At St. Joseph's Indian School, our privately-funded programs for Lakota (Sioux) children in need have evolved over 90 years of family partnership, experience and education. Because of generous friends who share tax-deductible donations, Native American youth receive a safe, stable home life; individual counseling and guidance; carefully planned curriculum based on Lakota culture and individual student needs and tools to help build confidence, boost self-esteem and improve cultural awareness. All of this helps children to live a bright, productive, possibility-filled future.
Last night Mark at the Rec Center tried a new activity with the fourth and fifth grade boys – water polo!
He used the deep end of the pool and played side to side to shorten the field. The boys learned the basics and enjoyed it, but had to keep asking for subs to come in because they found treading water the whole time and trying to get their arms out of the water for a good shot to be very tiring. I’m sure the houseparents who had to make sure they went to bed at the end of the evening didn’t mind at all. We like to have our Lakota students try new activities; you never know what might catch their passion and interest.
Saturday I was in the office working on weekend liturgy when a call came in from Raphael Home (1st – 3rd grade boys) that a gentleman was looking for someone to donate a picture to. Turns out a hunter from Wisconsin had a beautiful limited edition print of a painting of a white buffalo calf, which has great meaning and sacredness in Lakota culture. He wanted to know if we had a good home for it. I gratefully accepted the gift, and I showed the boys the image. They liked it so much we decided to let the print make its home in Raphael. People surprise us with their goodness and generosity every day.
Usually when I’m at the Rec Center I see activities for students around the same grade and age. This afternoon as I approached the building I found students from all grades and corners of St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus streaming in. Andy had just announced over the intercom that the prize money for the Halloween costume contest was available to the winners, and they made a beeline for the treasure. It was just a few dollars, but that meant extra treats at the snack bar, or a few bucks to put into their account for later use.
Several homes used today for day trips, while others shot baskets in the gym, tossed footballs around outside, or watched a favorite movie.
Greetings friends of St. Joseph’s Indian School! I hope the Feast of All Souls Day finds you doing well!
Things here on St. Joseph’s campus are going well! It is hard to believe we have finished our first quarter of school and are already a couple of weeks into the second quarter. My, how times flies! The students are working hard to keep their grades up and do well in school.
Happy Halloween from everyone at St. Joseph’s Indian School!
Halloween was a great hit. Most of the kids dressed up in costumes and there were some great costumes! The students were able to trick-or-treat here on campus and then take part in a costume contest. Some of the homes also went into Chamberlain to trick-or-treat as well. All of the students I have talked to say they really enjoyed Halloween!
With Halloween past us now, the next big events on the campus of St. Joseph’s Indian School are girls basketball, Thanksgiving and Christmas. We haven’t seen much snow here yet, so I wonder if we will have a white Christmas this year!
Our girls’ basketball seasons kicks off on Monday, November 5. The girls are very excited to begin their season. The girls are working hard in practice and learning all they can in the short time they have before their games begin. Basketball season is always a busy time as all of the games take place between early November and Christmas Break. With as fast as this school year is going, both Thanksgiving and Christmas will be here before we know it!
As we move closer to Thanksgiving, I would like to thank each and every one of you for all of the support you give to St. Joseph’s Indian School. Please know that you are remembered in our prayers!
This morning our high school staff hosted a farewell breakfast in the Hogebach Home for Shana, who has directed the High School Program for the past five years. Her husband got a promotion that moved the family to a different part of the state. In her time as director here, she and her staff found ways to increase our student GPA and retention rates, and see more go on to college. We plan to build on those successes and continue developing the programs and ideas she implemented. All the best to you in your new endeavors Shana!
Happy Halloween!
Halloween is one of the most exciting days to be a kid, especially when you get to dress up in costume all day. I toured the school and previewed the attire our Lakota students picked out for this whimsical holiday. Several of the teachers and staff also got into the spirit of the day and wore colorful and creative outfits, including Kathleen our principal, whose face was painted to make her look like a cat. After the initial giggles died down, everyone got down to work, and the quizzes, experiments and reading went on as normal.
