U.S.

Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Native American Programs

Newsletter for Native Youth

2011 vol. 1

A Day at the Club with Nike

On Thursday, October 5, 2010, a group of employees from Nike, Inc. volunteered for a community service project at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdales Red Mountain and Lehi Branches. The Club staff were overwhelmed by the large number of people who came to help the kids! The day started with a short meeting and orientation to the Boys & Girls Club organization. The staff taught volunteers about the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Communitys culture. At the end of the meeting, Nike presented a generous gift of $5,000 to the Club. This money may be used for equipment or other items needed for sports, fitness and recreation programs. A charter bus with more than 65 Nike volunteers arrived at the Clubhouses later that day. The volunteers went inside the Clubs where the kids got to ask them questions. Even though the weather was rainy, the volunteers wanted to go outside and play with the kids. The volunteers stuck to their original plan for the day of cleaning up the neighborhood. It was great to see the Nike volunteers acting like kids themselves. They raced one another to see who would get to a piece of trash first or who would collect the most trash. They had a lot of spunk and motivation! At the Red Mountain Branch, a few Nike volunteers took interest in Dance-Dance-Revolution (DDR). This is a music video game where people stand on a dance platform and hit colored arrows with their feet to musical and visual cues. It was fun to see them playing against the Club members! At the end of the day, a group picture was taken so everyone could remember the great day they had together. All the volunteers enjoyed their time, even though they arrived in clean Nike outfits and left in wet and muddy clothing. The Club is honored to receive Nikes generous donation and appreciates the time their employees spent with the kids it was simply fantastic!

Nike staff and Club members had a great time getting to know one another

Extra, Extra, REad all About Them!!

f s a n e o e o m l i g z l d l o c c f e f n n n e l e s n e t t i m o e d g v s r r b t r n n v s n o w f l a k e s s o r i h l a k a i p s n w e z s n s k e s l z c z n e k s n o w m a n f d c e i c p s o o c r i d t r i i c i c l e s i e a f n i o o l k g n f a i i g w c r e t n i w

Club Member Spotlight

Alex has always been a very active member of the Boys & Girls Club of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe in Ignacio, Colorado. In August she won the Youth of the Month award. Recently, Alexs role at the Club has changed. Alex knew that she was too young to become a Peer Leader but still felt that she was prepared for more responsibility. She had a meeting with Club staff to discuss her options. The staff felt that Alex had demonstrated a lot of commitment, motivation, and trustworthiness at the Club. They decided to make Alex an assistant to the Alex helps run the Club check-out system management staff. For four days each week, she is responsible for program attendance, giving information to parents, running the Club check-out system, creating advertisements and being a role model. Through this role, Alexs friendship with a younger Club member has blossomed into a mentoring relationship. Her mentee even says that she would like to be like Alex when she grows up. Alex has enjoyed her role at the Club so much that she has expressed interest in working there when she is old enough. She has become a great asset to the Club and they admire her character, intelligence, maturity and loyalty. Because of her Youth of the Month award, Alex is in the running for the Youth of the Year award. Good luck Alex!

Answer Key for puzzle on page 4.

Answer Key for puzzle on the back page.

Let it snow.

Mentoring Corner

Mentoring Quilt Inspires Togetherness

Youth and mentors from the Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Cheyenne Nation in Montana are creating a painted mentoring quilt for the Club. The quilt will be displayed on a wall in the Clubs games room. Each youth designs a patch for the quilt that includes their name, the name of their mentor and a design of their choice. Over the course of the year, they continue to add to the design of their patch. Youth are really enjoying the time they spend with their mentor and look forward to working on the quilt each week.

Sports Section Athlete Profile: Naomi Lang

Naomi Lang is an American ice dancer. Ice dancing is a type of figure skating that is closely related to ballroom dancing. It became a Winter Olympic Games medal sport in 1976. Naomi was born in California in 1978. She is a Native American and a member of the Karuk Tribe of California through her father. Her Indian name is Maheetahan, meaning Morning Star. The Karuk were officially recognized by the U.S. Government in 1979. They are a fairly small tribe with about 3,500 enrolled members, but Naomi has made news across the nation and around the world! Naomi started to study dance at the Redwood Concert Ballet in California when she was only three years old. She was six the first time she performed on stage. Naomi continued to dance until she was fifteen. She was awarded a ballet and modern dance scholarship by the Interlochen Arts Academy, where she earned an outstanding achievement in ballet award. Naomi saw Smurfs on Ice when she was eight. That is what made her want to learn how to ice skate. She had her first ice skating lesson in Kalamazoo, Michigan, when she was eight. She said, I didnt want to go. I was nervous and I got scared, but after my first lesson, I liked it. She started ice dancing when she was twelve. Her first ice dancing partner was John Lee. They won the 1995 U.S. Novice dance title and a 1996 Junior silver medal. In 1996 Peter Tchernyshev asked her to come for a tryout in New York. They became dance partners soon after. It wasnt easy for Naomi to leave friends and family in Michigan, but it was an opportunity she couldnt pass up. She moved to New York and attended Lake Placid High School her senior year. Naomi remained on the honor roll, and received the Principals award for excellence in citizenship during her senior year. She graduated in 1997. After about a year in New York, she and Peter moved to Michigan to train with Naomis old coaches. They became the U.S. Ice Dance Champions from 1999 to 2003. They also finished as high as 8th place at the World Championships. They moved to Hackensack, New Jersey, in the summer of 2000. This is where they trained for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games. Naomi and Peter competed in Salt Lake City at the 2002 Winter Olympics. They finished 11th and received a standing ovation from the audience. Naomi is the first Native American female athlete to participate in the Winter Olympic Games. Naomi said, Im proud to be Indian and competing in sports. I have worked and am working very hard to make something of myself. I want to help young Native kids make something of themselves.

