In Dave Colterman's line of work, talking publicly about your job can get you a bad rap. Even putting a logo on your company vehicle is in bad taste.
You see, Colterman is in the remediation business, an industry that operates in the shadows of society and does its best work when no one is watching.
So it was with some reluctance that Colterman got on the phone with me earlier this month while working a disturbing job in Nunavut.
"People don't know who we are, and that's the good thing," he said from Iqaluit, taking a short break during a long three-day work stretch.
If you're not familiar with the lingo, Colterman and his colleagues are the specialists who move into crime scenes and clean up after police have pulled out.
While investigators dust for fingerprints, check for blood splatter marks and dig for clues, they don't handle the mess once the crime scene has been worked over.
In his three years on the job, Colterman has cleaned up after murders, suicides, grow-ops and a whole assortment of other misadventures that most only hear about in the news.
Colterman was in Iqaluit to clean up after an incident that left four people dead, but he wouldn't talk specifics for privacy reasons.
The tragedy made headlines nationally and crystallized the challenges facing northern towns such as Iqaluit, where unemployment, substance abuse and violence have left communities reeling.
According to news reports, Sylvain Degrasse, 44; Sula Enuaraq, 29; and daughters Alexandra and Aliyah, aged seven and two respectively, died of gunshot wounds. They were found June 7.
Though officials have not confirmed what exactly occurred, it's widely believed the case is a murder-suicide.
"If nothing bothers you, you're dead inside and you shouldn't be doing it at all," Colterman tells me, reflecting on the disturbing nature of the case, which unfolded at a family residence.
Only 18 hours before Colterman and his small team of two arrived to clean up the mess at the residence, police were still on the crime scene searching for evidence.
After working nearly around the clock for three days -- spurred on by the nearly 20 hours of Arctic summer sunshine -- the crew of three was nearly finished.
Still, it had been a grind: "There are so many ridiculous variables that you have to think about to make it doable," he said. Simple tasks like getting hold of supplies and regular items such as tissue paper can be tough in Iqaluit.
Due to the severity of the incident, in which all four family members died, and the remoteness of the location, the job had been among the toughest of Colterman's decade-long career.
Complicating matters, there was the problem of keeping a low-profile in a town where everyone knows everyone, and secrets don't last long.
"We're very particular about how we handle that stuff," Colterman said, adding that disposing of bio-waste from the scene requires the utmost discretion.
While the Iqaluit job had been difficult, Colterman spoke of a similarly disturbing scene while working in small-town Ontario. In that job, Colterman was called in after a husband shot his wife before turning the gun on himself.
As he worked feverishly inside the family home, the surviving children of the dead were still nearby. Perhaps too near.
"I was mortified," he said, recalling that the seven-year-old was actually playing outside as he worked to clean up the remains of her parents.
"If she comes over and asks what I'm doing …" his voice trails off.
Like cops and paramedics, professionals in the remediation business try to leave their work at work, but sometimes the sheer gravity of the situation hits home.
"It's hard. We clean up after sexual assaults and things of that nature, too. And so whenever there's children involved in any aspect, it's tough."
Colterman and his partner -- a former paramedic -- have been operating as biohazard remediation technicians for three years, and now operate Ontario Remediation Services. Their company also specializes in cleaning up after hoarders who stockpile garbage in their homes.
"I considered myself wonderfully jaded when I started in this industry," he said, hinting that things have changed for him. "Now I've got a one and a two-year-old."
Dealing with the dark side of society and cleaning up messes that others don't want to handle must have an effect on the psyche, but throughout the interview, Colterman sounds upbeat and positive, especially when taking about the people he's met in Iqaluit.
"It gets a bum wrap, but I tell you, the hospitality we've gotten is second to none," he said, briefly touching on increasing attention about the town's struggles with violent crime.
But with only a few hours left on the job, Colterman was keen to end the interview and get back to work.
He was also hoping to wrap up the job so he could take a dip in the icy waters of Frobisher Bay, polar bear-style, before heading back to Hamilton, Ont. in time for a Father's Day dinner with his family.
With that in mind, he wraps up our talk and prepares to head back outside into the late-day, 14 C sunshine.
"When I was a kid, you would look on a map in Canada and see how far north you could find a town. It's hard to believe that people live up here, but it's quite gorgeous for a desert."
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