Culture and Leadership Camp 2006
Arlee, Montana
Each summer the Native Wellness Institute sponsors a Native Youth Culture & Leadership Camp. In June 2006 the Camp was held on the Flathead Reservation in Arlee, MT. The Cultural Camp was held at the Arlee 4th of July Celebration pow wow grounds, so the students had the opportunity to camp in a tipi village which was part of the larger pow wow encampment.
The youth participants learned about culture and the traditions of our ancestors. They also had a cultural sharing night, where each group from tribes throughout the US shared their own language, song or dance. The youth were welcomed by Tony Incashola, the Flathead Cultural Director. Tony shared with them the history of the Flathead Tribe as well as encouraged them on their journey of wellness. The group had a tour of the reservation, visiting Flathead Lake, Salish Kootenai College and the People’s Center, as well as the excitement of swimming and fishing on the lake. The group also participated in the NWI Clan Olympics, where they competed for “bragging rights” and Championship status while competing in traditional games.
The Cultural & Leadership camp offers the youth a fun and exciting opportunity to learn traditional games, crafts, songs and leadership skills while coming together in a truly intertribal wellness gathering. Many new friendships were formed; fun and laughter pervaded the encampment. A remarkable time was had by all, under the Montana Big Sky.
The
Native Wellness Institute, Spokane Washington, 2005
by Tasha
Villalpando
The
Native Wellness Institute gives Native youth a chance to learn how
to become a leader and how to be a better person in life. Youth
from a round the U.S. attended last year's Native Youth
Leadership Academy held in Spokane, Washington.
The youth enjoyed a little college experience by staying at the
dorms at Gonzaga University, even the experience of having a roommate
you don't know and who is from a different state, just like real
college without doing all the hard college work. Even though the
youth had fun sharing a dorm and meeting someone new, I'm pretty
sure the advisors enjoyed it just as much.
The youth watching the clan Olympics
During
the four-day conference the youth learn a lot on how to become a
better leader, how to be a better speaker, and how to be a better
person. The presenters made it fun and interesting to learn about
too.
The things we learned are important to the young people today like
respect, which was one of the biggest thing they tried to teach
us. Respect yourself, your family, friend and people you don't even
know. That was the message were sending the youth and by the end
of the conference we were like a family that respected each other.
Not only learning respect we learned these four things and more.
Teamwork
All the youth who attended the conference were mixed up and put
in to clans, the clans had to work together and be one trying to
complete different team building activities. Each clan had to come
up with a name that was the first challenge for them, the came up
with names like clan Foot Soldiers, Crazy Bear, Chiefs, The Eagles,
Red Turtles and a few more. They also did things like walking in
a line with balloons between each person's back and stomach working
together with out letting it drop.
Public
speaking
One of the things you have to know how to do to become a good leader,
everyone had more then one chance to speak in front of everyone.
At first the young people were really shy, but there were some who
were comfortable speaking to a large group of people and by them
speaking out, I think that they made it a lot easier for the shy
ones to get up and speak too.
Self-Esteem
Tell your self you can do good things or you can do it if you set
your mind to it. You can help others have good self-esteem to by
telling them good things about their selves or just by encouraging
them. A good way to show and get respect.
Clan Olympics
Working and Researching
Each student picked out a Native American Leader to research on
and go back to their clan and present what they found out about
their leader and like how they became a leader. There were many
different Native Leaders like Chief Big Foot, Sitting Bull, Cochise,
and many more.
Between all that learning we had fun doing our clan Olympic events,
with the Crazy Bears winning the gold. Our clans getting a chance
to sing in our own drumming and singing group.
The Coeur d`Alene Tribal Youth gave us a special performance from
there Rock`n the Rez Show, they had a camp for there youth to sing,
dance, rap, and how to be a DJ. Those where the things they learned
in two days.
Wild Waters a water park in Idaho which was only 15 minutes drive
from Spokane, we where invited by the Coeur d`Alene Tribe, the boys
from our youth council swam and said it was really cold. The people
from up north laugh at them, they probably thought the water was
just right.
This journey taught us a lot each and one of these young people
are getting a lot out of it too. We encourage you to come out and
experience these things with the youth council. You can be a leader
and lead your self and others in the community in a good direction
in life
