powwow – Page 5 – St. Joseph's Indian School

Never a dull moment at St. Joseph’s Indian School

Greetings from a weather-beaten state,

We have had tornadoes, hail and very heavy rain in South Dakota. Wessington Springs, which is about 60 miles northeast of us, was recently hit by a tornado that destroyed

The Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center on St. Joseph’s campus is free and open to the public. — The Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center features historical displays and contemporary artwork by Lakota (Sioux) artists.

several houses and businesses. Areas just to our north had some weather activity that knocked down storage silos.

Thankfully, Chamberlain has been spared the very dangerous storms. Our prayers are with those who have not been so fortunate.

Already this summer, we have had lots of visitors at the Akta Lakota Museum and Cultural Center browsing the museum, historical center a gift shop. It’s a pleasure to visit with them – some have been contributing to St. Joseph’s for many years and for some it is their first visit.

Those who have been here before are amazed at the changes that have taken place on campus, including now complete home renovations and the addition of the Tokéya uŋkí nájiŋpi (We Stood Here in the Beginning) Historical & Alumni Center.

All these projects, as well as the programs and necessities we provide for the Lakota children, are accomplished through your generosity. We’re so grateful!

If you are coming through South Dakota this summer, please stop in! If you are traveling later in the summer, be sure to attend our annual powwow on September 13.

St. Joseph’s Alumni & Historical Center features historical displays and special features for alumni. — The Alumni & Historical Center was recently added to the Akta Lakota Museum.

Other than visitors, the campus has gone a bit silent as Rising Eagle Day Camp has come to an end. All together, 984 Native American children took part in the four-week program, all from the Crow Creek and Lower Brule Indian Reservations.

Pilamaya – thank you – for your support! You helped provide the resources needed to meet the needs of the summer day camp program and made these smiles possible!

With fewer children on campus, St. Joseph’s maintenance crews are making needed repairs in homes and classrooms. New windows are being installed in the Benedictine Homes where our youngest students (grades 1-3) reside.

There is never a dull moment!

We hope you and yours will have a wonderful week and that God’s blessings may continue to be with you always.

Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

Representing St. Joseph’s Indian School in France

On May 25, Erica, Andrew, and I left on the trip of a lifetime! We have the honor of representing St. Joseph’s Indian School at the Lycee Ste Solange School, in Chateauroux,

Maija works with St. Joseph's high school students — Maija

France, on a trip to our sister school!

Similar to the exchange program with our sister school in Handrup, Germany, we hope this experience will broaden our students’ horizons. In turn, we will share the Lakota (Sioux) culture and St. Joseph’s mission.

We spent several months putting together a presentation for the school to share information about:

The state of South Dakota
Powwows and traditional regalia
The Seven Sacred Lakota Rites
St. Joseph’s programs
Chamberlain High School

With the older students in France, we will make dreamcatchers and beaded bracelets using the colors of the Four Directions. The little ones will learn about the Lakota tipi, star quilt and drum. Erica will also demonstrate fancy dancing in her regalia.

Erica, a St. Joseph’s high school student, traveled to our sister school in France. — Erica

The past several months have also been spent getting to know our hosts. I have been in touch with Blandine, who is the school secretary and the headmaster’s wife.

Before Easter, Stellie (from St. Joseph’s office in Paris), went to Chateauroux and gave a presentation about St. Joseph’s mission and the Lakota children who attend our school. After learning why children come to St. Joseph’s, Blandine and the students organized the “Bowl of Rice” operation.

This activity came in conjunction with the Easter season of Lent. After a talk about what sacrifice means, students at their school were given a choice about their regular lunch.

They proposed having the students pay the regular price of a school lunch and, instead of receiving what they would normally have (starter, main course, cheese and dessert), it would be substituted with a bowl of rice, apple, and piece of bread. The difference in cost would be donated to St. Joseph’s.

Andrew, a St. Joseph’s high school student, traveled to our sister school in France. — Andrew

Two weeks ago, I received a very ecstatic email from Blandine – they had great success in Operation Bowl of Rice and raised 2,000 Euros (over $2,700)!

They never had so many participants, she added. She said everyone was so proud to be allowed to participate for Maija, Erica and Andrew’s school!

In thanks for their generosity, we’re showing our appreciation for the school children and staff at Chateauroux by offering a gift of an ironwood buffalo – a symbol of sacrifice.