There was no study hall as teachers went easy on tonight’s homework, so classes could dismiss a half hour early. Students put the finishing touches on their costumes and grabbed a bag for trick or treating. My office was one of several stops around campus. Those of us who work in central offices coordinate treats with our dining hall so we have some variety, and so the treats are fun but have some nutritional value. I passed out fruit roll ups. I wore a Fred Flintstone outfit, and with reruns of the classics, about half the kids knew who I was. The other half were fascinated by the big feet that came along with the costume.
We have two medical students from the University of South Dakota spending a few days on St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus for a cross cultural experience. We put them to work right away lining up children for the costume contest. We gathered in the Rec Center where the students were split into categories of funniest, scariest and most creative according to each age group of homes. I wasn’t one of the judges this year, but one of my favorites was Bryante, a first grader dressed like Tinkerbelle. The judges agreed too, and she won first place. My favorite staff ensemble was a Little Mermaid trio, with two of our staff as Ursula and King Triton, and their daughter as Ariel.
Several families took part in the festivities, then checked their child out to take them trick or treating in town. A few of the homes, especially with younger kids, also made some rounds in town, since that’s part of the fun and allure of Halloween. At the end of the day, houseparents collect all the candy and treats so our students will snack a little at a time over the next couple of weeks.
Each classroom chose a saint to learn about and designed a banner to represent them!
We had two masses for the Lakota students today for the All Saints Holy Day. Right after school grades 1-8 gathered in church with all their teachers and houseparents. Of course our opening song had to be a lively rendition of “When the Saints Go Marching In.”
Each of the classrooms chose a saint to learn about that had some special significance to them, and designed a banner that was proudly carried in the opening procession. Saints Jochim and Anne (patron of grandparents) included the names of several of our students grandparents. I myself found out our newest saint, Kateri Tekakwitha, is the patroness of ecology. St. Maximillian Kolbe is a help and inspiration for those struggling with addictions, which is a big hurdle many of our students’ families know about all too well.
Since many of our high school students work after school or are involved in sports practice or getting ready for the school play, we had another mass for them later in the evening. It was a much smaller and more intimate crowd (56 counting staff and students). But the older students seem to enjoy the occasions when they are among peers, and the homily can focus on their reality.
Students volunteered to be readers and hospitality ministers. It takes some courage to read or speak in front of friends, but overcoming that reluctance is another step in building self-confidence and growing into maturity. Each of the homes brought petitions for our common prayers. Our kids are very concerned about all the folks who are suffering on the East Coast and beyond from super-storm Sandy, and that was the prayer most commonly voiced.
I spoke about preparing for the future, and having the attitudes of the beatitudes in trying to make a difference in addressing the suffering of our needy world. I drew some chuckles when I told the high school students, “Our main goal is to get rid of you!” But of course, the goal is having them graduate and move on with the firm and well-rounded foundation they need to pursue God’s hopes and dreams for them.
After mass, a few of the students hung around to chat. They’ve been trying to plan a dance that didn’t happen over Halloween, and now the other holidays are fast approaching. Chris joked that maybe their theme should be zombie turkeys carrying presents!
I noticed one of the girls gravitating to the saints banners. She quietly and contemplatively approached each one, observing how each of the classes had portrayed our heroes of faith. When I asked about her favorite, it was the Holy Innocents, with the names of children that our students knew and prayed for.
My hope is to instill that sense of prayerful wonder and reflection in all of our students, and that we can help form young people who will be known for heroic virtue.
Ahhhh, Halloween. It is a great day to flirt with the things that scare us the most, and poke a little fun at the dark side of life. In other words, it’s just another typical day in St. Joseph’s High School Program.
I kicked off my Halloween season with parent teacher conferences at Chamberlain High School last Thursday. I really did not need to be afraid. I sat at a table marked “Giles Home” with a printout of my 10 students. One by one, the CHS teachers came by to talk about students’ progress in their classes. We keep close track of missing assignments and grades, so there weren’t any surprises. I heard the usual feedback that students do well on daily work but struggle on tests. The individual remarks were very heartening though.
“He’s a great kid.”
“He seems very interested in the subject.”
“He contributes a lot to discussions.”
“He has terrific penmanship.”
The Giles Home climbing Harney Peak.
