February Frenzy

Lots to catch up on in this post....pictures to follow.

Youth/community events or activities that have taken place this month, in addition to our regularly scheduled events:
-Youth Super Bowl Party BBQ
-Basketball Tournament Concession Fundraiser
-Awakening the Knowledge - Community Wellness, Health and Tobacco Awareness Fair

It has been a busy few weeks for the community and the youth and mentors of WüNüT’/G2G. Soon after our first fundraiser, the youth and mentors took to the kitchen again for a Youth Super Bowl Party BBQ and again on the weekend of Feb. 12-14 at the 40th Annual All Indian Basketball Tournament at the Barlow Gym in Bishop, CA.

Super Bowl Party:
Gathering to watch the New Orleans Saints win their first Super Bowl, youth and community members enjoyed food provided by Paiute Palace Casino and individual donors. Attendees also participated in activities such as halftime boys v. girls Best Cheer/Touchdown Dance and a football pool for prizes. Of course we can’t forget the amazing sundaes that topped off the evening. It was a good turnout and thank you to all who came through and contributed.

Basketball Tournament:
With an outstanding turnout of teams and spectators, the basketball tournament was filled with down-to-the-wire games, hard nose play and entertainment for those in attendance. With earnings of $1375.92 to go toward future youth activities and supplies, we give big thanks to the community and gratitude to all who supported with their donations or business.

Community Wellness and Tobacco Awareness Fair:
Last weekend, in collaboration with Toiyabe Indian Health Project, Owens Valley Career Development Center and the Bishop Indian Education Center, WüNüT’ participated in the Community Wellness and Tobacco Awareness Fair entitled “Awakening The Knowledge.”

Each day began with a morning prayer and a light breakfast. Representatives from the Californian Rural Indian Health Board (CRIHB) came to share knowledge and presentations on Traditional Tobacco, Second Hand Smoking, Smokeless Tobacco aka chew/spit/snuff etc, and the use of American Indian Imagery by the tobacco industry to sell their products.

Sage Romero and Bobby Piper gave both an energizing and tiring presentation on Native dance...tiring for those who decided to attempt just a few basic moves of an accomplished Hoop Dancer. We were sweatin’! Both shared the impact dance has had in their lives and invited the community to come down to the weekly dance class held at the gym in Big Pine on Tuesday evenings. They even offered to come to Bishop for a weekly class/practice if any people are interested. The offer still stands. Be it powwow, line dancing, hip hop or breakdancing, get to movin’ people..it’s good for you.

Additional workshops included:
-Writing Circle facilitated by Kris Hohag where attendees wrote “I am from” poems and shared their natural poetic gifts with the group. The purpose of the writing circle was to share the healing and creative power of the written word. From young to old, we all have creative gifts and every poem was beautiful and unlike anyone else’s.

-Session to share the creation and purpose of WüNüT’ with the community, while expressing our need for more volunteers and mentors. The youth are deserving of positive role models and hungry for it...it’s up to us adults to provide ourselves as such.

-Elders panel to share their upbringings and what life was like for them as youth in a different time. Special thanks to Cecil Rambeau, Ellen Hess, Pat Howard and Frieda Brown for sharing their time with all the youth and adults who were present. Our elders have wonderful stories and teaching to share with the younger generations and we are thankful to be blessed with their presence.

In addition to all these events going on, the usual activities of Get 2Gether @ the Elders on Friday nights and Sunday youth gatherings have gone on. Those who participated during the fundraisers celebrated with a Bowling night and we also went sledding this past Sunday.

All and all, it has been very active on the Bishop Rez. Good things are happening and we have many things to be thankful for. We hope to continue to have fun, learn from each other and work together to create a healthy community with each day, week, month and year that passes. With a positive vision in sight, we will get to where we are going. Keep on, keepin’ on!

WüNüT’!

Youth Indian Taco And Yard Sale Fundraiser A Success!!

This weekend's fundraiser by the G2G Youth Group, with support from the WüNüT' Mentor Group, was very successful. The youth had previously planned to hold this yard sale on Saturday, January 23. WüNüT' mentors had brought in assistance and suggestions to help the youth with the organization and planning of their fundraiser to provide the youth with a positive approach. Assistance from WüNüT' members to youth included guidance as to being responsible with safety, accountability, and cleanliness and in general to have fun with everyone who participated. Of course, with this was the community's generous support and patronage which had raised $730.00 in profit to help fund G2G's future activities. Thank you Bishop community! We hope to be conducting another fundraiser of this sort in the Spring for a Spring Clean Up! Again, thank you for all the donations and volunteer time from many community members, WüNüT' members, Education Center, Paiute Palace Casino, and the Bishop Paiute Tribe. Man-o'

What Can I Do? ...Do What You Can

With so much resistance to change and hopelessness in the face of challenges, we all need a little inspiration from time to time. I share this video with the hope that it will speak to you and give some imagery as to why WüNüT’ was formed with a small coalition of committed volunteers who understand the importance of individual action, and the power of that action when it is combined with others with a similar vision and commitment. Each of us is strong, but we are much stronger when we are working together.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
-Margaret Mead

WüNüT’!