The buffalo – tatanka – is considered a symbol of abundance. It is especially significant in the Lakota culture because it provided the people with everything they needed.

Thank you for helping St. Joseph’s provide amazing learning opportunities for the Native American children we serve and stay tuned for more details about our trip!

Maija

Flurry of activities as the school year winds down

This has been a busy last few days. On Wednesday and Thursday of last week our eighth grade students had a day to shadow St. Joseph’s students attending Chamberlain High School. This is a great opportunity for the students to meet teachers and discover ways to get around the high school campus. As our eighth grade graduates get ready to move into our high school program, our seniors are getting ready to move on to college, vocational school and other educational avenues. On Wednesday afternoon a prayer service and reception will be held for our nine high school seniors. Their graduation ceremony is May 18^th.

This past Sunday, I attended the awarding of the annual Distinguished Alumni Award to Mr. Sam Dupris of Bloomington, Minnesota. Sam attended St. Joseph’s from 1937-1942 along with several of his siblings. Sam told our students that the values and educational base he received while attending St. Joseph’s has helped him throughout his life. After a stint in the Army, he used the GI Bill to attend flight school and for more than 25 years spent time with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) working his way up the ranks to be captain and chief pilot. Sam is the first and only Native American to serve as a FAA pilot. He was inducted into the South Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame in 2001 and South Dakota Hall of Fame in 2010.

This past Saturday, the annual Chamberlain High School Powwow was held at the new Chamberlain Community Center. Irene, a junior in our high school program, was selected to be Miss CHS Powwow. She joined, Mia and Cassidy, fellow St. Joseph’s high school girls to participate in the dancing. Our drum group also participated with music and songs for the celebration.

Many new faces are on campus as new staff is being interviewed and hired for next year. While we are happy to welcome them, it also means some of our ‘veterans’ will be moving on. Eleven will be retiring from St. Joseph’s with 114.5 combined years of service and dedication to our students.

You may remember I mentioned the Explorers were doing a car wash last weekend to raise money for new playground equipment at American Creek Campground. They washed 84 cars, made over $500 in tips and a little over $3,500 in pledges. Since June of 2002, they have raised a little over $79,500 to be used for audio visual equipment, projects to beautify the Chamberlain/Oacoma area, supporting meals on wheels and aid to local residents facing health issues.

I hope you have a positive week while finding ways to draw closer to those you care about and taking that first step in reaching out to make a new friend. May God’s blessings continue to be with you!

Sincerely,

Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

This is what I love about at St. Joseph’s Indian School – Lowan wicasa (drum group)

Greetings!
My name is Jeshua and I am the Lakota language teacher at St. Joseph’s Indian School. This was my first year on staff. In addition to teaching language, I also help with our drum group.

Our lowan wicasa (drum group) is called the Chalk Hills Singers. We get our name from all the stories of St. Joseph’s early days when the children would hike in the hills north of campus and find the chalky rocks alongside the Missouri River. We practice twice per week with all types of styles and genres like powwow, traditional, sundance and round dance songs.

I’m really proud of how far the boys have come. I believe every singer can now take a lead (starting a song so everyone joins in). These students aren’t just learning how to drum; we incorporate meaning, what the drum represents to our Lakota (Sioux) people and how important it is to be a drum keeper or singer.

So far we have 13 male singers in grades 6-12, and three wicaglata win (the women who accompany the men at the drum). Females sing in support of the drummers, standing around them. They are usually close to the singers and must know the songs as well.

St. Joseph’s drum group, the Chalk Hills Singers, sing with their instructor Jeshua. — Jeshua and the boys sing at the drum during St. Joseph’s 2013 powwow celebration.

In Lakota tradition, women do not sit at the drum. We explain the etiquette of how singers conduct themselves around the drum and that it is a great honor to make people dance, cry and laugh with their voice and the drum.

We sing at every St. Joseph’s powwow, which is an awesome sight with our Native American students in regalia, singing loud and proud. This fall, we also had the chance to participate in a veterans’ powwow on the Lower Brule Indian Reservation, which is my home reservation.

The boys witnessed a tokala (warrior) ceremony and had the chance to dance as well and pay respect to all veterans, which was a very memorable experience. All the other drums came up to shake our boys’ hands and give them props for being such a young and strong group of singers.

