Guest Bloggers – Page 43 – St. Joseph's Indian School

Guest Blogger: Julie H.

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 4^th and 5^th 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!

Julie H.

Guest Blogger: Tom

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.

Tom T

Guest Blogger: Mike P.

Greetings everyone from Mike and the William Home (4^th and 5^th grade girls)!

This is my tenth year working in the William Home and it is hard to believe that we are finishing up the first quarter of school this week. As always, St. Joseph’s Indian School’s powwow was very enjoyable and our Lakota kids love showing off their homes, campus and dancing.

The girls are now getting excited for the start of basketball season. We signed up October 18 and our first game is November 5!

If you have followed the William Home activities from last year, you may recall that we set a goal to walk 500 miles (10,00 laps in the gym) as a group. Well, this year the girls have a new plan. We have worked to find the mileage to all the girls’ hometowns and have set up a map to track our walking. Our tour is set to take us 760 miles or 15,200 laps around the gym. So far, we have made it to Fort Thompson and Lower Brule and are headed to Winner, South Dakota next.

Thank you for all you do to help the children of St. Joseph’s, and we will keep you updated on where the William Home is on our walk!

Guest Blogger: LaRayne

Native American girl enjoying a Lakota game. — Tasha had so much fun playing new hand games!

Our new Cultural Specialists brings Hand Games to St. Joseph’s Indian School.

David Z. is bringing knowledge, fun and more culture to St. Joseph’s Indian School! Dave is an elder who carries knowledge from a variety of areas. One of the areas is in the songs of the Lakota (Sioux). He sings at the drum for ceremonies, wacipis – powwows – and also knows hand games.

We plan on taking a team of students to the Lakota Nation Invitational in December for hand games; the students are very excited about this opportunity! On Monday, October 8, we celebrated Native American Day in South Dakota. At St. Joseph’s, we played hand games during our Native American Studies classes. This day also served as a try out for the traveling hand game team. Students are asked to learn a hand game song and the rules that apply to the game.

On a broader scale, Dave will be helping spread culture, knowledge and curriculum to the organization as a whole. We look forward to the opportunity for Dave, the students, our organization and communities near and far.

Guest Blogger: Fr. Anthony

Dear Benefactors,

I have the chance to share what’s happening here at St. Joseph’s Indian School since Fr. Steve is away for a donor luncheon in the Denver area.

This past Thursday saw the sign up for the girls’ basketball teams. Each grade from 4^th to 8^th have their own team and will play local schools in the area. They are now practicing in preparation for the opening of the season in early November.

Chamberlain’s High School football team had their last game prior to the state play-offs Thursday evening and it was an adventure as the weather made it difficult to do anything. The wind was blowing 35 to 40 miles per hour with some wind gusts as high as 60-79 mph. Though the Cubs came up a bit short, they qualified for play-offs and will journey northwest to play Cheyenne-Eagle Butte on Tuesday.

Friday saw the kick-off of Red Ribbon Week as inflatables were brought into the rec center for the students to have some fun. Lots of shouts of glee the students climbed up, slid down and bounced on various inflatables. Each home also provided a delicious snack to be shared. During this upcoming week the students will celebrate such days as wearing their pjs on Monday with the theme ‘follow your dreams … don’t do drugs!’; on Wednesday they’ll wear their Red Ribbon Week T-shirt which states ‘Be the change you want to see in the World’ and paint their faces blue to stress ‘I will say NO to drugs until I’m blue in the face’; and on Friday they’ll be asked to wear the colors of red, white and blue so as to make the statement ‘I elect to be drug free!’ There will also be a trivia contest held over the school intercom to remind the students of the danger of drugs and give them some insights as to how they can stay strong and say NO.

Saturday brought lovely weather which gave everyone the opportunity to get outside and work off some energy. It was also the opening of the pheasant hunting season which brings a lot of hunters to the area. I heard some shots from across the Missouri River on Sunday afternoon.

Just as the NBA is in their pre-season, so those taking part in the inter-city basketball league had a practice game on Sunday. We have four teams made up of 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade boys from St. Joseph’s and the Chamberlain area. In January, when the boys’ basketball season begins the girls’ will then have their inter-city basketball league. The program gives the young people in the area the chance to get to know and interact with each other so when entering high school they will already know each other.

Sunday was also very special since the first Native American Saint, Kateri Tekakwitha, was canonized in Rome, Italy. The homes were alerted that EWTN was showing the ceremonies live at 2:30 AM Sunday morning with a repeat at 10:00 AM.

