I will start by stating the events of the night of Thursday, June 9,
2005. Our group had its Weyburn farewell party, after which all
those persons of age went out to a bar to celebrate with some friends
from the community. We were drinking, having had drinks bought for
us, and were enjoying watching group members singing karaoke. We
were home by curfew. I sat down at the computer to check my e_mail,
and some of the women entered the men�s bedroom and lounged on the
lower bunks. At one point, the light went out in the bedroom and
Shay came out to tell me that Ka Yee was waiting for me on my bed. I
was surprised, so I left what I was doing to see for myself. Sure
enough, Ka Yee was lying on my top bunk. I jumped up and lay down
beside her, shaking her shoulder with my hand and asking her what she
was doing on my bed. I remember saying, �You know you�re on my bed,
Ka Yee?� To which she replied with a sigh and her putting her arm
over me. Someone came into the room and took a picture of us on my
bed. I rubbed her back and let my hand travel down, over her
buttocks and to her skirt line where my hand traveled up to her mid
thigh. I put my lips against hers and kissed her while my hands
tried to undo her bra through her sweater. At this point, Ka Yee sat
up and jumped off of my bed without saying a word to me. A little
stunned, I got down off my bunk and went to the washroom before going
to bed.
The next morning and rest of day, Ka Yee said nothing to me about
the previous night and even went so far as to act like nothing had
happened. I was simultaneously hurt and worried�hurt that she
wouldn�t address our incident, and worried that she had been too
drunk to remember. Ashamed of myself for this reason, I too kept
silent and pretended like nothing had happened. This kept on through
all of our communications and interactions for four days until
Monday, when another incident took place.
Monday, June 13, 2005 saw my group cleaning the house for the next
trimester�s participants. Ka Yee left the house with a bike while we
cleaned and when she returned we learned that she had gone to Wal
Mart to get some pictures developed. The group was a little upset
with her for having left without telling anyone while everyone was
supposed to be cleaning until all the work was done, but no one made
any mention of it until Ka Yee herself asked Stuart if he was
seriously upset by her actions. Stuart replied that yes, he was
upset that she had left without telling anyone where she was going
while the rest of the group was working hard to get the house ready
for the next group. Unable to accept that Stuart and others could
feel this way, Ka Yee proceeded to heatedly defend her right to have
left. Stuart was adamant that he was right to feel upset with her,
and the two statements repeated over and over for close to an hour.
The argument took place in a public space�between the kitchen and
living room, and at different times, as Ka Yee got louder and more
upset, group members would interject. When Ka Yee started to cry and
call Stuart vicious names, I walked by and told Ka Yee to relax and
go for a walk to get some fresh air and fresh perspective on the
situation. She did not heed my advice. At another point, I asked
her if she really thought that her going to Wal Mart was as large of
an issue as she was making it out to be. I asked if there wasn�t
some deeper problem that she wasn�t addressing that might be
prompting this emotional display. I sat down with a tea, as the
group�s cleaning had been finished by this point. Ka Yee stood over
me and began to aggressively pursue her argument, calling me names
and accusing me of laziness. I told her to f*** off. I told her
that I was not a trained professional in these matters and that she
would be best to go somewhere to calm down and quietly start to work
out what the real problem was. She stopped yelling at me and sat
down, then got up and went over to our larger common room and closed
both doors. After a time, she came back into the main house and
walked into her room. We were listening to some music on the stereo,
and it wasn�t until the CD stopped that we heard the wailing coming
from the largest female bedroom. Dayna went in to see what the
matter was and two other girls went down to find Vickie, our old PSO,
as Drew Tyler the PL had driven to rotation camp with our luggage.
Vickie came up and everyone went in to see. Ka Yee was lying on the
floor screaming. Her hands were twisted in and her fingers were
contortedly knot. Her feet were curved tightly down from the toes
and she was breathing irregularly. The police were called and an
ambulance came to take her away to the hospital. The group was