Recently, the sixth grade boys had the chance to participate in Inipi – purification lodge – and put their singing voices to use in what is also called the prayer lodge. For most of them, it was their first time participating in this ceremony.

It was awesome. They knew the songs to sing and showed great respect and attitude all the way to the end. We are going to have boys and girls inipi ceremony every month for different grades.

I believe their identity as Native Americans is very important. We try showing them this way of life at St. Joseph’s because some of them never get the opportunity.
That is what I love about St. Joseph Indian School: We can incorporate all types and diverse aspects to culture, religion and history for the students and staff.
Pilamaya – thank you – for your generosity!

Akta Lakota Museum featured by South Dakota Tourism

Did you know that St. Joseph’s Indian School is home to the Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center?

St. Joseph’s Indian School holds a powwow annually for the Lakota children, their families and guests from around the world. — St. Joseph’s annual powwow will be held September 12-13, 2014.

Preserving and sharing the Lakota (Sioux) culture is a core part of our mission at St. Joseph’s. In addition to Native American Studies classes for our students and our annual powwow, the museum is located on campus for students and visitors alike to broaden their knowledge of the Lakota culture.

Read more in this blog post from South Dakota Tourism and plan your visit today!

Want to receive regular updates? Follow the Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center on Twitter and Facebook!

What’s a kid to do with cabin fever?

What’s a kid to do? It’s so cold outside that you can’t stay out very long. Cabin fever is starting to set in. The TV is getting boring. “I know! Let’s go to the Rec!”

When the Lakota students come to play in the gym, they need to leave their heavy coats in the Rec center hallway. — Here’s what it looks like on a cold winter day when our Lakota students need to leave their outerwear in the hallway before entering the gym!

The Recreation Center at St. Joseph’s is the place to be in any season, but especially during these short winter days in the cold of South Dakota. The gymnasium and the pool are the most popular destinations, but the Recreation Center offers a whole lot more. In fact, when I started working there this fall, I was amazed at the variety of things to do and services they offer our Lakota (Sioux) students!

Hello, my name is Anita and this is my sixth year at St. Joseph’s Indian School. For the first five years, prior to my “second retirement” last June, I worked as a houseparent at the Sheehy Home for high school boys. Before that, my husband and I raised three sons while he worked as a teacher and I as a social worker. Even though we’d been in our professions for 30 years, we weren’t ready for the rocking chairs! That’s when we discovered St. Joseph’s and their mission.

But, back to the Rec Center…starting with the gymnasium. Besides being available for individuals to come down and shoot some hoops, the gym is used on a regular basis for activities for the Lakota children:

Boys’ and girls’ basketball leagues, for grades 4-8. Each team is complete with two coaches, uniforms, and a schedule to play schools from nearby communities. This fosters team play, cooperation, and good sportsmanship. In addition, the connection to the local communities is very important to fulfilling our mission for the Native American children we serve. We want people to come here to see what we’re about and for our students to interact with other children from other areas. The girls’ teams finished their season in December and the boys teams are just getting started. In conjunction with boys’ basketball season, some of the girls are now involved in cheerleading.
Enrichment night is fun and games for everyone!
Wednesday Night Enrichment Activities for everyone in grades 1-8. The groups are lead in an activity appropriate for their age by two of the Rec Center’s staff members, usually Mark and Andy. Houseparents are on hand to help out if needed. Our Rec Center staff focuses Enrichment on activities that EVERYONE can participate in (not everyone is a volleyball or basketball player) in order to promote physical and developmental skills, cooperation, exercise and grow a strong body, and to simply have FUN!

We also have a Concession Stand that is open during certain events, like basketball and volleyball games. St. Joseph’s high school students often volunteer to help Rec staff operate the stand during those events.

When the gymnasium is not being used for programmed activities it is available for any of St. Joseph’s homes to use. It is also used for other St. Joseph’s student events such as school dances, Halloween and Valentine parties, sobriety celebrations and powwow. Plus St. Joseph’s staff utilizes the space often for staff training or gatherings. There have also been numerous occasions where the local community reserves the gym for an activity, plus the Chamberlain High School athletic uses it for practice when there is a conflict in their facilities.

The Rec center operates a concession stand during games with the help of St. Joseph’s high school students. — Everyone loves the concession stand!