Deacon Bud Jetty and Deacon Steve McLaughlin, who help the Priests of the Sacred Heart minister in Chamberlain and on the Lower Brule and Crow Creek Indian Reservations were designated by the Sioux Falls Diocese to represent the diocese at the canonization. We look forward to their return to hear how everything went.

Hope each of you will have a wonderful week ahead! May our Loving God continue to bless and reward you for your generosity towards and interest in the Lakota children we serve at St. Joseph’s Indian School. You are remembered in our prayers.

Guest Bloggers: Mike and April

The Carola Home won the high school trophy for with least missing assignments!!

Working hard and having fun!

Hello again from the Carola Home! A new year has begun and our boys are doing a wonderful job with all they have to do. This year we have four Juniors and three Freshman boys in our home. They have worked hard with school work, homework, tutoring, football, other activities and home responsibilities.

First quarter we had five boys make the honor roll and two who were just short of the honor roll, giving our home a GPA of 3.32. Besides studying hard, part of their success is not getting behind in their school work and not having many missing assignments.

The boys had a great time at Wild Water West!

With all the hard work they put in so far, they really enjoy having some downtime. With donors helping provided for St. Joseph’s Indian School, each home has a budget that they go by. Part of this budget goes to home trips. Home trips are a great time to relax and have fun and build relationships. At the beginning of the year, our home went to LifeLight Music Festival and Wild Water West. They had a great time camping and enjoying some wonderful music, go carts, going down the water slides and swimming in the wave pool.

With funds for a trip already spent, the boys had to come up with a way to make money. Our boys decided to do a car wash to raise funds for another home trip.

The boys used a no school day for the car wash. They asked for a freewill donation to support their home trip. They washed many cars and they spent all day with such a positive attitude and worked very hard. They made enough money for the trip – hiking at Harney Peak, shopping at the Rushmore Mall, and dinner and movies in Rapid City.

The boys are always saying “thanks for dinner” and while we were out at the restaurant they said, “Thanks for dinner.” We reminded them that they earned this themselves and thanked them for dinner.

They were very proud and so were we. They also realized how working hard can pay off.

Guest Bloggers: Patrick & Anita

Saturday morning we headed west, stopping at the Vore Buffalo Jump near the state line and then into Wyoming. Of course, we had to stop and take pictures and walk across the border so that everyone now can say they “walked from South Dakota to Wyoming!”

It’s a scenic drive to Devil’s Tower National Monument. Before starting our hikes we enjoyed the introduction to the area from the ranger. The group divided and had a choice of either a 1 ½ or a 3 ½ mile hike around the base of the Tower. The hikes and the views were both invigorating. Besides the prairie dog towns, the other wildlife we saw was a rattlesnake! Even though it was a baby one – and we viewed it from a distance – it added excitement to the day.

We attended mass that evening at St. Joseph’s in Spearfish, South Dakota. The group was given a warm welcome during announcements, and we were surprised to discover that the priest there is an uncle to one of our staff members. Then it was all-you-can-eat at the Pizza Ranch, a stop at the local mall, and enjoying the hotel pool before bedtime.

We began our Sunday with a visit to the impressive Crazy Horse Memorial, hearing the story of its origination, touring the museum, and gawking at the massiveness of the memorial. Afterwards we traveled back into the town of Custer for a brunch that included plate-sized pancakes! However, one of the German exchange students inadvertently ordered from the kiddy menu – the biggest member of our group had the smallest meal, which made for some good laughs!

After filling our stomachs we were ready to head back into Custer State Park to begin our wildlife quest. We had driven several miles on the Wildlife Loop and had only seen one pronghorn. The leaders were beginning to get worried that all the animals were in hiding, but then we came around a curve to be greeted by a herd of approximately 250 head of buffalo spread out across the hills! Some were even close to the road which made for some great photos. Before leaving the park we saw several groups of pronghorn antelope and two deer! It was a great way to wrap our visit to the Black Hills.

Of course, no visit to western South Dakota would be complete without a stop at Wall Drug! We had a chance to shop for souvenirs, have dinner and buy some of their famous homemade donuts before heading back to Chamberlain. We had an incredible 770 mile adventure—one that made great memories for each of the students.

Guest Blogger: Dianne

Hi! My name is Dianne and this is my first time blogging! I thought I’d start by letting you know a little bit about myself. I have been Administrative Assistant here at St. Joseph’s going on 36 years. I love my job, love the kids, and love what St. Joseph’s stands for.

My job in the office is always very busy—students come to me when they don’t feel well and I determine if they need a cough drop, an ice bag (quite a popular seller here!), if they need to go to the Health Center, or just some tender loving care. We see many students for other reasons like “I can’t find my planner,” “I lost my glasses,” “Which class am I supposed to be in now,” “I’m lost,” etc. !

