A former St. Joseph’s Indian School employee, Peggy, died at the age of 92. Her son Mike works on campus as our custodian, and I was asked to lead the funeral services. For many years Peggy was the public face of our Thrift Store on St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus, who enjoyed interacting with all the people who passed her way. At 92, she outlived many of her peers, and the “friends” side of the church had only a handful of people. But the “family” side was filled with a vast number of grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. I was struck by how one life, especially a mother’s life, can touch so many others and leave a legacy of love and care.
Our four high school seniors are finalizing their plans for the fall. D’Kera and Erin have been accepted to South Dakota State in Brookings, South Dakota. D’Kera will first spend some training time in the Army Reserves. Danisha plans to attend Dakota State in Madison, South Dakota. She also got word today that she was accepted for a summer internship at Crazy Horse Monument. While there she will earn college credit to get her off to a good start. Nick is still undecided about his post high school plans are, but would like to study business and accounting.
All of the kids at St. Joseph's Indian School had a great time at the Easter Egg Hunt.
The homes reopened at noon, and our Native American students started arriving back on campus to finish up our last quarter. April and May seem to fly by so fast, filled with all the end of year activities.
Our Easter Egg Hunt at 4:00 p.m. encouraged the students to get back before supper so they can have time to settle into their homes and be ready for school on Tuesday. A few students made it back just in the nick of time and rushed to the field where the eggs were hidden even before stopping at their home to unpack. There’s been a lot of odd news stories about egg hunts gone awry because they are too competitive. We try to keep it orderly and still let the kids have some fun. Our staff hid enough colorful plastic eggs for each child to find a dozen. Once a student collected theirs, they could help classmates fill their baskets. Once everyone had their eggs, they returned to the Rec Center to open them. All the eggs contained small prizes or candy, and a few had slips of paper that allowed them to choose a larger prize, like a stuffed bunny or a game. As the kids get older, they aren’t quite as enthusiastic about the eggs as the younger students, but all seemed to have a good time.
I saw a few students, especially the younger ones, fighting back tears when their parents or grandparents drove away. Even when students know this is the best place for them to be, those transitions away from family are inevitably hard.
During Holy Week, I helped with services at several nearby parishes, and enjoyed reconnecting with people . Friday and Saturday were very quiet around St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus and especially in the office, where I worked on some catch-up projects. I also took time for prayer and reflection during these days filled with such religious significance.
Fr. Anthony had Mass this morning for our break home students. When I got back to campus I walked over to the break home to join them for Easter dinner. As I got close to the home I saw some colored paper nestled in the bushes. I figured it was some trash that the wind had blown in, and I sauntered over to pick it up. Rather than trash, it was a brightly colored gift bag, hidden behind the bush, apparently by the Easter Bunny. It was filled with colorful eggs, treats and a stuffed rabbit. After lunch the seven students in the break home searched the yard and found the hidden goody bags.
Easter Break began at 2 p.m. Most of our Lakota students have left to spend the weekend with family. We do have one break home open for seven students, ranging in age from 7 to 16 who will be staying here on St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus. Three boys in one family have a younger brother in kindergarten, and their social worker asked if he might be able to stay here for Easter as well. It’s a chance for the children to all be together. It also gives their younger brother, who will likely join us at St. Joseph next year, to get a taste of the campus . Two different sets of houseparents will supervise for two days, and have planned fun activities .
Our Wellness Committee thought it would be fun for staff to start the break with a 5k walk and run and 10k bike ride. Employee’s families were invited to join in. We had around a hundred participants. This “first annual” generated enough interest to become a regular event. Before the walk Patrick, one of our houseparents, and member of the committee, gave us a pep talk. He reminded us that if we want to be good caregivers for others, it starts with self care. Some folks like competition, and ran or walked to beat a personal time goal. Others just enjoyed a nice stroll on a spring day, with their coworkers, family or a friend. Everyone received a t-shirt to remember the day, and our goal of living a good and healthy life.
At yesterday’s Child Service Meeting, our Rec Center staff gave a presentation on new programs they are developing. Besides coordinating the team sports against other schools, they have a vision about helping staff and students develop healthier lifestyles.
Mark has become certified in Circular Strength Training, which involves a series of body movements that can be done gently and slowly, but over time provide a great workout. Instead of just telling us about it, he had us get out of our chairs and walk through the activity with him. I admit it did help me stay more alert during the meeting than I normally would have after just eating lunch.
Our High School Program director, Shana, gave us an update on her meetings with the public school administrators. They have been brainstorming on ways to improve the transition for our eighth grade graduates at St. Joseph’s Indian School when they enter Chamberlain High School.
Daylon and Erica, two Freshmen in our high school program traveled to Miami, Florida for a donor appreciation luncheon. On Saturday we had such a lively and question filled group that to finish by the appointed time, our students had to cut part of their presentation short. Sunday’s group was smaller and quieter, but just as engaged and caring. The time together gives donors a fuller sense of the programs we run here at St. Joseph’s Indian School, and the chance to ask questions that people wonder about when they get our literature in the mail. People want to know where their donations go and if they are really making a difference.
As I meet people for whom I know even a small donation is a real sacrifice, I am humbled. Folks often bring along gifts to welcome us to their part of the world and to take home to share. We received necklaces, a conch shell, books and toys to share with the other Native American students and even a guitar. One family gave us a generous Walmart gift card for the girls and their home to get something they need. Along with some souvenirs, the students’ suitcases were much fuller going back.