The following day, the Giles Home departed on a long weekend home trip to Rapid City. We started out by climbing Harney Peak, the highest point in the Black Hills. In the snow. Who’s afraid of a 6 hour hike in the snow, right? Who’s afraid of not keeping up with 10 guys with boundless energy and the skill of mountain goats? Who’s afraid of not making it back down before dark and having to use an iPhone for a flashlight?
Nay!
What we had to be afraid of was getting in their way at the chow line at Golden Corral afterwards.
The next day, we took them to Flags and Wheels, where they got to play go-karts, laser tag and bumper cars. This would not be scary, except that houseparents Melissa, Aaron and I are veterans of the high school summer program. We know that these guys are going to be in driver’s ed next year. They demonstrated some serious demolition skills with those bumper cars. Ruthless, I tell you!
Who thinks these boys are ready for drivers ed?!
And of course we had to go to a haunted house at the Rapid City fairgrounds. Caden (Aaron and Melissa’s 8 year old son) set the tone by hugging the big scary monster that greeted us in the parking lot.
Aww, shucks, how scary could the Terror in the Dark house be? Despite this rather benign first impression, two guys didn’t even make it past the second room before surrendering, “I’m out!!” The rest of the rooms were a blur of blood-curdling shrieks, menacing monsters and guys clinging to each other for dear life. I was NOT the only one screaming like a girl. Yes, some days it is good to be terrorized by things that can’t actually hurt you. Especially if you have good friends nearby to grab onto, and four reliable houseparents to make sure you get home safely.
Honestly, there are things that scare me a lot more than icy mountains, funhouse cars and latex monster masks. Failing at things, for example. I hate failing at things. I go to insane lengths to make sure that projects and plans go off without a hitch. So why am I so twitchy about Halloween this year? Because I have handed the reins over to the high schoolers.
This is the first year of doing a high school Student Leaders Group. As part of our mission to prepare the students for life after high school, we are turning over some tasks and responsibilities to the students themselves. We have formed a leadership group with delegates from each of the homes. I act as an advisor, but I’m not actually “in charge” of anything. Right now, they are trying to pull off a Halloween party.
Leadership Group has had a rocky start. The first activity they planned was a dodgeball game. It did not happen.
The second task they chose was to write a persuasive letter to the HS director in order to change a rule that they didn’t like. That took some coaching on my part.
“No, saying ‘the rule is stupid’ is not sufficient.”
One of the delegates turned in a thoughtful, clear and rational reason that the rule could be changed. Oh yeah!
No one else finished theirs though. Augh!
The last activity they planned, the Red Ribbon Relay Race (say that 10x fast!) was beset with commitment issues. The leaders who came through worked very hard but ran into unforeseeable difficulties. Can anyone really divide a bunch of half-frozen kids into small groups and convince them to run around in a circle? Note to self: get a bigger megaphone.
It is the day of Halloween and we are still working on a plan for the party. This is where that fear of failure raises its ugly head. I have to resist the urge to take over and tell people what to do, or worse, do it myself. Because the point of all of this is not to have an event go perfectly. The purpose is for the students to make a plan, make adjustments, make concessions, make mistakes, make corrections and make the best of it. My purpose is not to decide for them what is possible. The purpose is for them to figure out what they are capable of doing.
We ended our planning session on a positive note. Each delegate has a list of things s/he is responsible for. They have a best-case plan and a back up plan in case that doesn’t work out. A lot of this means them asking for what they want, and deciding what to do if they can’t have it. They have done an impressive job foreseeing obstacles and brainstorming solutions.
This means that they are moving away from accepting “No, that can’t be done,” and moving towards finding ways that it can be done. Anyone who works with teens knows that this can be scary and exhilarating.
What if the kids start thinking for themselves and *gasp* start asking questions? What kind of a monster have we awakened?! Hopefully, some sort of quasi-adult, thoughtful monster. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.
Hello friends! I hope today finds you all doing well! My name is Julie H. and I am a Family Service Counselor at St. Joseph’s Indian School. Things here are St. Joseph’s are going well!
This week we celebrated Red Ribbon Week and the kids were able to take part in lots of fun activities! There were activities such as inflatables, ice cream sundaes, relays and theme days. The kids always enjoy celebrating Red Ribbon Week!
The next celebration we are looking forward to is Halloween. The kids are all gearing up for the fun and planning their costumes. The students are able to trick-or-treat on St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus and then we have a Halloween costume contest. The students always enjoy this time of year!
