Guest Bloggers – Page 31 – St. Joseph's Indian School

Getting ready for Thanksgiving

Dear Benefactors,

From all the students and staff here at St. Joseph’s Indian School, best wishes to you and yours for a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Each of us has so much to be grateful for. May you have the chance to share the day with family and friends!

The Native American children at St. Joseph’s celebration Family Night every year. — The Lakota boys and girls made “trees of thanksgiving” to take home to their families.

St. Joseph’s students are getting in the Thanksgiving spirit as they took part in the National Family Week project this past Wednesday. They joined with siblings and cousins to make decorations to take home for their families on Thanksgiving. You can see our photos on Facebook!

They created a “tree of thanksgiving,” with leaves the students wrote messages on, expressing what they are grateful for. Thanks to a grant from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community in Minnesota, each family receives a gift card for their local grocery store to help provide food for the Thanksgiving meal. In the past, students took food boxes home with them, but the new system works wonderfully.

Three of our Lakota (Sioux) students had the chance to visit Washington, D.C. last week. Their family was honored by the United States for the role their great-grandfather played as a code-talker during World War II. As you might know, during that time Native American radio operators spoke in their native tongues so that German or Japanese troops listening would not understand what military information was being passed from one unit to another.

While these students were in Washington, D.C., another group of our students and staff were in the Houston, Texas, area to take part in a donor luncheon this past weekend. Kayla and Hope, two of our eighth graders, made the trip to share the impact St. Joseph’s has had on their lives. Our next two luncheons are January 18-19 in Los Angeles, California and February 22-23 in Cocoa Beach, Florida. If you would like to attend, you can register here.

I attended an ecumenical Thanksgiving prayer service held at St. James Catholic Church in downtown Chamberlain. It was nice to gather with others and be thankful. On Thanksgiving Day, the parish will host a Thanksgiving meal for anyone in the Chamberlain area who wishes to attend.

On Friday night, the day after Thanksgiving, there will be a presentation on Thanksgiving from a Native American viewpoint. The presenter will be Deacon Bud Jetty’s son, who is an educator from Montana. Deacon Bud serves on St. Joseph’s Board of Directors, and he and his wife are long-time friends of the school.

Last week we received word that 129 visitor-related businesses in South Dakota had been awarded the Great Service Star. The program is sponsored by the South Dakota Department of Tourism to recognize South Dakota businesses that show exceptional customer service to guests, customers or visitors. I am happy to inform you that St. Joseph’s Akta Lakota Museum and Cultural Center received the award. Visit their Facebook page to congratulate them!

Have a great Thanksgiving! May the holidays bring many blessings to you and your loved ones!

Fr. J. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

Visiting with a St. Joseph’s alum

Greetings from South Dakota!

First of all, our thoughts and prayers are with those in the Midwest who experienced such awful weather over the weekend. The loss of life and destruction are truly tragic.

Chamberlain High School presented their annual play this past weekend, Father of the Bride. Two of St. Joseph’s high school students were in the cast and four were part of the stage and lighting crew. As an added bonus, St. Joseph’s students Amber and Ashley created the set designs! In Dramatic Arts class, the director divided students into teams of two and let them come up with design ideas for the play. Amber and Ashley’s design was chosen – way to go, girls!

Basketball season is underway at St. Joseph’s, and the Lakota girls in 4^th through 8^th grade have taken to the hardwood courts. On Saturday, the 4^th, 5^th and 6^th graders played their counterparts from Chamberlain Elementary. There was a good turnout of family and friends on both sides to cheer them on.

The Chamberlain girls had some tall players, but St. Joseph’s girls had some real spunk and a ‘never say die’ attitude that helped them come back from early deficits and secure victory in the 4^th and 6^th grade games by one point each. The 5^th graders, unfortunately, came up just 4 points short. This week, all our teams will be on the road playing schools in the local area.

I had a nice surprise during the basketball games on Saturday. I got to visit with the mother of a current student who was a student here herself in the late 1990’s. Fancee was a star basketball player at St. Joseph’s. Now, she is married with four children and works as a police detective on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation.