Thought of the Day

Food for thought:

"Do the right thing. Even when no one's looking."
(Thanks to Blaine "Woody" Woods)

"It's a love supreme, I know we all do foolish things.
Would you die for the candy things? Stand up or fall for anything."
-U-N-I "A Love Supreme"

WüNüT’

Friday Night G2G @ Elders'

Our 1st G2G @ Elders event...we were six people strong!







One week later...see for yourself:








Good to see everyone there!!

Night in Review...

We opened with a prayer and emphasized the importance of respecting the Elders’ building and each other and to pick up after yourself. There were 25 people present, including young children, parents, teens and young adults. Throughout the evening, we had simultaneous games of monopoly, dominos, scrabble, cards, memory, and chup-tuu-ee. Someone brought an xbox, while other activities included watching a documentary on Jim Thorpe and playing handgame. Toward the end everyone came together and laughed hard while playing Guesstures. We closed with a prayer and sent people home safely around midnight.

What worked:
-Enough games, options of activities
-NO ONE was watching tv, except kids playing xbox.
-Everyone was respectful

What we could do better next time:
-have fruit, veggie, healthy snacks, juice
-more group interaction early...icebreaker(s)?
-invite Elders

...Thanks to all who came out and especially to those who brought food! This was only our second Friday night event...the sky is the limit. Stay posted for more movement, and please comment for improvement.

WüNüT’!

Warrior Down

WüNüT’ was well represented at this week’s Warrior Down Recovery Coach Training that took place at the Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Center on Jan. 19-21. The training was conducted by Blaine "Woody" Woods (Cherokee) who came down from Idaho. Woody is the Executive Director of Wellbriety for Prisons, Inc and a strong representative of White Bison’s Wellbriety Movement. During the three day program, community members made great strides in becoming better prepared to welcome back our relatives who are incarcerated or in rehab.

On Day 1, we opened up with a group prayer and talking circle, allowing everyone present to speak their hearts and build understanding. It was a powerful circle that revealed we have many invaluable relatives who have gone through recovery and ready to work towards healing our community and many who are doing their best to become well again. For those who’ve never experienced a path of addiction, much awareness was gained and compassion shared.

We then learned about and discussed the root causes and inter-generational effects of historical trauma on a people. The group discussed the conflicts and forced removal of our ancestors from the valley and numerous relocations as we transitioned from our traditional ways to sedentary life on various reservations throughout the valley. The people have gone through huge changes that caused an entire way of life to be altered. Our community continues to suffer from the effects of these traumas today.

On Day 2, we got right down to business. The day was spent assessing the resources that are currently available (both on and off rez) to support returning relatives in areas such as housing, economic development, health and human services, cultural resources, as well as what resources are currently missing. We then organized these brainstorms into something that can be made into a resource handbook. The day ended with a team building exercise that demonstrated how we are all connected and affected by the unseen world as much, if not more than the things we do see. This was effective at showing how our current path determines our eventual destination. Our present reality is the result of a perfect plan created by the path we are on.

Day 3 brought practical application of the tools we learned the previous two days. Community members were given the task of role playing individuals in need, while others were challenged to give the individual a needs assessment and provide assistance setting up a recovery plan.

The training concluded with laying out a plan for next steps to build a support system that will be self-sustaining in our community, as well the group honoring an individual for their personal healing and commitment to help others who are on that path. Many good words and blessings were offered to this inspiring individual. May all good things come on the next steps of your journey.

Overall, the training brought many people together and provided us the tools and motivation to know we have everything we need to heal our community RIGHT HERE. A big THANK YOU goes out to Woody for traveling all this way to share his story and help us to help each other.

WüNüT’!

In honor of Martin Luther King Jr...

Though his birthday has passed, this video is to share why we do what we do on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Commitment, action and service to the community. This is what the Cemetery Clean Up was all about. It's only one of many more things to be done to make our community a better place for us all. Always remember, we all have something to offer.

On that note...the Cemetery Clean Up showed us that there is much work to be done. Thank you to all the people in the community who showed up and did good work in the cold and rain. One thing that was evident was that this needs to occur on a regular basis. With so many plastic flowers and mementos on the graves, there were many, many small pieces of plastic to be picked up. Please be mindful of how you pay your respects and how such decorations will not decompose like real flowers or plants. A way to pay respect to our relations is to keep their resting place clean. Please stay posted, as we would like to do this event again in the not-too-distant future.

Once again, much respect and appreciation goes out to all who participated on that chilly day.

WüNüT’!