The normal toast and cereal led our day. Then, we did something great and a bit unusual for the morning. We met with the Chief Mountain Hot Shots....an elete crew of mountain fire fighters from Browning. We watched a documentary about them and they answered questions at their fire cache. They were very nice to show us their tools and the food they eat. I had a good time with them. Then, we all left for our respective service projects. Mine was at the Boys and Girls Club, where I mowed the lawn and played with the children. It was a GREAT day!
-Peter

Painting With New Friends Isn't Work

Michele announced this morning that there were three new work projects today. The low income energy assistance program needed people to help paint their new offices, a field day with the Boys and Girls Club, and washing windows for a resident at Eagle Shield. So, instead of gardening like yesterday, I pursued my love of art and offered to paint interior walls.

I packed my lunch, made some tea, and rode with Michele to the new work site where I met Lollie and started first wiping down the walls with Clorox. While someone went to fetch some paint, I helped move office equipment out of the room we were going to paint to a different room.

After about an hour of work, I finished washing one wall (the largest one.) This was good time. I then had lunch. After lunch, I started another wall, and not too long after, Michele returned with Emily, who had finished her morning assignment and would help us in the process.

We did a great job on that room. About 45 minutes later, Michele returned with Lauren because I had a phone call. I found out that the person I was talking to was adopted into the Blackfeet Tribe, and I had no idea at all before that!

After painting, Lauren and I walked back to DLSBS for dinner and to get ready for the rodeo....which was great!
-Andrew

Working at Eagle Shield Among New Friends

Our day began with a breakfast gathering to confirm everyone's activities for the day. My work day began at Eagle Shield Center, an assisted living and senior lunch facility. Indians, and those married to Indians are eligible for reduced-fee lunch through this program. "Queens of the kitchen" Sissy and Marie demonstrated how to fill styrofoam boxes with food to deliver. Today's menu was spagetti with meat sauce, peas, canned diced peaches and garlic bread. These box lunches are delivered along with a small container of milk to elderly and disabled residents who are unable to get to Eagle Shield for lunch... just like "Meals on Wheels."

Today I broke with my usual job of serving lunch to people who begin to arrive around 11:30 or so to accompany Sean on his meal deliveries. By the time I was in the van and buckled up...I was out again to another home. Repeat about 70 times! Sean's lived on the Rez most of his life, and loves his job. I can see why. Most everyone I came in contact with were warm and friendly. I missed 103-year-old "Granny Williams," however, because she was asleep when I arrived.

Most of the shut-ins are cared for by relatives, some by aides. I was particularly impressed with Jim Mad Dog. He actually has another last name, but learned this only during his 60's. His artwork and beadword were proudly shown in his home.

Some of the residents we visited live in tiny spaces surrounded by squalor. Others had tidy and roomy interiors and neat yards. I loved the unusual names I learned..."Bear Paw", "Shoots First", "Bull Child", "Calf Looking", "Comes At Night", "Cross Guns", "Rides By The Door", and "Wolf Child" are actual Blackfeet family names which go back generations and may have been given by white settlers to describe them.

When we finished the deliveries, Sean dropped me off at De La Salle Blackfeet School to help Brother Ray with the book labeling project. These were books recently acquired for the children's library in room 101. I've really enjoyed this project as well.

My thought for the day: "Take the time to enjoy the wonders and beauty of the people you meet and the places you visit."
-Eileen

Wednesday, June 15 - Life on the Rez

Cynthia and I started the day in Babb and worked with the Boys and Girls Club’s summer program. They had one of the local elders explaining Indian culture and how a headdress is built. We were given the opportunity to work with the children doing warm-up exercises and playing kick ball.

One of the children asked me why I had blue eyes. I said: “No I have brown eyes,” and he just laughed. (I do have blue eyes.) Seeing this interaction, one of the girls said I talked funny. I said: “I don’t Taalk funny… I’m from Boston.” She then informed me that the Heat “are the best” and they beat the Celtics. Then I made the mistake of calling one of the boys a girl and they just laughed at me. It is always rewarding working with kids -- they are so honest and enjoyable to be around.