She shared that her time at St. Joseph’s Indian School really prepared her for working with the Native American youth whom she now encounters in her profession. It was truly great to visit with her and hear how her years at St. Joseph’s helped her prepare for the future!

I hope each of you has a great week and that God’s blessings remain with you. Pilamaya – thank you – for your concern and generosity towards the Native American students at St. Joseph’s Indian School. Know that you and your intentions have been remembered in our Novena of Masses, November 11-19.

It’s never too early for Christmas songs!

I know that some people cringe at the thought of listening to Christmas songs from Thanksgiving to Christmas, but I’m not one of them! My XM radio already has at least two holiday channels (my favorite is Holly, Channel 17, but Holiday Traditions, Channel 4, isn’t bad, either) and since I commute 2 hours, 3-4 days a week, I have ample time to enjoy holiday music. I can’t get enough of the holidays, the site, sounds, tastes and smells of the holidays never get old to me!

This is our favorite and busiest time of the year in the Development Office at St. Joseph’s Indian School, too! Yesterday an ‘all hands on deck’ e-mail went out, asking that anyone who could help sort mail, please report to our Mail Processing area – we received 123 trays of mail!

We are indeed grateful for the holidays and the generous gifts that it brings from many of our supporters.

Geri, Director of Major Gifts, visits with a St. Joseph’s donor. — Geri has the opportunity to make personal visits to donors as the holidays approach.

But, not only is our Mail Processing Department busy this time of year, our Major Gifts Staff is equally as busy. We reach out to donors that we’ve come to know personally with a phone call, holiday card or personal visit.

It’s not always an easy time of the year for many of our donors who have lost loved ones and are facing loneliness during the holidays.

These personal outreaches are the ones that bring me the most joy in my job – I can take the time to visit with our supporters about how they’ll spend the holidays and share all of the activities and celebrations we have planned for the Lakota students at St. Joseph’s.

Indeed, the holidays are a time of gratitude for all of us at St. Joseph’s Indian School. We are grateful to work for a great organization and help carry out a mission that is changing the lives of Native American children and their families, and we’re grateful for our generous supporters who make our mission possible!

We wish you a blessed holiday season (now go turn on some Christmas music, while you still have time)!

Thank you to our Veterans

Good afternoon from a snowy South Dakota!

We had a little dusting of snow early this morning. With the leaves still on the ground, it makes for a slippery situation. I’m sure the students were not in mad dashes across St. Joseph’s campus today.

First of all, Happy Veterans Day! A big pilamaya – thank you – to all who made the commitment to serve in the Armed Forces of our country to keep us protected and free.

There is a Veterans’ Day powwow in Lower Brule today. LaRayne, our Native American Studies teacher, took 10 drummers and 5 dancers to take part. The Summerlee Home (4^th and 5^th grade girls) went up yesterday to join in the festivities and enjoy a meal with the community.

Friday night, several of our staff represented St. Joseph’s Indian School in a fundraiser for the Chamberlain School District Foundation. It was loosely based on an Old Fashioned Community Spelling Bee. Nine different teams took part in the event at the city civic center, which was recently rebuilt.

It was an open house for the new facility and a chance to raise some money for an outdoor classroom for the Chamberlain school system. The teams had fun as they competed in spelling, puns, scrabble and penmanship. While the MC stated ‘this might be the first and last spelling bee,’ it seemed everyone had fun and even the audience was able to take part.

I hope you all have a great week. We continue to keep you in our prayers, asking God to bless and reward you for your generosity to the Lakota children at St. Joseph’s.
Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

A Job of the Heart

Greetings from St. Joseph’s Indian School! My name is Julie H and I am a Family Service Counselor at St. Joseph’s, working with girls in grades 6-12. I recently had celebrated my 12^th anniversary as an employee here. Can you believe it?