That’s only the gymnasium usage in our Recreation Center! In upcoming weeks I’ll be updating you on all the other things that we having going on here—stay tuned!

Off and Running with the William Home

Hello from Mike and the William Home! We are one of St. Joseph’s 4^th and 5^th grade girls’ homes. We have 12 Lakota (Sioux) girls living here and this is my eleventh year as a houseparent at St. Joseph’s Indian School.

Kyla lives in the William Home at St. Joseph’s Indian School. — Kyla brought home first place in the Traditional category at St. Joseph’s powwow!

It is hard to believe, but we are in the last week of the first quarter of school already. It has been a very hectic schedule so far and we are having a lot of fun. Some of the highlights for us have been St. Joseph’s annual powwow, where we had the opportunity to be one of the homes that donors toured as part of the scheduled activities.

The girls spent Friday evening making cupcakes and bars to serve to our guests, and showed them around our newly remodeled home on Saturday. Seven of our girls danced at powwow – Kyla brought home first place in Traditional and Shawnna was runner-up to be Junior Miss St. Joseph’s! One of our houseparents, Jessica, had a baby in September. She is away being a mom until mid-November. While she is gone, Zee is filling in for her. Zee is a new staff member who is originally from South Africa.

We are also off and running – or I guess walking – with the William Home fitness program. Last year, the girls walked 20,000 laps in the gym, which is equal to 1,000 miles. We will keep you updated on our progress as the year goes on.

Basketball season for the girls is just a few weeks away. They are getting anxious to start and have been getting in some shooting when we have gym time on the weekends. Our first game is scheduled for November 7 at Crow Creek.

We hope all is well for you! A big thank you to all the donors who took the time to visit the William home and St. Joseph’s campus during powwow.

God Bless,

William Home girls and staff

Cody is crowned Homecoming King!

Dear Friends of St. Joseph’s Indian School,

What a difference a week makes! Last week, we were coming down from a great powwow and lots of visitors. This week, things have calmed down and returned to normal. If you haven’t seen our powwow video yet, please check it out! Thank you again for coming and making it a wonderful weekend.

St. Joseph’s high school student Cody is the Chamberlain High School Homecoming King for 2013. — St. Joseph’s very own Cody was crowned Homecoming King 2013! Queen Marilyn also has ties to St. Joseph’s – both her parents work here! Congratulations to all!

Chamberlain High School kicked off their Homecoming Week last night with the coronation of Homecoming Royalty tonight. One of St. Joseph’s high school students, Cody, was crowned Homecoming King. We’re so proud!

I just got back from a meeting at our headquarters in Hales Corners, Wisconsin, where Canadian and American SCJs met with our Superior General who was finishing up his visit to North America. I had the chance to see Fr. Steve; he asked me to thank those who were at the powwow and took part in the prayer and honor dance for him.

Our German exchange students are on their way home. They visited South Dakota and made a presentation to our students regarding what life and school is like in Germany. For the past few years, 2-4 students and chaperones have visited Germany to share what life and school are like at St. Joseph’s.

We had some unexpected ‘guests’ on campus yesterday – some local cattle broke through a fence and showed up on St. Joseph’s football field! Our maintenance crew sprang into action to round them up and do some ‘pick up’ to get the field ready for tonight’s football game against Chamberlain.

I hope your week is filled with much joy and happiness. May God’s blessings continue to be yours!

Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

Everybody Powwow!!

WOW! What a weekend!

The Great Spirit really blessed St. Joseph’s Indian School this past weekend with great weather for our 37^th Annual Powwow. Many new friendships were made, and over 400 visitors were given the chance to see where their generous donations go and how they impact the lives of our Lakota (Sioux) students.

The festivities kicked off on Wednesday, with Fr. Steve returning for the weekend. The students and staff had an ‘official’ going away gathering that gave everyone time for tears, handshakes and sharing memories. Thursday morning, we were up bright and early to take part in the bus trip to the Lower Brule and Crow Creek Reservations.

Friday, the morning got started with breakfast at the Development Office. Tours were also included so visitors could see how the mailings go out and how the donations are handled when they come in.

Later, at the Rec Center, there were three different cultural presentations:

How to make a dreamcatcher
Traditional Native American foods
A drum presentation

Each session filled quickly. Many took advantage of the opportunity to visit the Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center and the new addition, the Tokéya uŋkí nájiŋpi (We Stood Here in the Beginning) Historical and Alumni Center.