I have relatives in the area, and after the luncheons my Uncle Ed and Aunt Mary Lou, and cousins Chris and Chuck served as our tour guides. The Port of Miami wasn’t far from our hotel, and besides the shops, it was amazing to see the size of the cruise ships as they docked in Port and prepared for adventures of their own. We spent Saturday evening in Miami Beach. The girls got their toes wet in the ocean, then explored the loud and colorful, neon lights and art deco buildings, crowds and crowds of people in the world of South Beach, a far cry from South Dakota.
Sunday after the luncheon my cousin Chris arranged for us to take an airboat tour in the Everglades. Our guide was an Apache man raised by the Miccosukee tribe in Florida. He was full of wisdom and humor, and knowledgeable about the colorful plants and birds we saw. He could tell us lots about each individual alligator we passed as though they were his pets. When one came towards the boat looking for food he grasped her by the throat and pulled her closer so we could have a good look.
Not something I would be brave enough to attempt!
Half way through the ride, he asked the girls if they would like to drive the boat. Daylon was adventurous enough. The look on her face was a mixture of surprise, the tentativeness of I-don’t-know-if- I- can–do-this to sheer delight. With the rudder in one hand and the wind flowing through her long black hair, and the biggest smile I’ve ever seen was a definite highlight of the trip.
Back in the city my cousins knew of a lively, reasonably priced waterfront restaurant, complete with acoustic guitar music. We had a relaxing evening reliving the memories of good friends and new experiences.
We met with the architect and contractors on the Akta Lakota Museum project today. They were planning to start pouring floors, but we got a heavy thunderstorm and the area is a muddy mess so they decided to wait for a drier day. They’re perhaps even a little ahead of schedule anyway, due to an unusually warm and dry spell since mid February. The rain was actually very appreciated, as area farmers and ranchers have worried about the low water table, and have been praying for moisture. Next week, crews plan to start the outside brick and masonry work, after which the project will really start coming to life.
In a short while, four staff and two students will start our journey for a donor appreciation luncheon to Miami, Florida to meet with and thank our donors in that part of the country. You’ll get a few guest blogs until I get back, and I’m sure I’ll have a story or two to tell of the adventure.
For those of you who support St. Joseph Indian School from a distance, I hope we are able to one day meet at a luncheon or one of our powwows.
Our 8th grade girls attended a Girls in Engineering, Math and Science (GEMS) workshop this past Saturday. It was held at South Dakota State University. The purpose of the workshop was to generate female interest in the fields traditionally populated by males. The girls listened to female students who chose different fields of engineering and what they enjoyed about their chosen major. All the girls participated in a series of activities exploring engineering, math and science.
They built and programmed robots, investigated the science of forensics with a “Who done it?” scenario – complete with fingerprinting – and built load-bearing bridges out of toothpicks. Each participant received a backpack from SDSU loaded with lots of stuff, a notebook, calculator, logo cup, pens and a flashlight, to name a few.
This was an opportunity that really opened a number of unexpected future options for them.
I went over to school for a while today. When I visit, I find that first grade is always one of my favorite stops. The day was winding down and the students had some self-structured time for learning activities. I helped Paite work on a jigsaw puzzle for a while. Once I helped him sort out the straight edges for the frame, he started to make speedy progress. Gavin asked if I wanted to help him build a tower with colorful plastic connectors. It fell over a few times on us, but we built it high and had fun. Other students simply read some favorite books, which is always a hopeful sign when kids learn to enjoy reading.
Mostly, I worked on materials for our Board of Directors meeting which will take place in two weeks. Budgeting gets complicated and takes not only good explanations, but careful checking. We have a great accounting staff that keeps the numbers balanced and true, which helps tremendously.
I stopped by Carola Home (high school boys) and shared a burger with the crew as they came in from sports practices and time with the tutor. The high school homes seldom have everyone together for dinner; they eat in shifts because of all the coming and going. But sitting with four or five guys at a time gave me a better chance to visit, asking about school and life.
Our student homes are separated according to grades. Grades 1 – 3 live in the same home, and when our Native American students move up to 4th grade, they will move to a new home, with added privileges and responsibilities. Since the school year ends in a couple of months, our staff is beginning to prepare students for the transition. The children will spend more time visiting the new homes, and getting to know those houseparents.
Today a survey was sent out to the primary grades houseparents. Some of the questions included:
Do you have a preference as to where this year’s 3rd graders should be placed? (Please list names and reasons why.)
Do you feel any children who are 3rd graders this year, should be in separate homes next year? (yes, sometimes our students don’t get along with each other!)
Are there any 3rd graders who will have relatives in the 4th-5th grade homes? Does the student want to be with his/her relative?
Are there any special needs of the students moving up?
There are a lot of dynamics at play – but our staff tries to place children in homes that respond to their developmental and relational needs.
Congratulations Erin!
Erin, one of our seniors in high school, was notified this morning she was one of six students from South Dakota to receive a Davis-Bahcall Scholarship. Erin gets to spend a month studying particle physics at some of the great laboratories in the world. Her first week will be at Sanford Labs in Lead, South Dakota. The next two weeks Erin will visit Fermilab just outside Chicago, and finish in northern Italy where CERN’s Gran Sasso lab is located.
Allan, the Chamberlain High School principal remarked that this is one of the two highest honors a high school student can earn in the science field. Way to go Erin!