incredibly shaken by the incident, and was largely left in the dark
for hours. At one point, Drew returned to hold a group meeting while
Ka Yee was still being seen by doctors.
In the meeting, my group expressed its concern that if her response
to so slight an issue as group disapproval with a decision of hers
was so severe, how would she react to something larger and more
serious? The security of the group was also in question, with some
members worried about Ka Yee�s safety from herself, and others with
the safety of the group from Ka Yee. Drew made some points on being
sensitive to other people�s ideas, but was unable to link his
statements to the day�s situation, and the group wondered more about
Ka Yee�s social and psychological stability. Everyone recalled
pieces of another incident in Cheticamp, NS, our first rotation, that
occurred just after our forty-eight hours off. Most of the group had
gone to Halifax, and while there found that Ka Yee would make plans
exclusive of the other participants and not inform them of her
decisions�leaving without telling anyone and neglecting meeting times
and places, never seeming to care how this made other members feel.
When some members hurt feelings were expressed to her at supper one
night after our return to Cheticamp, she could not seem to accept
that her actions would be considered offensive, and lashed out
angrily also crying and needing to be calmed down. It was noticed in
our meeting with Drew that this appeared to be a pattern that was
increasing in severity.
As our PC Joanne, was at rotation camp, a replacement�Russell�was
brought in to help deal with the issue. He called Stuart in to talk
before he called me in. When I got into the room, instead of talking
about Monday�s incident, I was questioned on Thursday�s. After my
recollection, Russell and Drew left me alone in the room for a time,
and then came in to tell me that I would be dismissed. I was then
asked to give a statement, but I felt too disturbed to give a proper
one. Russell said he would type one based on my verbal statement
before he and Drew had left the room.
I am upset with my dismissal. I feel it was wrongfully decided. I
have enjoyed my time in Katimavik so much and found it to be greatly
helpful with my own issues of self worth, but it angers me to feel
that the shadow of my dismissal has darkened all my bright
achievements. I found my work placements both stimulating and
fulfilling. I enjoyed the program�s emphasis on environmental
sustainability, social interaction, healthy living, community, and
leadership, but I feel that much of its philosophy was left out of
how my dismissal was dealt with. For an organization that prides
itself on leadership and working through problems as a group, it
surprised me that no dialogue was facilitated between Ka Yee and me.
From what I gathered by listening to Russell�s questions, she was
fully aware of our incident together, and as such I feel that a
better way of dealing with the problem would have been for us to
receive paperwork, and for an open dialogue to be organized and
monitored between us. I had no idea that she felt so ill at ease
with what happened on Thursday, and had I known I would have tried
hard to work through it with her.
I am also concerned that Thursday�s incident was not viewed
separately from Monday�s, and that my dismissal was used as a way of
covering up the severity of Ka Yee�s breakdown. When I asked Drew
Tyler my PL if Ka Yee had ever once made mention or indication that
what happened on Thursday was what had caused what happened on
Monday, he said �no.� It bother�s me that there was no attempt to
allow us to communicate on our miscommunication, and this I feel was
partly because of her frightening trip to the hospital. I feel that
the severity of Thursday�s incident was blown out of proportion
because of Monday�s and that my dismissal was wrong and justified as
a means of dealing with Ka Yee�s horrific breakdown. I also wonder
why she would have waited so long to make mention of Thursday night,
and worry that something I said during her breakdown may have caused
her to want to injure me.
As far as my own paperwork that precedes this incident, I have a
final warning in Security for taking a ride with a member of the
Cheticamp community that I thought I was authorizing when I got a
copy of her license. Since then I have taken no unauthorized ride.
I also have a CTI in Respect for accidentally breaking a glass door.
I have had no further incident related to this commitment, as my
paperwork will show. While I am very sorry and ashamed for my
actions, I feel that my dismissal was rash, one-sided, and wrong. I
urge you to take another look and rethink your decision on my
dismissal.

