It all begins with trust.

As Program Manager for the Northern Sport, Culture, and Recreation District, Ryan Karakochuk knows that for northern communities to succeed in creating more sport opportunities, they need someone they can trust to support them through every step.

“The first year of my job, maybe even a little bit longer, was spent going to each community and sitting down and having coffee, getting to know the people and getting them to trust me.”

Thanks to his initial efforts, it wasn’t long before those conversations developed into partnerships and now, Karakochuk plays a vital role in the development of sport opportunities across 54 northern communities in the province.  

By building those relationships over the years, Karakochuk has also come to better comprehend each community’s unique dynamic so he can offer the best assistance. That is particularly useful when it comes to communities applying for the Indigenous Community Sport Development Grant Program (ICSDG), which is administered by Sask Sport through the Sask Lotteries Trust Fund and supports the development and implementation of community sport programs for Indigenous youth.

“My job is to make sure that they succeed. They call me and I will help them understand each question [asked in the grant], so at the end of the day they feel secure that they will get funding,” shared Karakochuk.

With Karakochuk’s assistance, northern communities have been able to achieve many firsts; opportunities that may have otherwise remained out of reach without the financial aid of grants.

Karakochuk shared that funding from the ICSDG has opened a lot of doors for the communities he works with, be it covering travel costs —like a volleyball team from the far north attending their first tournament in Prince Albert — or developing programming for a multitude of sports.

But according to Karakochuk, it’s more than creating the opportunities and making sport accessible in the north, it’s ensuring there is capacity for those programs to run effectively and long term.

“What you are seeing is the coach doing it all. The coach is the one prepping fields and getting everything ready, then coaching the kids. There is a lot of burnout and disadvantages to that. So, we have a lot of accessibility, but we also have a lot of barriers and the  grant helps with those barriers.”

With the ICSDG, Karakochuk has been able to organize training not only for coaches, which helps put another support person in place, but for officials as well. This past summer, for example, six individuals received their canoe instructor certification, which led to a domino effect of opportunity.

“Now the community can use the canoes they’ve purchased, and they’re not just sitting there. Now they are able to teach kids how to swim, to be in a canoe, to be safe and live off the land. Canoeing is the way of life in the north and getting food, living with your elders,” said Karakochuk. “That is exactly what happens when someone gets approved for a grant.”

And while Karakochuk states he doesn’t have a magic wand to address every barrier, he’s proud his work has impacted multiple communities and Indigenous youth by creating more opportunities to access sport.

“It’s not even about the dollars. The money is the driver, but at the end of the day it helps us build community development.”

The deadline for applications is October 31, 2026.