When the shelves and merchandise were first being installed in Wiikwemkoong’s Your Dollar Store With More Lorne Agawa was there. “I’ve been here right from the very beginning,” he said, adding that there is a lot about his job that he loves.
If he isn’t helping folks find what they need at the store, Mr. Agawa is likely to be found out fishing or hanging with his family back home.
“I usually take my kids out onto the land,” he said. Although he hesitates to label what he does “land-based teachings,” much of what he describes would fit in that label quite comfortably.
“Goose hunting, fishing, learning to live off the land.”
With the advent of the pandemic, Mr. Agawa admits it’s a challenge, but there are also some silver linings to be mined from the experience as well. “I try to get my kids off the internet,” he said. “With hunting season coming up, my son is looking forward to moose camp.”
Mr. Agawa said that he does a lot of work in the outdoors. “I do a lot with Luke (Wassegijig of Wasse-Giizhik Tours and Accommodations in Wiikwemkoong) and having a job that is flexible is great,” he said. “If I don’t have to come in until 1 pm, I can go fishing in the morning, take people out on the water.”
In a normal year, Mr. Agawa takes members of the community shore fishing, although that has been curbed by the pandemic restrictions.
“I take people shoreline fishing, sometimes Ontario Works, and show them what they need to know to be able to go fishing,” said Mr. Agawa. “It’s about sustenance and promoting a healthy lifestyle. “There are a lot of people around who have issues with alcohol,” he said. “This gives them something positive to do.”
Mr. Agawa knows that path. “I will be 14 years this September 10,” he said. “It’s a much better way to live.”
Your Dollar Store With More is chock full of inexpensive and handy items, the perfect place to source party favours, decorations and small toys and back to school items. The Expositor grabbed a new fast charge cord for a cellphone at a very reasonable price.
Remember that when you shop locally, you’re supporting friends and neighbours like Lorne Agawa at Your Dollar Store With More.