Our 6-8 grade boys just finished up their football season and the 6-8 grade girls just finished up volleyball. Now, the girls are gearing up for basketball and have started their practices. Their first game is November 5 and they are very excited. The 4th and 5th grade girls have also started basketball practice. Basketball season is a favorite time of the year for both our boys and girls. They enjoy the sport immensely, work hard, and show great sportsmanship. It will be fun to watch them play!
As the weather grows cooler, we are also starting to get ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas. What a wonderful time of year for our Lakota students! It is always a joy to be able to celebrate these holidays with the students! The students get a nice break for both holidays so they can return home and spend time with their families.
Another great thing happening today is FAST (Families and Schools Together) graduation. This program brings families to campus to spend quality time with their children. The program consists of a meal, family oriented activities, a time for parents to meet together and talk, and time for parents to just have fun with their children. We have graduated over 100 families from this program. Tonight we graduate seven more families! This is a great time for the families to come and spend time with their kids and for the staff who work with the students to get a chance to know families a little better as well.
As always, I thank you all for your generous donations of prayer and financial assistance! Without your help, we could not do the great work we do! May God’s blessings be poured out on each and every one of you!
Days on St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus have memorable laughs and occasional tears. Today was a day for grieving, as we got word that the mother of four of our students died much too young. We are all lifting them up in our thoughts and prayers.
The boys’ aunt notified our family service counselors ahead of time, so Scott and Karen gathered the boys after school for a family meeting. An older brother, who lives out of state, was on the phone to take part in the conversation as well. After they had time to let the sad news sink in, I was called to join in for some prayers.
Dave, one of our Native American Studies Specialists, brought in a hand drum, and sang a Lakota prayer song to comfort and strengthen the family. There aren’t a lot of words at times like this, only a caring presence. Karen rounded up some gift cards to the local McDonald’s so the auntie and boys could go out for supper and some time together before parting. I’m sure the days to come will be tough on the boys. Our circle of support will try to walk with them along the difficult journey.
On a more joyful note, I stopped by the school gym later to watch our 1st – 3rd grade boys learning about wrestling. Two of the houseparents were helping Mark, our recreation specialist teach not only about rules and techniques, but about sportsmanship. The houseparents also appreciated the fact the boys could burn off energy in a constructive way, hoping they’d be calmer when they arrived home to settle in for the evening.
St. Joseph’s Indian School’s choir continues to add spirit to our prayer by their voices. After mass, the director thanked them for their efforts. One student remarked,
“You’re welcome. I like singing and it sure makes mass go by a lot faster!”
Like most things, when you are involved as an active participant, time does pass differently. When people are engaged and lose track of time that’s a good sign.
Last Sunday, our boys’ Intercity Basketball League held practice games. Today was the official start of league play as 6th – 8th grade boys from Chamberlain played alongside our St. Joseph’s students. The difference between 6th graders and 8th is noticeable at that age. A 4’9” sixth grader trying to guard a 5’ 10” eighth grader has great odds to overcome. But everyone hustled and kept trying. All the participants got plenty of playing time. Hopefully all will continue to improve their game, and more importantly, build friendships.
I made the annual Halloween pilgrimage to the Perky Home (4th-5th grade boys). In the basement, our houseparent Wendy has collected several hundred Halloween costumes over the years – store bought and homemade, scary, funny and whimsical. When I arrived, the Raphael boys (1st – 3rd graders) had just finished picking out what they will wear, and excitedly showed their costumes off. I found some Fred Flintstone clothes on the rack that I’ll try while passing out treats on Wednesday.
Yabba Dabba Doo!
Over the weekend many of the homes finished up their efforts to win the decoration contest for each age group.
As we were driving back onto St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus from Denver Monday afternoon, we saw a girl in pajamas going into the Benedictine Homes. Laura remarked that she must have spent the day at the health care center. Then we saw the rest of the procession from school … also wearing pajamas!
It was the kick off to Red Ribbon Week – our annual celebration with the message that drugs get in the way of dreams and success, and there are so many fun and healthy alternatives. Monday the students were encouraged to wear pajamas to school – follow your dreams . . . don’t do drugs.
