youth – Page 15 – St. Joseph's Indian School

From the road with Fr. Steve

I hope you’ve enjoyed hearing about campus activities from all our guest bloggers here at St. Joseph’s Indian School. I’ve enjoyed my time away – three weeks of vacation and a week for retreat. This week I will be in Milwaukee for SCJ community meetings and to celebrate the jubilees of priests and brothers who have been in vows for 50 and 60 years. I take a lot of inspiration from those men who have given so much of their life in service of others. I’ll return to St. Joseph’s campus next weekend. While a lot happens at St. Joseph’s Indian School over the summer months, I know the school has been in great hands even in my absence.

My time away has been a nice combination of visiting family and friends and seeing some sights I’ve long wanted to visit. One of my sisters now lives in upstate New York, and after a few days with Anne, I got to fulfill a long time dream and spend a day at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. On my way to Baltimore for retreat, I stood in Independence Hall in Philadelphia and reflected on the events of our nation’s history. I wondered how we can do more to preserve life, liberty and freedom in our communities. While in the city of brotherly love, I also made it up the steps that Rocky Balboa sprinted up in the movie. As I look back over the city, I also looked back over the past year with a great deal of gratitude for the prayers and support. I’ve come a long way since surgery and I will keep running the race with faith and hope and love.

Each year I look forward to retreat week as a time of prayer and reflection. One of the reflection talks was on self-care for priests. Since surgery, I’ve been good about the physical self-care, taking time to stretch and exercise. It showed results as I walked many miles each day with few problems. I suppose what I do have to work on is self-care that avoids procrastination and tackles the hardest but most important tasks first, instead of doing the easy things first and causing stress as deadlines approach. Time along the trip spent with those I love, and quiet times with the Lord are the best self-care there is.

Today’s guest blogger: Chris

Hello! I work in the Clinical Services Department as the Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coordinator at St. Joseph’s Indian School. The 2011-2012 school year will be my fourth year in this position. Prior to this position, I worked on the web site in the Marketing Department for three years. Both positions have taught me so much and even though the differences between them are like night and day, I’ve realized the employees of our organization share the same mission regardless of which department you work in.

I feel very fortunate to be in the Clinical Department; I really enjoy working with and getting to know our kids, and I get to work with a wonderful, supportive group of people.

I helped with summer camp during June. We hold a two-week camp for both the Crow Creek and Lower Brule Indian Reservations. Our bus travels to the reservation every morning to pick the kids up. When they get to campus the kids enjoy a full day of arts and crafts, recreational activities, a nutritious lunch, Lakota Studies and swimming. Snacks are handed out before the kids are bussed back to the reservation.

I have also gone on a few interviews this summer. Once parents/guardians submit an application for a child to attend St. Joseph’s Indian School, someone from the Clinical Department will travel (usually to the child’s home) and interview the parent/guardian and the child. It’s nice to meet new kids and their families. It’s pretty common for kids that are applying to have siblings or cousins that are already at St. Joseph’s, so it’s kind of neat to put the connections together.

Other tasks that are keeping me busy this summer include preparing for my 5^th grade guidance class that will start when the kids come back for the school year and taking a college course. I am working towards my State Prevention Certification and am taking the last of five courses before I can take the certification exam. I am required to complete a service learning project for the course, and I chose to visit the Lower Brule, South Dakota Boys and Girls Club for a couple of days in which one of my colleagues and I shared prevention and cultural activities with the youth.

Summer is going so fast; it’s hard to believe, but the kids will be back on campus in about 5 weeks! Once school starts I will be busy facilitating Red Path groups, serving on the FAST (Families and Schools Together) team, preparing for Red Ribbon Week, administering random drug tests and most importantly, making sure that any of our students who need drug and alcohol services will be getting the help they need.

Our mission at St. Joseph’s Indian School is only possible because of your generosity. Thank you and God Bless!

Have a great rest of the summer!

Today’s guest blogger: April

Mitakuapi translation – (listen I am going to tell you something), this is what our elders would say, so anytime you are at a gathering and you hear a Native American speaker, or presenter and they say this, you will know what they mean.

