person appointed for Highway of Tears i ; By BILL PHILLIPS THE FIRST thing Lisa _ Krebs does -when talking * about her. new role as co- ordinator for the Highway of Tears initiative is to rec- _ ognize the families of those who have lost loved ones. _ One of her first tasks will be to establish a governing body that will oversee what she does. The position. stems from: ' , a report released earlier this “year that lists everything from free bus rides to more police officers as ways to - stop women. from hitch- hiking along Hwyl6 from Prince George to Prince Ru- pert.” That stretch of road has _. been dubbed’ the Highway of Tears because at least 10 young women, all but one of whom is aboriginal, have. disappeared since-1974. -: - “There’ are lots of link- "” ages that have to be made, a lot of change in police,” she said Oct. 20, her first: day onthe job. “The governing body will help with that.” The governing body will be comprised of families of victims, the RCMP, rural First’ Nations’ representa- tives, urban aboriginal -rep- resentatives, and Highway 16 municipalities. Krebs is based in Prince _ George, working out of the Carrier Sekani Family Ser- “vices . offices. It. received “money from the provincial government to hire her. _ Krebs. will focus on the 33 recommendations. out- lined in the Highway of Tears Symposium report, is- | sued earlier this year. Fifteen _ ‘recommendations © focused < .on victim prevention, six.on ‘emergency planning, six on _ victim family counselling, ‘and six'on community de- velopment and support:.. .- It’s:a lot: more :than just teaching people about the’ . perils of hitchhiking. It’s about social change, said Krebs when asked about why she applied for the job. She said she identified with the recommendations in the a ‘Krebs said. LISA KREBS has been hired to put in place ways and | means to stop people from hitchhiking on area high- ways. BILL PHILLIPS PHOTO ce report. “Asan aboriginal woman, -[ believe change comes from the community,” she:said. Krebs has a background is in planning. She com- pleted a bachelor’s degree in - First Nations Studies from — the University ‘of Northern . BC and a Masters of Anthro- pology from the University of Alberta. She has worked in many capacities with various First Nations communities in the north. The jobs as ‘the Highway of Tears initiative coordina- tor will mean tackling some large issues such as why people are on the road hitch- hiking. . 6 “People need to step out-, side of their own reality,” than just people standing out on the highway, there are reasons they are standing out on the highway.” Poverty is an issue, as is providing recreation oppor- “3 tunities for youth. - ; However, ‘there will be. other aspects to her job as . be well, such as education cam- paigns. University students will be targeted and simple things such as billboards might be part of education campaigns. Crisis response “This is more. _ plans also have to be devel- oo 4 oped, é alt’s a big job, and Krebs won't be doing it alone. The governing ‘body will help, but -she is ‘also relying on help from people and com- munities along Highway 16 ’+- which she will be travel-_ ling extensively in the near futtire. » Another aspect of her job will be looking for money. The | symposium report originally called for two co- -ordinators — one in Prince George and one in Prince | Rupert. Krebs’ job. will be , to secure the money for that second coordinator. Some applications for grant money have already ‘been submit- ted, but she will be. seeking’ : more. The job" is not ‘without : its detractors. Working out ‘of the Carrier Sekani Fam- ily Services building, Krebs said the office has received calls saying the initiative is a "waste of taxpayers’ dollars. Ske says she reminds her- self of what Mary Tegee of Carrier Sekani Family Ser- vices told her. “If we save on person, then it’s all worth it.” Bill Phillips is the editor of The Prince George Free Press. . © Tim Hortons, 2005 Help carry hope to Terrace. Here's non-perishable food donations at your local Tim Hortons, you're not only providing food, you're delivering hope. Your generosity will make a big difference to our local food bank.and go a long way towards helping families in Terrace. Look in next week's paper for your brown paper food drive . bag and drop off at your local Tim Hortons by November 19th, ge - RAR Tin Mortons, Together With You, Making Good Things Happen. some food for thought. By dropping off CRITE | a ‘November 5th ns 6352 STOPPE! “Thursday, “PLEASE HELP SUPPORT - November 2nd fo Sunday, 7 our LOCAL FOOD BANK! Bring in a non-perishable food item or cash donation and receive a ‘REGULAR PRICED \TEMS - _ (Excluding electricals) Thank You to all of our Customers for < helping usremain