Tuesday, bright red ribbons tied around many trees on campus got everyone’s attention.
“I will say no to drugs until I’m blue in the face!”
On Wednesday, the entire school had matching shirts, with the inspiring Gandhi quote, “Be the Change You Wish to See in the World.” In the evening the homes gathered for Red Ribbon Relays. The potato sack races were run (or hopped) with plastic garbage bags around Wisdom Circle. The problem with those was that scraping against the pavement started to wear holes in the bags, and by the last leg the kids could put their legs through the holes and run! Playing on the theme of “I will say no to drugs until I’m blue in the face” kids painted their faces blue – some completely like Blue Man Group, others with mustaches or creative artwork, but each unique.
Friday played on the theme of patriotism and the upcoming election – “ I elect to be drug free, by wearing red white and blue.”
This week staff reading group discussed a book of poetry called “Walking the Earth, Touching the Sky.” The collection was published by the students at Red Cloud Indian School. Everyone appreciated the beautiful artwork, the cultural information, and found several lines to be profound and thought provoking.
Robyn, one of our Family Service Counselors, shared that with her book on her office end table, students would frequently pick it up and start leafing through it themselves. They were impressed by how peers articulated in words what they too felt. That led them to open up and talk more about their experiences of grief, hurt, and being misunderstood, so that was an immediate benefit of discussing the book. Besides the difficult times some poetry expressed the beauty of nature around us, and the strength of God and spirituality.
Volleyball season wrapped up for the year with a fun match Tuesday night between the eighth grade girls and our staff. The adults got to be kids again, with wild costumes and Halloween makeup. I noticed that whenever our staff started pulling too far ahead, their serve suspiciously failed them and control of the ball went back to the students. We laughed at the trick shots and fun antics to give the kids more chances, but after two overtime games with many ties and rallies the staff prevailed.
I was showing a visitor from Germany around St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus. When she heard how far away our visitor had come from, one of our first graders asked, “Have you ever been to White Lake?” (a small town of about 400 a few miles from Chamberlain).
“That’s where I was in foster care before I came to St. Joseph’s.”
Our visitor remarked that there is such a contradiction between how so many of the children seem normal and well adjusted, yet realizing that it is often sad circumstance that brought them here. The younger students talk more freely about life’s difficulties than our older ones, but we encourage all to work through life’s hardships.
I stopped at the museum to wish Vickie a happy birthday. Perhaps a third of our museum has been put into storage preparing for the next phase of work, and the space looks so empty. But in a few months we’ll be having some great new updates. We are still open and have a good number of visitors from hunters in the area for pheasant season.
Tonight we held FAST (Families and Students together) graduation. FAST has helped strengthen ties between St. Joseph and the families, and hopefully strengthened the relationship between students and their parents/guardians. One parent shared,
“This program brought me and my kids closer than ever.”
St. Joseph’s recently purchased a building in downtown Chamberlain!
The new building will allow us to convert the existing Receiving building into a “one stop” disbursement center for non-food items used by St. Joseph’s students and staff, which is the biggest benefit the building will provide. This one-stop shop will include clothing for the students, household goods, personal care items, gifts, linen and all the supplies currently found in Central Storage.
At this time, these items are stored in several locations on St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus. With the added space and efficiency, the building used by Central Storage, the current thrift store and storage areas below Our Lady of the Sioux Chapel can be available for other uses.
At this time we are out of storage room, and have little space for storage items that are seasonal or need to be saved for specific outreach programs, like the Bookmobile van, which distributes books to Indian reservation communities each summer.
Items that are taken to missions on the Indian reservation are currently stored in the van or trailer until a full load is ready to go. This means the van and trailer are not available for other use between mission trips. With the new building, the boxes can be kept inside until a load is ready to go, then the van and trailer can be taken to the store, loaded and taken to the designated reservation or mission. We are also hoping that this will allow for more mission runs and for more efficient processing of donations.
To keep costs down, maintenance staff from St. Joseph’s spent time doing demolition inside and outside of the new building in preparation for a contractor doing the majority of the remodel work. A general contractor will do the largest part of the project but, again to keep costs down, St. Joseph’s staff will do all of the electrical work and will co-ordinate with several local contractors on HVAC and plumbing.