Hi Everyone, my name is April and I began working here at St. Joseph Indian School in July of 2005. I am the Family Liaison/Clinical Support. I also Coordinate the FAST program here at St. Joseph’s. I love meeting people and new families. As some of you know, I am also known as Grandma FAST or just Grandma, which is fine with me. I have the opportunity of going out and recruiting families and getting to know the families with home visits and weekly contacts. I would like to thank Fr. Steve for asking me to be a part of this. This is very interesting, and one has the opportunity to get to know others a little bit more.

A little about me: I am a Certified Chemical Dependency Counselor – I with the state, and also International. I work with domestic violence, so therefore an advocate for the shelter, and serve on the Child Protection Team with Social Services and inter-agency in Fort Thompson, South Dakota. I love my job, especially when it comes to the children, seeing that smile on their faces, when their parents come to campus and stay with them.

I do appreciate St. Joseph’s staff and the working relationship I am personally acquiring with everyone. I know there are still a lot that I haven’t had the chance to meet or work with, but I just want to say thank you in a good way for all your hard work.

I end with a warm hearty hand-shake.

Today’s guest blogger: Julie

Hello and happy summer to all! My name is Julie, I am the Family Service Counselor here at St. Joseph’s Indian School. I started my journey with St. Joseph’s about 10 years ago. When I first came to St. Joseph’s I worked as a houseparent with 6^th-8^th grade girls. The next year, I moved over to work with 6^th-8^th grade boys. After my first two years at St. Joseph’s, I moved into the Clinical Services Department which is responsible for admissions, counseling, guidance classes and many other things. Today, I work as a Family Service Counselor with 6^th-12^th grade girls. If I didn’t think it would get me in trouble, I’d tell you I work for the greatest department on campus. I truly enjoy my job, my colleagues and the kids I work with! (Oh yes, and all the departments on campus are stellar … I’m just biased because I work in the Clinical Department.)

Summer is a different kind of busy for the Clinical Services Department. We work on admissions, we visit families and we plan and prepare for the coming school year. Yesterday, I was out and about in Fort Thompson, South Dakota visiting families and helping with admissions. It is always great to check in with families and hear they are doing well. It’s also nice to hear that the kids are getting excited to come back and see us!

Summers are a lot of fun for the Clinical Services Department because we get to travel to various parts of the state to see our current students/families and we also get to meet great new families who would like to have their children attend St. Joseph’s Indian School. The hardest part of admissions is having to tell families all our spots are full and we will not be able to accept their child right away, but will keep them on the waiting list.

It’s hard to believe it is the middle of July already. Our kids will be coming back before we know it, and we are all excited to see them and have them here with us again! If you are ever in the area, make sure to stop in and see us! We would love to have you and show you what a great place we have here!

Have a great, safe and happy summer!

Today’s guest blogger: Mary Jane

Hello, my name is Mary Jane. I currently am the Outreach/Alumni Director here at St. Joseph’s Indian School. This summer I previously shared with you some of the travels of the bookmobile. Next week will be our last week on the road in the St. Joseph’s bookmobile. We will travel down to Pine Ridge, Rosebud, Mission, St. Francis and other small communities. Since we started we have driven 3,146 miles, distributing over 2,500 books! We still have many good titles for next week.

Here on campus the facilities staff are busy painting, scrubbing floors, cleaning homes, shampooing rugs, mowing the grass, inspecting vehicles and the list goes on. All of this to get ready for the 2011-2012 school year. We have a great, hard working staff.

Thank you for making all of our work here at St. Joseph’s possible. Enjoy your summer!!

Today’s guest blogger: Donna

Greetings! I’m the Human Resources Director for St. Joseph’s Indian School.

As you can tell by our recent guest bloggers, St. Joseph’s Indian School is much more than simply a “school.” It takes dedicated staff in many occupations to provide a safe, welcoming environment and experience for our Lakota (Sioux) students.