Julie and Native American students make fry bread together. — Julie helps Kezrai and Angela make fry bread for the meal following an Inipi ceremony, which is the rite of purification in Lakota tradition.

My first two years at St. Joseph’s, I was a houseparent for the Lakota students in sixth, seventh and eighth grades. My next two years I was a Case Coordinator, and for the last eight years I have been a Family Service Counselor. My, how time flies!

As I look out my window today and see a bit of snow in the air, I am in a contemplative mood. I have had the question posed to me, more often lately, what brought me to St. Joseph’s and why I choose to stay?

The answer is really simple, actually. It’s the students.

The opportunity to work with kids brought me here, and that is what keeps me here.

I have said, since I came to St. Joseph’s, that working here is not a job – it is a calling. God reached into my heart and my life and brought me here to this wonderful place. There is really no other explanation.

I will be honest… this job can bring a person to tears. Tears of JOY when a student succeeds, tears of sadness when a student leaves, hurts, or struggles. Working at St. Joseph’s is a calling of the heart. And the human heart is a fragile thing. Working with our students can put your feet on a cloud, but it can also bring you to your knees.

Why? Because it is a job of the heart.

We, the staff of St. Joseph’s, lead with our heart. We want what is best for the students and their families. We rejoice when our families rejoice, we weep when our families weep. We celebrate when a student gets an A on a test, our hearts break when a student is disappointed or let down.

We only want what is best for our Native American students, but we all know life isn’t always fair and sometimes bad things happen to good people. When that happens, we put our hearts into it and support our families and students the best we can.

I am feeling truly blessed today that my calling has been to work with the families and children at St. Joseph’s. The good days outnumber the bad, the tears of joy outnumber the tears of sadness and saying “I work at St. Joseph’s Indian School,” always leaves my heart feeling full and happy.

This is a calling…but I could not fulfill my calling without the prayers and support of you, the benefactors of St. Joseph’s Indian School Without your support, we would not be able to offer the programs, stability, and safety we offer to our students. Without your support, we would not be able to offer the support we do for our families.

So while my job is a calling, your support is a calling as well. And I thank God every day that you have been called to be part of the St. Joseph’s family.

I send blessings and prayers your way as we move into the holiday season. May God bless you abundantly and fill your heart with joy for being called to St. Joseph’s.

Sincerely,

Julie

Overcoming Fear and Obstacles

When I was a little girl, I was terrified of speaking in front of a big group of people. I would panic and feel so self-conscious. My palms would sweat and my heart would beat so fast – to the point I had to listen closely because it was so fast I couldn’t hear the pitter-patter at all. This fear was magnified at the age of 10 when my family immigrated to the U.S. and I had to learn to speak English.

The truth is, most children are afraid something. Often times the first step to overcome a fear or obstacle is to face it in a safe setting with people you trust. This can help you realize you have what it takes to overcome it.

Recently, the Native American kids we work with at St. Joseph’s Indian School did just that! We were on duty in the Afra Home with the Lakota girls (grades 1-3) and Dave, our fellow houseparent, invited us to be a part of his kid-friendly version of “Fear Factor”. Does the title make it sound dangerous? I thought so too at first.

About 17 boys and girls were split into teams of two and faced a series of secret challenges. After finding out what a particular challenge entailed, each team could make a decision to either pass or try. The amount of points they could earn depended on whether they performed a partial or full completion of the challenge. The teams with the most points could win first or second place. There were also special awards for Best Heart and Best Sportsmanship. That way, their perseverance and attitude while either trying a challenge or cheering for other teams might qualify them to win a prize.

It sounded like fun and the girls were up for it. I joked that if all the girls had nightmares I was going to come and wake Jachin up so he could help me comfort them. To Dave’s credit, this activity was so awesome that I not-so-secretly wished it had been my idea. Haha. It was so successful!