Visits to the school and classrooms, with the Lakota boys and girls acting as tour guides, took up the early afternoon prior to the crowning of St. Joseph’s royalty — Eagle Staff Bearer, Miss St. Joseph’s and Jr. Miss St. Joseph’s. The afternoon concluded with a demonstration of Hoop Dancing by Kevin Locke who told stories, taught us sign language and employed 28 hoops in his dance. The Friday evening banquet at Cedar Shores was jam packed with 375 guests. There was a drawing for a Lakota Star Quilt and a silent auction for a painting by Mr. Del Iron Cloud, a St. Joseph’s alumnus.

Saturday was absolutely awesome weather-wise with sunshine and gentle breezes. Early guests on campus that morning had the chance to visit several of St. Joseph’s homes prior to the Grand Entry at noon. All veterans were invited to take part as the colors were presented and then shared their name and branch of service.

We had a great turn out of youth dancers – 191 in all – and all the practice our students put in paid off. Twenty St. Joseph’s students claimed prize money, with five winning first place!

Everyone enjoyed a buffalo stew supper after the powwow.

The evening ended with an honor dance for Fr. Steve, which began with a blessing for him in his new assignment as Provincial of the Priests of the Sacred Heart in the United States.

There was a full house for Mass on Sunday morning, which began with some of St. Joseph’s dancers – wearing full regalia – leading us in as our drum group provided the entrance music. Many pictures were taken and then our guests were free to visit the museum again or begin their journey home.

As I shook hands with those leaving Our Lady of the Sioux Chapel, many mentioned they are looking forward to coming again next year. Our students and staff hope they are able to return and that others, who were unable to come this year, might make it next year. St. Joseph’s 38^th Annual Wacipi – Powwow – will be September 12-14, 2014. I hope you all can join us!

See more moments from the weekend on Flickr, Facebook and YouTube!

Sincerely,

Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

P.S. One thing that really impressed me was how many individuals or church groups brought donations of school supplies, clothing and other needed items. Several mentioned they have been doing this for years. Pilamaya —thank you.

St. Joseph’s Royalty were named Friday afternoon ahead of Saturday’s powwow. — Hope, Miss St. Joseph’s and Sasha, Jr. Miss St. Joseph’s, are pictured with Fr. Anthony and Ben, St. Joseph’s Eagle Staff Bearer.

A visit from the Superior General

Greetings for St. Joseph’s Indian School!

St. Joseph’s recently hosted the Superior General of the Priests of the Sacred Heart, Fr. Jose Ornelas, SCJ. He was accompanied by Fr. John van den Hengel, SCJ. Father Ornelas visited Canada and the United States to meet with all the SCJ priests and brothers and see our various ministries in action. St. Joseph’s Indian School was founded by the Priests of the Sacred Heart in 1927.

Their visit began with a community meeting of the SCJs here in South Dakota. Fathers Jose and John then toured St. Joseph’s campus, visited the Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center, as well as the Tokéya uŋkí nájiŋpi Historical and Alumni Center. They watched some of the Lakota (Sioux) students practice their dancing for the upcoming powwow, looked in on classrooms to see the students in action and helped with homework in several of the homes before having supper with our high school boys in Sheehy Home.

Tuesday, they visited the Crow Creek and Lower Brule Sioux Indian Reservations, where the SCJs began their ministry to the Native American people back in 1923. They met with members of the pastoral team and drove around the area to get a feel for the land and work being done.

We also kicked off the Olweus Anti-Bullying Program last week at St. Joseph’s. As part of the program, the Lakota students will meet each week and discuss the effects bullying can have on people. We want to encourage a positive environment for our students, where everyone is treated with respect and dignity. Teachers, house parents and staff will also take part, and students’ families will be involved as well.

The powwow is on the horizon! We find ourselves in a ticklish situation as we are praying for rain for those areas of the country that are suffering from drought or fires, yet we also want good weather here at St. Joseph’s so that our guests will have an enjoyable (and dry) experience as powwow activities unfold on September 20-22. One guest we look forward to welcoming is Father Steve!

Have a great week and may God’s blessings and strength continue to be with you. Pilamaya – thank you – for your support of St. Joseph’s!

Fr. Anthony Kluckman, SCJ

Chaplain

St. Joseph’s Indian School