When describing St. Joseph’s to friends and family, I tell them that when you drive onto the property, it looks like a small college campus. On St. Joseph’s Indian School’s campus, you’ll see the homes in which the children reside, the school building itself, Our Lady of the Sioux Chapel, administration buildings, the Dining Hall, Rec Center, Health Center, business offices, the Akta Lakota Museum and Cultural Center and workshops for our Facilities crew. I mention these buildings (my list is incomplete) to give you a flavor of the variety of employees we have.

Our employees are a dedicated group. Like most businesses we have some staff who are just starting with us. But in many cases these personnel have worked here for 20, 30 or even 40 years. Often a person will come to work “for a year or two” because they’re interested in working with Native American youth. But they fall in love with the children and the mission of our school and decide to make St. Joseph’s a life-long career.

The Human Resources Department is fortunate to work with extraordinary staff. The work is hard – particularly for those who interact with the students. Days can be long, physically demanding and both intellectually and emotionally challenging. But our houseparents, teachers, counselors and others who work directly with the students often receive rewards commensurate with the challenges – a relationship with a child that exceeds their expectations.

In addition many employees who do not work directly with the children, find it equally rewarding to be associated with such an exceptional organization. We appreciate all of the unique skills and talents that these women and men are willing to share with St. Joseph’s.

I recognize that I may be making it sound like working for St. Joseph’s is similar to Eden or Shangri-La. Certainly that’s not the case. We have our warts just as all businesses do. However we are graced by many people who understand that their work here is not a job, but a mission.

Today’s guest blogger: Karen

Hello to all. My name is Karen and I am one of the Family Service Counselors working with 1^st through 5^th grade boys here at St. Joseph’s Indian School. I am beginning my 4^th year here. I am new to blogging, so please take that into account.

Work here at St. Joseph’s Indian School in the summertime has a different pace than the rest of the year. It’s a time when we spend some time visiting our students in their own homes and interviewing those who are applying, which is part of the admissions process. Yesterday, I travelled to Mitchell, South Dakota to interview a 2^ndgrader and his mother. He really enjoyed being interviewed and asked about his favorite foods and things like that. It’s always good to see where our students live and meet other family members that we may not have had the chance to meet before.

During the summer time, I do some planning for my next year’s guidance class as well. We each are assigned a particular grade and are responsible for planning guidance lessons and activities each week for a 45 minute time period. My assigned class is 1^st grade so they are students new to school and possibly, away from home for the first time. We talk about homesickness, support systems and usually take walking tours of the campus so they can begin to learn their way around. Some may have siblings that go here also.

Summertime at St. Joseph’s also means summer camp for kids from Lower Brule and Crow Creek. Those camps are two weeks long for each group. They have activities and fun lessons in the morning, eat lunch followed by some more activities and then a bus ride back home. St. Joseph’s also offers a summer break home for our students who would like to spend about 6 weeks here in the summer. They stay here on campus with houseparents and do a lot of field trips and fun activities. The Missouri River is extremely high this year, so the park in town where kids enjoy playing is now under water! I try often to have lunch with the students in the summer break home and they’re always excited to talk about the fun they’ve been having. One student won a bike for perfect attendance and he rides that bike all the time and absolutely loves it! The summer break home closes in early July so that every student has about 5 weeks at home before school starts again.

I thank you for your continued support and wish each of you joyful days.

Today’s guest blogger: Sherry

Hello, my name is Sherry. I am one of the 1^st-5^th grade girls Family Service Counselor here at St. Joseph’s Indian School. I am also St. Joseph’s Indian School’s FAST (Families and Schools Together) Trainer. I came to St. Joseph’s in 1999 where I began as a Child Care worker with the 6^th-8^th grade community. While I was a Child Care Worker, St. Joseph’s Indian School graciously allowed me to pursue my Master’s Degree which led to the current position I hold at this time.

During the summer time, I am busy with traveling to visit my families on my caseload. I enjoy this part of the summer because it allows me to visit with the Native American families and students in their own environment. The students and families are usually happy to see me and share with me what has been going on since summer break began in May. One of the big questions when I go out is,

When does school start again?