Some of the challenges included:

Fear the Peer-Teams had to face their fear by choosing to sing a song, tell a story, dance, or read a poem in front of their peers. They could give a speech, teach a lesson, come up with a skit, or do pretty much anything else that would require them to do it in front of our crowd. We had some time to brain storm and then the show began. I do have to make a special shout out to my really nice husband, Jachin. In real life, he HATES to dance with a passion, but one of our boys said he would only do it if Jachin did it with him. I have never seen him dance like that before. What a trooper!

Fear the Dark- Each person could choose to sit in a dark room alone for 60 seconds to get points of their team. If they indicated they wanted to come out, we would immediately open the door.

Fear the Burn- Challengers would hang from the monkey bars and endure the burn of their muscles for as long as possible.

Fear the Food- Teams could eat “Monster Guts” and drink “Lizard Pee.” Obviously, we didn’t feed them the real stuff. There were no monsters around. : )

Here’s a video of some of our day to prove it!

Our “Fear the Peer” activity reminded me of my own fears. It reminded me that it took one person to make me believe I could actually try to stand in front of my class without freezing or feeling like I could burst into tears. That person was my 6^th grade Language Arts teacher. That year, I slowly improved because of her. I remember our final project was a speech. I did okay. After that, she signed me up for a county-wide speech competition. The speech had to be about the meaning of optimism. With a lot of practice, I went on to win second place overall. I couldn’t believe it!

It took a few other people to help me grow and polish the bit of skill I had. In high school, it was a retired lawyer who volunteered with youth in after school activities. He not only convinced me that I was a good public speaker, but he helped me believe I could be anything I wanted in life. While in college, it was a professor; he helped and encouraged me to further my skills by getting rid of verbal pauses such as “um” and “like” to hide my nervousness while I spoke.

Although their presence in my life was brief, those are a few of the people I can thank for being able to do the things I do today. Just yesterday, I had to do a presentation for a Staff Development Meeting. Even after all these years, their faces and names came to mind.

I say all that to say the following:

I believe in the combined power of relationships, encouragement, trusting God, resilience, and hard work. This power can help people overcome fears and obstacles. I hope every child can experience it at least once in their lifetime. I also wish all adults could play a role in that powerful combination for a child at least once in their lifetime.

Did you ever experience that power as a child? Have you played a role in empowering a child? I’d love to hear your story and our kids would too!

Changing Weather, Changing Activities

Greetings from St. Joseph’s Indian School!

I hope everyone had a great week and lots of fun on Halloween. The Lakota students capped off their celebration of Red Ribbon week — a time focused on reminding them of the danger of drugs — with some spooky fun, wearing costumes to school and trick-or-treating on campus. The students then gathered in the rec center for the Grand March and judging of costumes. There were awards for scariest, funniest and most creative costume, along with awards for pumpkin carving and home decorations. Check out the fun on our Facebook album!

The Lakota children enjoyed decorating and dressing up for Halloween. — St. Joseph’s students capped off Red Ribbon Week with Halloween fun!

Our High School Academic Advisor, Tara, announced the members of the 2013 Lakota Nation Invitational (LNI) Knowledge Bowl team. LNI is an annual event held before Christmas each year in Rapid City, South Dakota. It gathers members of the Lakota nation from all over the state and surrounding areas to compete in a wide variety of events — basketball, archery, an art show, Native American hand games, language contests and the Knowledge Bowl. Our students, Erica, Ashley, Michael, Cody, Kyran, Liliana, Jacob and Angela will meet every Sunday night until the competition to practice.

The CHS volleyball team – including some St. Joseph’s students – hosts Cheyenne-Eagle Butte on Tuesday in the state playoffs. This will be a tough one to watch since I spent five years in Eagle Butte serving on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation; but since I’m now in Chamberlain, I have to say ‘Go Cubs!’

As the weather is changing and cooling down, St. Joseph’s students are spending more time indoors. We recently held sign up for archery and wrestling. The younger students are also getting ready for Dancing Dolls and Dudes.

With the end of the first quarter, we acknowledged our honor roll students in grades 1-8. Students received certificates and a special prize for A and B Honor Roll and for perfect attendance.