We have several new students and this way I get to know them personally. Actually, the kids are my favorite part of my job! They come from many different places, but seem to find their place in the world here, make friends, and do quite well! The little first graders are so darn cute—they steal your heart away.

Two scary monsters at St. Joseph's Indian School. — Two monsters at an Academic Awards Banquet!

Today we have many different things going on in the school—we just finished our first quarter of school so I am busy getting report cards out and figuring out who is on the A and B honor roll. We will have an awards assembly and present them with their certificate and a prize. If students are on the honor roll two quarters in a row, they get to attend the Academic Banquet. I have helped with the banquet several years now—we always have a theme with fun decorations, serve a meal and give door prizes and awards. Some of our themes have been The 50’s—Rock and Roll, Tie Dyed—70’s, Monsters, Candy Land, Disco and many, many more.

We are now on Infinite Campus, a statewide program, so the job of grades and report cards has been made easier for all. Also, the students’ parents and/or guardians can check their progress at home. It has been a challenge for us all to acclimate ourselves to doing things a different way, but will be well worth it in the long run.

I keep track of attendance and also of activities on campus which I include on the weekly FYI. I enjoy putting this together and adding clip art and pictures of our students along with the activities. I have been including powwow pictures for some time now as they are enjoyable to look at and very colorful also!

Our school is always a very busy place like all schools—our Native American students live here on campus and go to school also. This gives us a good chance to really get to know them well. I still see kids who went to school here years ago—many of them have their own kids enrolled here! I think this speaks very highly of what we do here.

Thanks for your support!

Guest Blogger: Ronda

The school year started out with a bang at the Health Center! St. Joseph’s Health Center staff includes:

Nancy, RN, began at St Joseph’s in 1980
Ronda, LPN, began in 1991
Connie, Health Center Assistant began in 2003

Let us tell you about what we do!

We started the school year by getting all 220 students checked into the Health Center (HC) the day before school starts. The day is always very busy, but we love having the opportunity to meet the new students and a few of the parents when they bring their children to St Joseph’s.

During their quick visit here that day one of the first things we do is check their eyes. We use this information several times through the year to determine who needs eye appointments or if their prescription is still working for them. As of today, the children in need of glasses have received them, and we hope are wearing them … you know how kids can be!

We also do heights and weights on all the students at this time. Then again at the end of the school year we repeat this process. The students enjoy seeing how much they have grown in a short nine months

This year the state of South Dakota was able to provide our Lakota students with the flu mist, and all 220 of them were given the first part of September. We appreciated the mist instead of the shot because there was a lot less crying! What a relief to have this task done. Not only were we immunizing our students, we also gave 170 employees and their families their shots. Sorry no mist for them, they had to take the shot in the arm.

As October begins, so do our physicals for the students. Each new student gets a physical in September and the returning students have them on a yearly basis. Busy busy busy! Intertwined in all of this, each child gets a yearly dental cleaning and needed dental work done.

Thank you for helping us provide the medical attention our students need!

Ronda

Guest Blogger: Cindy K.

Hello, my name is Cindy K. and I work in the school office at St. Joseph’s Indian School. My day is full of many interesting details, which are never the same two days in a row! It is always exciting to see what the day will hold. It includes answering the phone, sending students to the health center, doing state reporting, helping staff and I even have to do a little trouble shooting with the copiers when they are jammed or not working.

I have worked at St. Joseph’s Indian School for over 15 years and it has been a thrill for me to get to know the students from year to year. Especially those that return to visit and tell us (the staff) how much they learned in their time at St. Joseph’s.

I also work with the Residential and Clinical Departments. This includes helping with admissions during the summer, setting up Service Plan meetings for students, keeping track of incentive cards and other organizational duties.

This year, we have switched to the District Edition of Infinite Campus. It is a complex but very fact-filled system. The system is able to show parents and staff when student assignments are due, as well as their grades and attendance. I’m able to import students from other schools when they start attending school here at St. Joseph’s. They need to be entered, given a school schedule, and a household name with any brothers or sisters who also attend St. Joseph’s. This year, the report cards will be run from this system. It will be an exciting time to see how this will all come together at the end of the quarter.

Our powwow was a huge success with many benefactors attending and participating this year. The weather cooperated and we enjoyed a fun-filled day outside watching the dancers. I would like to thank all of our donors for visiting and supporting St. Joseph’s. It means a lot to our Lakota students and the school.

“He is my refuge and my fortress, My God; in him will I trust”