Hello Tristan,

I have a couple of questions regarding your letter of appeal and reports
written by Rossel Marion and Drew Tyler. If you have questions about this process you can call me. I can reassure you that this procedure is
confidential.

You letter was explicit and for our analysis we will concentrate our review
on events relating to events on the night of June 9th, 2005.

- When arriving in your room and you saw Ka Yee in your bed, you ask her a question "You know you are on my bed?" She replied with a sigh and putting her arm over you. What did you understand by that gesture? I would like to understand your perspective. Your letter offers a lot information about Ka Yee emotional state, but not a lot on yours. You recognise being hurt, worried and ashamed. Do you think you could have shared your state of mind with filed staff at this point, so a dialogue could have been organised and/or your perspective and concerns reflected in this matter?

- Drew Tyler stated in his report that while you were laying beside Ka Yee, other people where in the room "encouraging "seductive" activities", is this true? From an outside perspective these actions are odd, could you elaborate on that. And at any time while she was in your bed did you have her consent to touch her?

- About Monday's events, you stated in your letter : "I asked if there wasn't some deeper problem that she (Ka Yee) wasn't addressing that might be prompting this emotional display". What do you think she was most upset about?

- You also feels (from what you heard from Rossel Marion questionning) that Ka Yee was fully aware of your incident together, and the matter should have been dealt differently? Could you elaborate on that?

- Finally, could you explain this statement about your dismissal: "I feel it was wrongfully decided".

Thank you for answering those questions.

Sincerely,

Louise Provost

Hello Louise

In response to your questions--

Ka Yee and I arrived home at the same time from the same bar where we
had been sharing the same drinks. While I remained in the main room
to type online, she entered my room, climbed up onto my top bunk, and
remained there. When I entered my bedroom and climbed to my bed, and
asked her what she was doing there, and her response was a sigh and
the placing of her arm over me, I understood it as a signal to
proceed in an intimate way to initiate affection between us.
Regarding my state of mind with 'filed staff,' I was questioned only
very briefly a number of days after the incident occurred. After
being questioned, I was left alone in a room while all my friends
packed into the van and left. Then Rossel and Drew entered and
informed me that I was dismissed from the program. Rossel Marion,
who I had never seen, heard of, or met, and who had literally
introduced himself five minutes before cutting short my Katimavik
experience, was not someone who I felt I could express my extreme
anxiety, agitation, bewilderment and pain to. Drew Tyler, who had
never presented himself as a PL to be confided in, and who was often
criticized by the group for not caring about the individual group
members, was not open to be turned to and even said nothing to me of
consolation until driving me to Regina--'It's tough.' I certainly
made an effort to organize a mediated dialogue between Ka Yee and
me--imploring both Rossel and Drew to arrange one. Drew said, when I
asked him right after being dismissed, that he would see, and
announced on the same trip to Regina where he noted how tough it was
that he had approached Ka Yee and told her of my wanting to talk with
her about Thursday night and that she had said 'Oh,' before turning
and walking away. This information, received while in transit to a
motel room for the night, was infuriating. When I arrived home
safely and was able to sleep well for one night, I typed up my appeal
and sent it with my statement within the seventy-two hour time frame
for it to be accepted into my case file as a document.

While I was lying beside Ka Yee, I remember that the room was empty
with the door even closed. The only other person to enter the room
was the person who took the photograph that flashed in the darkness.
Other than that, Ka Yee and I were left alone, and I received no
encouragement on my mistakenly seductive advances from other group
members. As far as consent, after drinking together at a bar, I
arrive home to find her lying in my bed. She had gotten up to my top
bunk and waited for me. I question her on what she is doing there
and she puts her arm over me. If intimacy and romantic bonding are
subtle arts, which I feel they are, then these signs and signals
where like beacons of light guiding me to make a move. My own lack
of subtlety stems from poor tact due to alcohol intoxication, of
which we were both victims of.