Have a great week. Know that you and your intentions are remembered in our prayers. Thank you for your generosity!

Fr. J. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

My old friend Fear

Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year. I get to spend some quality time with my old friend Fear. Fear has a lot to teach me, but I generally avoid her and don’t return her phone calls. Once a year though, we get to hang out and have fun for a change.

At St. Joseph’s Indian School, I hang out with Lakota (Sioux) girls in sixth, seventh and eighth grades, and they love Fear. They love to watch scary movies and tell scary stories. They love to jump out from dark corners and yell, “Boo!” They love to hide plastic tarantulas in the coffee maker and severed hands in the cereal. They also like to cause Fear by screaming for no reason, failing to come back home on time, and playing contact sports with ruthless abandon.

This is what St. Joseph’s has taught me about Fear:

Talk about what scares you. Ok, sometimes it’s true that sitting around talking about the winagi (spirit) in the basement causes everyone in the home to freak out. But it is also true that if you talk about the winagi in the basement (or the elephant in the living room) chances are you aren’t the only one who is dealing with it. Phew! What a relief! And, chances are someone else knows what to do about it. Sometimes a simple prayer or blessing can set things right again. Or sometimes you can get a friend to go to the basement with you, so you don’t have to be scared by yourself.

Stick together. My houseparent partner Cathy and I took the girls in the Stevens Home to a Haunted House. Two hours of waiting and 12 minutes of sheer terror… We moved through there like a tiny freight train, everyone packed tightly together.

Cathy led the way, taking the terror head on and clearing a path through the zombie minefield… Until she ran us all into a wall and then we got turned around and the machete guy had to break character and very nicely say, “This way, ladies.”

I grabbed someone in the dark and steered her to safety. “I got your back.” No child left behind in this haunted house! “Wait. You’re not my kid.”

Face your fears. OK, so if you’re in a scary situation like a haunted house, it is a good idea to laugh in the face of fear. Or in Freedom’s case, laugh at the ugly machete guy and say, “Nyaa nyaa, you’re in a cage. You can’t get me!” What could go wrong? Feeling braver already!

Or not. Until you realize that there is a back door to the cage. And he IS coming to get you. In that case, apologize. “I’m sorry Mr. Crazy Scary Monster Guy! I’m sure that you’re actually quite nice!” Then grab your friends and run screaming.

Have faith. What makes Fear tolerable – either in the imaginary world of a haunted house or in the very real world of St. Joseph’s – is faith. Even when we can’t see where we are going, and everything feels mixed up and crazy, we know that we are not alone. We are surrounded by love and support. We have faith that we can get through this, and that our calls for help will be heard. We can see the Spirit at work in each other and in our Tiyospaye—our extended family.

The Lakota children wish you a Happy Halloween — Happy Halloween from the Lakota students and staff at St. Joseph’s Indian School!

There are other fears that we will continue to work on throughout the year, like Chantochurchophobia – the fear of singing in church. We will prepare for scary situations by having fire drills, lock down drills and tornado drills. We will talk through daily fears like, “What is going on back home?” and “What if I make a mistake in the basketball game?” But for one night, we will have faith and we will befriend our Fear.

Happy Halloween to all our supporters and thanks for having our backs!

A little snow on the way?

Dear Benefactors,

It looks like our Indian Summer may be over in South Dakota – that dreaded word ‘snow’ is in the forecast. It won’t be a lot, but it does remind us we are moving later into the year and our warm, sunny days will not be around for a while. We saw some evidence of snow and slush yesterday up in Fort Pierre on my way to a board meeting in Eagle Butte, South Dakota, on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation. We visited the abused women’s shelter and residential care center for Native American youth in that community, both sponsored by St. Joseph’s Indian School. They are doing wonderful work as they reach out to the local community on a variety of fronts.

Several of the homes for St. Joseph’s older students got together and headed to Mitchell, South Dakota to go through a haunted house and pay a visit to McDonald’s as well. They had a great time! With our Halloween party and costume contest coming this Thursday, it may have given them some ideas for costumes.