At noon, we were asked to come back to Browning and help clean up an illegal dump site. Although it was difficult to leave the children, the dump site needed a lot of work and we took out six dump truck loads. Early evening, we attended the Museum of the Plains Indians and watched a film on the history of the nations. (Brother Ray claimed there was a real scalp on one of the exhibits. We could not find it and asked the cashier and all we got was a funny look. I think we had one pulled over on us all in good fun.)

After dinner, Christopher, my son, and I were invited to Brother Paul’s home to watch the final game of the Stanley cup play-offs. Being from the Boston area, this was a real treat for us. The Bruins won 4 -0 and it ended another great day in Browning.
If you are thinking of volunteering and joining Global Volunteers or any other volunteer group just do it. You will receive more than you give… I guarantee it.
- Steve

Report from Team 76

The words in Brother Paul’s office window: “Enter here to learn, leave here to serve,” I believe says it all. I have to say, my knowledge of the Blackfeet Indians was very little, but what insight I have been given by words and vision from our team leader Michele and her assistant, Joe. Because of them, I’m prepared to meet and serve my Indian brothers and sisters.

My first work day found me and my teamates first unloading boxes full of donated clothing and bedding items for the local veterans’ office to be used for the “Stand Down” ceremony and Give Away at Government Square on Wednesday and Thursday. Working side-by-side and seeing their smiles to me speaks volumes.

From unloading the semi truck, we went to the Blackfeet Community College greenhouse where Shirley, a 7-year-cancer survivor, works. She’s a very sweet local lady, and we look forward to coming back to help her plant trees. I then was assigned to work at the Blackfeet Care Center, and had the privilege of meeting and playing checkers with one of the residents, Lester Smith. He really got a kick out of “skunking” me, but oh the fun I had – and I so enjoyed his warm smile. (Yes, he beat me three times, but I beat him two!)

Following the checkers match, I joined an exercise class for the residents. When we finished, we enjoyed an ice cream sandwich….it was yum, yum good!
Shaunelle, the activities director, two other local volunteers, and I then went outside to clean out a storage shed. Working alongside the local women, with the touching and laughing, I realized yes, we’re all alike in so many ways, but yet different, which is AOK. Shaunelle had many things from the shed to donate to the Boys and Girls club, so we packed it up into the Global Volunteers van.
Time went by fast…and it’s been a BLAST! I truly am having fun! I went back “home” to the school, had supper with the team, did dishes and then went out sightseeing and photo taking with my daughter for a while. What beautiful sights. And, of course she got to see some horses, and if you knew my daughter, you’d know she was in “Seventh Heaven.”

After we showered and were settling in for the night, a young man opened our door and waved…I waved back. He closed the door, and my inquiring mind got to working, so I got up to see him standing by the front door. He said he was looking for a preacher here at the church school to pray for him. Both Brothers Paul and Ray were long gone for the day, so after a short prayer with him, Michele took him to the community shelter for the night. We never know how we can serve! May we all go into the world with love for our Brothers and Sisters. Love IS the answer!
-Char

Team 75 Final Work Day

Our final work day on the Blackfeet Reservation began with a beautiful sunny sky…so appreciated after days of rain! We’re all relieved that the danger of another flood has subsided…for now. The mountains are still covered in snow, so the late runoff remains a threat.

Jeff and Rob returned to the pool to finish scraping the walls. Annette began work at the community greenhouse behind the middle school with Melody while Laura returned to the Care Center. Mary returned to Eagle Shield to assist Sissy and Marie.

Meanwhile, Michele took Jerry to Blackfeet Construction Supply to purchase wood and other materials for a picnic table prototype as requested by Kevin Connolly of the Care Center. Because the ground is still wet, Kevin said there’s no place at the Care Center to cut the lumber, so Jerry arranged with Brother Paul to use the parish’s saw and garage to get the initial table cut out. The next team will need to assemble it at the Care Center so additional tables can be constructed. It took the morning to procure the materials, so after lunch, Jeff and Rob joined Jerry to cut all the lumber and number the parts. Thanks again, Brother Paul for assisting our efforts!

Annette and Laura weeded the gardens outside the Blackfeet Academy in the afternoon. With a blue sky and warm breeze (and wet soil making the weeding even easier), it was a pleasurable way to end the service project.