One of the other important things along with travel that I do in the summer is Admissions. I go out and meet with the new families and students. We fill out a social history to get to know the family and then the child will also answer some fun questions about themselves, so I can get to know them a bit on a personal level. Once the information is collected in the files I have for the summer, I then share the information with the Admissions Board and then it is decided whether or not St. Joseph’s Indian School would be a good fit for the family and most importantly for the child.

This summer, I was also fortunate to be able to be recertified as the FAST Trainer for St. Joseph’s Indian School. I traveled to Madison, Wisconsin where I spent two days going through the rectification process. FAST (FST Inc.) is an eight week researched based, family program that helps parents become the primary prevention agent in their child’s life. The goals of the FAST Program are to enhance family functioning by strengthening the parent-child relationship and by empowering the parents. The second goal is to prevent school failure, by improving the child’s performance and behavior in the school, empowering the parents to take a role in their child’s educational process and increasing the family’s affiliation with the school. The third goal is to prevent substance abuse in children and families by increasing knowledge and awareness of this problem and its impact in child development and linking families to assessments and treatment services and the final goal is to reduce stress parents and children experience in daily situations by developing informal support systems and linking with community resources and services.

These goals are met through the different activities the parent(s) and child(ren) complete together during a FAST night on campus. A typical night of FAST generally last for about two and half hours, in which the families play games and share a meal together. Some of the activities other than the meal are: making a family flag, scribbles (drawing activity), feeling charades, kids time, buddy time, parent group, closing circle and rain. On the 7^th session we have a Substance Abuse Prevention presentation by our Prevention Specialist or one of the other counselors. The families and staff alike enjoy doing the activities.

I hope that you all are having a wonderful summer!

Today’s guest blogger: Mary Beth

Hi, my name is Mary Beth – a first-time blogger as well! I oversee the production area of the development office here at St. Joseph’s Indian School. The development office is where fundraising efforts take place for the school and our outreach programs.

Right now, we are conducting our annual inventory and audit. We mail out about 15 million letters each year from our office, so we have millions of pieces to count! The auditors are here to check and verify our practices and provide an accurate report to our Board of Directors and to you.

We have machines that cut, fold, insert, seal and apply postage to all the letters and packages sent to friends like you. The postal service has guidelines that we must follow so we are eligible for the biggest discounts on the postage costs. Every penny saved is another penny available for the programs that serve the Native American children entrusted to us.

Postage costs are a constant concern, so it is very important to keep abreast of the changes and look for ways to save money. I work with the US Postal Service to mail as efficiently as possible. We are able to haul some of our larger mailings to a distribution center. This cuts our cost by thousands of dollars each year.

I have worked at St. Joseph’s Indian School for almost 29 years – I have enjoyed the opportunity to be a good steward and help provide for the long-term viability of the programs and services offered here. Please know that you are included in my daily prayers for all our tiyospaye – our extended family!

Today, one of our larger mailings is ready to go; we will have two semi-loads heading out. Perhaps one of the letters we are mailing will arrive at your mailbox soon! Hope you have enjoyed this little insight of my service to the needs of our school. I better go see what the auditors are looking at!

Today’s guest blogger: Mike

Hi, my name is Mike and I am the Food Service Coordinator for St. Joseph’s Indian School. In addition to feeding lunch to the students every day, we operate a grocery where the homes on campus can get food for the students. In addition, we purchase and prepare fresh fruit and vegetables for the students’ snack at the school in the mornings and cater special events for students and staff on campus.
This has been an exciting year for our Food Service and St. Joseph’s Indian School as we received the Healthier US Challenge Silver Award from the USDA. To get this award we improved the school lunch meals by incorporating more fruits, vegetables, whole grains and by using less fat, sugar and salt.

The students are also provided nutrition education and at least 45 minutes of physical education each week. St. Joseph’s Indian School is only the second Native American school to receive this award and the first to do so under new, more stringent USDA guidelines.

It has been a busy summer here so far feeding the Rising Eagle Day Camp campers and St. Joseph’s students. We are now doing inventory, summer cleaning and restocking the grocery for school to start in a short six weeks.