Last Wednesday, I was invited by the local Kiwanis to be their guest speaker. I shared an update on recent happenings on campus, encouraging them to visit our new Alumni and Historical Center. I also filled them in on Fr. Steve’s new role as Provincial for the Priests of the Sacred Heart.

Our students worked with an artist in residence last week to create Christmas ornaments for the National Christmas tree in Washington, DC! Currently 48 ornaments are nearly ready to go. St. Joseph’s Indian School is the only school in South Dakota to take part in decorating the tree, so this was a very special opportunity indeed. Stay tuned for more information on this exciting project!

On the sports front, the Chamberlain High School football team has qualified for the State playoffs! The first game will be tonight. They are hosting Todd County, whom they recently beat. We hope they are able to repeat the victory. Several St. Joseph students are contributing their talent and skills. Go Cubs!

Sunday, our inter-city basketball league got started. This program gives St. Joseph’s Lakota students and local 6^th, 7^th and 8^th graders the chance to play basketball on Sundays. They play together on four teams and compete against each other every Sunday afternoon. We see it as an important way for the students to meet each other now so that when they enter high school they’ll know each other a bit better.

The experience of playing together also helps them to be aware of each other’s talent, which is great in high school. The upcoming boys’ varsity basketball team for Chamberlain High School should be a good team this year. Last year, the “C” team was undefeated; it had several St. Joseph’s players on the team, so we’re looking forward to an exciting year!

I hope each of you has a great week. May God’s blessings be with you now and always.

God bless,

Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

Inipi – the Rite of Purification

Hello friends of St. Joseph’s,

My name is Amanda and I am a family service counselor at St. Joseph’s Indian School. I work with girls in grades 6-12, along with two other female counselors.

We have 17 high school girls who attend Daughters of Tradition two times per month. This group explores traditional Native American culture along with alcohol and substance abuse prevention. The girls in the group asked if we could hold an Inipi. An Inipi (also known as a sweat lodge) is a traditional ceremony that takes place to pray and purify or cleanse oneself. Two Lakota elders were asked to come from a local Indian reservation to lead the ceremony and pour water for the purification part.

Five students and one staff member participated in the ceremony while the other students and staff helped by making a traditional meal that included homemade beef stew, fry bread and chokecherry wojapi.

The fire was started around 3:30pm to heat the 15 rocks (they are also called grandfathers because they are the oldest entities on earth). When the female elders arrived, students offered a traditional gift of tobacco and money to thank them for giving of their time and wisdom to our students in this way.

Prior to entering the lodge, participants smudge with sage to cleanse and to bring positive energy to the Inipi. All enter the lodge clockwise and say Mitakuye Oyasin (all my relatives) to invite our ancestors in the lodge with us. The rocks are then brought into the lodge one by one and placed in the four directions by the fire keepers. The elders place flat cedar on the rocks as they pray for a good Inipi.

St. Joseph’s high school girls held an Inipi ceremony, which is the Lakota rite of purification. — The girls prepared a traditional meal of stew, fry bread and chokecherry wojapi to follow the Inipi.

Once all this has taken place, the flap to the lodge is closed. While we sit in the darkness with steam from the grandfathers, we all pray and ask for guidance. During this Inipi, we completed four rounds with a break in between so we could have fresh cool air and some water. Once the rounds were completed we all exited the lodge and thanked one another for a great sweat.

During an Inipi, it becomes very hot in the lodge. By the time you leave, you are soaking wet; however, you feel so refreshed and alive and cleansed! After the sweat was complete, we ventured up to one of the high school girls’ homes and enjoyed a nourishing homemade meal and fellowship.

St. Joseph’s is blessed to have a sweat lodge and fire pit, so several Inipis take place throughout the year. An Inipi is a truly amazing experience that allows you to pray with others and purify yourself. The girls always enjoy the experience and the delish meal. They often ask when the next one will be.

Have a blessed day!

Amanda