Michele called Sam Aimsback to see if he could arrange a traditional sweat for the evening, and he unexpectedly arrived around 1PM to visit the team at DLS school. An unusually uninhibited Blackfeet man, he’s fond of storytelling -- and has a wild laugh that makes you want to hug him or run away from him. He answered a number of questions about Browning and growing up on the Rez.

Brothers Paul and Ray joined us for dinner. With the week winding down, the conversation was light and animated. After dinner, we visited the Tipi Village outside of town. Darrell and Angelika Norman run a beautiful native art gallery -- and a few purchases of books and clothing art were made. We continued on to St. Mary’s and into Glacier National Park…where we viewed upper St. Mary Lake, Sunrift Gorge, Wild Goose Island and Sun Point. On the way back, we spotted a herd of elk at Two Dog Flats. We returned to our “home” to clean up the kitchen and ready the building for our departure in the morning. The mood was reflective and somber. This week has gone so fast. We'll miss those we've just begun to know. And, we'll miss the beauty of the Plains up against the shining backdrop of the snow-covered Rockies. This has been a very good week, indeed!

Today in the morning, we went over to the Blackfeet Community College (Global Volunteers' host organization) to talk to Bob Tailfeathers, a dean of students at college. He has been a dean for about 25 years. He started by talking about when the college started. BCC, when it first was built, there were about 120 students, but now there are about 500. Students can graduate from BCC in four years, but there is a program where students can do two years at BCC and transfer to other colleges and get their degrees from there. Then, Bob told us about his art work and showed some samples of his work. His drawings were amazing. It was hard to believe that anyone could make that kind of drawing with just a pen. He said that his older brother was the one who led him to the drawing and after that Bob just started to draw by himself. The drawings featured eagle, buffalo, wolf, and mountain lion. In each drawing there was a Blackfeet word for each animal. After we were drawn to his explanation of his art work, all of us bought something whether it was a drawing or earrings or both, and then we each went to our work sites.

Rob and I went back to the pool to scrape the walls some more. We did not start where we left off on Tuesday. The men's shower room was finished after we left and we started on the walls of the main pool. We worked for about two hours and got about three quarters done. So, all that is left is one wall of the main pool and some parts of the walls of the small pool. Then, we came back to school to have lunch and then went over to the bunkhouse with Jerry to clean the trailer. Brother
Paul gave us the list of what needed to be done and we got started as soon as we got there. We swept and mopped the floor, and cleaned the restrooms and showers. It took us about an hour or so and we drove back to school.

Before dinner, Annette took Mary, Laura and me to the stores to buy some books on Blackfeet Indians and some other gifts. Then, we had leftover beefsteak with biscuits made by Candy and salad made by Mary and then, Annette took us on a short trip. Rob told us that in the morning when we worked at the pool, Shelly told him that she saw elks on her way to Heart Butte, so we decided to go to Heart Butte after we took off. Unlike the past two days when it rained, the sun came out in the afternoon and on our way to Heart Butte we saw the mountains partly hidden by the clouds, horses,ducks, dogs, and cows. Then, on our way back to Browning, we saw more horses, but this time they were on the highway. So, even though we did not get to see elk as we set out to do, we at least saw horses standing on the road, which I have not seen before. So, that was the fourth day of the program,and the week seems to go by so fast but so slowly at the same time that it is hard to believe that tomorrow is the last day that we get to work with Blackfeet Indians.
-Jeff

Daily Life with the Blackfeet

We started the day with a team meeting to discuss our assignments. The unpredictable weather reinforced the need for flexibility. The assignments for the day included: helping at the pool scrapping the paint off the walls, helping at the green house at the community college, helping at the learning center, helping the activities director at the care center, and helping serve meals at Eagle Shield.

I was assigned to Eagle Shield along with Mary. When we arrived, Sissy and Marie were busy packaging the meals for delivery. Any Indian over 60 who is homebound is eligible for meal delivery. We packaged 83 meals and the delivery guys were on their way. Sissy and Marie said that the number of delivered meals goes up to almost 100 in the winter. After a short break, we were back to serving meals in the cafeteria. Residents of Eagle Shield, and any Indian (or married to an Indian) over 60 can stop by for a mid-day meal, or get the meal to go. Sissy and Marie said that they serve anywhere from 80 to 100 meals in the cafeteria. We then helped with clean-up.