As far as my comment to Ka Yee during Monday's incident about a
deeper problem needing addressing, Ka Yee herself had expressed to me
and other members of the group preceding her hysteria that her social
inadequacies were due to her sheltered upbringing, family life,
depression, and psychiatric counseling. My intention was to take her
mind from the minuscule act of going to Wal Mart without telling
anyone and direct it to a broader range of possible causes for her
incredible behavior. In my opinion, I feel that the group's
disapproval of her leaving without notifying anyone reminded her in
some way of her parents oppressive scorn towards similar behavior,
and while Ka Yee is gradually pulling away from her life back home by
being so far removed from it for so long a time, she lashed out in a
form of super defense that displayed, to me, her fear towards
returning home so soon, which our leaving our second trimester
signified. The fact that it escalated so far beyond a normal and
rational level is what was so terrifying to everyone that was there
to witness it.

My feeling towards the resolution of the matter regarding Ka Yee's
awareness of Thursday night stems from my initial feelings of
confusion based on Ka Yee's display over the days that followed
Thursday the ninth. While conversing, she didn't even acknowledge or
indicate that anything had even happened. This caused great unrest
in me because I cared for her and felt awkward about how things had
gone during our inebriated state. I was extremely concerned that she
actually had no recollection of it. Had she showed signs of unrest
due to Thursday night, I would have immediately asked her to speak in
private and tried to work through it with her by talking openly about
it, my feelings, and hers. Things being how they were though, I
reflected her seeming ignorance for four days. When I learned from
Rossel that she was upset by the incident, I was concerned that there
had been a misunderstanding between us that should have been resolved
the next day, but given Ka Yee's state and her being hospitalized,
there was no movement towards or even acknowledgment of our needing
to communicate directly about what had happened.

And for my feelings that my dismissal was wrongfully decided: Due to
the speed of my dismissal process, the close proximity of my
dismissal with Ka Yee's hysteria and panicked breakdown, and the fact
that no mediated dialogue was sought between us, I do feel that the
decision to remove me completely from the program was wrong. It is
my understanding, based on what little the group heard from Drew
regarding her care, that Ka Yee was taken to the Weyburn Hospital,
and when no doctor could be found there, was taken to a family
walk-in clinic to be assessed; she was not seen by anyone in the
psychiatric field. I feel that when she realized that her episode
could mean her own unwanted return home, she looked for any way that
would allow her to stay. As she has traveled to and remains in
Hawkesbury with the group, she has found one. I feel that I was
singled out, and a mistaken encounter after a night at the bar was
made to be responsible for a horrific incident that should have
resulted in Ka Yee's dismissal and encouragement that she seeks
professional help outside of Katimavik.

Please forward any more questions you might have to me at this address.

Tristan Stei***

July 5th, 2005

Tristan Stei***
63 Coverdale Cres
Scarborough, Ontario
M1* 2**

RE: Decision following your dismissal appeal

Tristan,

This letter is in response to your correspondence dated June 16th 2005, in which you requested a review of your dismissal from the program.

As stated in your departure and release form, you were dismissed from the program due to inappropriately touching a female participant. The analysis of your dismissal is based on this event only. Statements and reports from field staff were presented and based on this information and your behaviour, you were dismissed from the program.

For these reasons Katimavik�s Head Office is upholding the dismissal decision taken by the Prairies and Nunavit Regional Office.

In Katimavik, our primary concern is the safety of participants. Therefore, we have implemented a strict policy to ensure security, which states: �The non-respect of this norm will result in, at the very least, a final warning. � Sexual harassment, physical violence or any other behaviour that jeopardises the smooth functioning of the program, the participant�s safety, or the safety or security of one or more participants can lead to automatic dismissal.� As you can see, this policy allows the Regional Director to automatically dismiss someone who puts the safety of themselves or others at risk, regardless of whether or not they have presented any other type of problem in the program.

Sincerely,

Louise Provost
Manager, Participants Office
Katimavik Head Office