I enjoyed watching Sissy and Marie work together; they have been working together for over 16 years. Interacting with people coming through the cafeteria line, listening to Sissy and Marie talk about their families, and speaking with some of the residents individually, along with our afternoon visits to The Plains Indian Museum and the Blackfeet Heritage Center & Art Gallery went a long way toward my goal of learning more about the Indian culture.
- Annette

“Be the Change you Wish to See in the World.” Ghandi

Making Ourselves Home on the Rez

This is our second morning at the Christian Brothers Training Center,
our temporary home due to an event at the school in Browning. Brothers Paul and Ray have been our hosts. The Brothers have have done things for us past common courtesy. The Center is located in the Two Medicine valley; it is on the same grounds of the Holy Family Mission Church.

(Being an occasional punster --encouraged by my wife's groans -- I quickly learned that one must be quite "careful" with one of the Brothers, who may be called the original "pun-gent". He has an amazing store of puns, many of which I've never heard!)

I happen to be an early riser, but one of us, Mary, gets up even earlier. She returned after a walk while I was having breakfast, a bit after 6:00 a.m. The morning was partly cloudy, cool, and extremely pleasant, a combination of inner mood, the Montana landscape, and anticipation of the day ahead. We are moving into a new home for the remainder of the week, at the De La Salle Blackfeet School. We drove into Browning, left our luggage at the DLSBS, and then were given a tour by Michele (our leader) of the main sights in and near Browning. The tour ended at the Community College, where we were given a tour by Smokey Henrickson, the man in charge of maintaining the facilities.

Afterwards, we met in an upstairs conference room, where we were introduced to several key Blackfeet leaders, who will coordinate our work projects. We met Nikki Hannen from the Blackfeet Academy, Shirley Weatherwax from the Heavy Runner pool, and Shaunelle from the Blackfeet Care Center. They outlined several projects for the week. The team members then introduced themselves, briefly sketched their backgrounds (particularly in reference to the projects)and expressed their interest in one or more projects.

Among the projects are (1) helping scrape paint at the swimming pool, (2) helping out at the Care Center, (3) helping with computer-related projects, (4) cutting grass or otherwise helping maintain the grounds at the Community College, (5) helping out in the Learning Center in mathematics or computer-related questions, and others as they come up.

We adjourned for lunch at the DLSBS. I was hoping for a nap, but quickly realized that a critical project for the afternoon was planned -- namely, putting together our beds for the remainder of the week. The beds were newly purchased and were in their packing boxes. Jeff and I found ourselves starting on the unpacking and assembly of the beds.

There were instructions and by following them we made only a few mistakes. Laura joined us and assembled the ladders to the top bunks. Soon others came along and with a real cooperative e ort, we completed the assembly in 3.5
hours or so.

After that, supper, and a variety of individual activities. We're all looking forward to our rst day of work with the Blackfeet|adults, older adults,and kids. We hope to learn something of their culture, to help them out in some useful ways, and to come to know at least a few of them as individuals.
-Jerry

12th Summer on the Reservation

Today, although it was the second day of the trip for most, it was the first day that our whole team was present. As soon as I arrived I realized how much reality differed from my expectations; I had anticipated a large group of high-strung people who were already best friends with one another. In actuality, our group was small, low-key, and no one had met before this trip, with the exception of my mom and me. Introductions, explanations, and background stories all around, we got to know each other the best we could in the short allotted time of our morning meeting. After our discussion about our individual choices to go on this service trip and our brainstorming session about the characteristics of an effective team, we began the journey to Glacier National Park because of the unanimous group wish to view Montana scenery. Although most of the Park was closed due to snow (yes, snow in June), we were able to see Running Eagle Falls and Two Medicine Lake which both absolutely stunned me with natural beauty and serenity. Maybe it is because I spend most of my time in a large city, but the mountain air seemed fresher, crisper, even better quality than the ordinary, everyday air that I breathe in. I’m not sure why this struck me so much, but it stayed with me the rest of the day.
-Laura