r Tchernyshev Naomi Lang and skating partner Pete rience.com Photo: aerialexpe

AmeriCorps*VISTA Highlight
The Corporation for National and Community Service is partnering with Boys & Girls Clubs in Indian Country to place AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers in Clubs across the country. VISTA, which stands for Volunteers in Service to America, is a national service program whose goal is to fight poverty. VISTA members agree to serve for one full year at a non-profit agency like a Boys & Girls Club. Right now, there are seven VISTA members working at Boys & Girls Clubs in Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma. VISTA members work alongside Club staff to help make the Club the best it can be! Oftentimes, you wont see a VISTA member around the Club, but they are always working behind the scenes to help raise money or come up with new and exciting programs. For example, one VISTA member is working with a partner in the community to fight childhood obesity. When they complete their year of service, VISTA members receive an award of $5,350 that they can use to go to college or trade school! For more information on the AmeriCorps*VISTA program, please visit: www.americorps.gov.

VISTA member Stephen (left) and his Site Supervisor at the Boys & Girls Club of the East Valley, Gila River-Komatke Unit

Winter Word Search

Help find the words in this puzzle!
Answer on page: 2

f s a n e o e o m l i g

z l d l o c c f e f n n

n e l e s n e t t i m o

e d g v s r r b t r n n

v s n o w f l a k e s s

o r i h l a k a i p s n

w e z s n s k e s l z c

z n e k s n o w m a n f

d c e i c p s o o c r i

d t r i i c i c l e s i

e a f n i o o l k g n f

a i i g w c r e t n i w

COLD SHOVEL COCOA WINTER SNOWFLAKES

FREEZING SNOWMAN SKATING SLEDS SKIING

IGLOOS MITTENS ICICLES FIREPLACE BLANKET

from the Nations

Boys & Girls Club of aha macav mojave valley, az Congratulations to the Boys & Girls Club of Aha Macav in Mojave Valley, Arizona! They are one of 20 organizations across the country to receive a $5,500 grant to start the AfterSchool KidzLit program! The KidzLit program will let Club members hear and read stories packed with exciting characters and places. It will teach the kids values of helpfulness, fairness, personal responsibility and respect for others. Happy reading! Boys & Girls Club of the southern ute indian tribe ignacio, co The Boys & Girls Club of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe teamed up with the Boys & Girls Club of La Plata County and the athletics department from Fort Lewis College for Family Fun Night. The college provided Club members with free admission to a soccer match. This was a great opportunity for the Club because it allowed them to show hundreds of fans what the Boys & Girls Club is all about. Members were very excited to participate during the halftime activities of the soccer match. They took to the field for a 5-minute youth vs. adult three-legged soccer game with an oversized soccer ball! At the end of the night, Fort Lewis College raffled a mountain bike to a Club member that attended the game. Due to the success of Family Fun Night, Fort Lewis College is now requiring all sports teams to volunteer at the Club each season. Athletes provide sports clinics or help mentor youth during regular Club programming. Penobscot Nation Boys & Girls Club Indian Island, ME

Club and community members join together during Penobscot Days

boys & girls clubs of greater scottsdale scottsdale, az Youth and families from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale in Arizona recently took part in a Family Fun Night with the BIA Truxton Canon Fire Agency. To learn more about wildland fires and what causes them, youth were divided into groups by age. The Fire Agency told a Learn Not to Burn story using Hualapai culture to the 6-9 year old group. Smokey the Bear even came! Youth from the 10-12 year old group had the chance to observe fire behavior using play dough, a roasting pan and organic materials. Finally, teens learned about fire scars using tree rings and the internet. Everyone was very appreciative of the Truxton Canon Fire Agency. The youth learned a lot about wildfires and the environment.

Every year, the Penobscot Nation Boys & Girls Club hosts a two-day cultural celebration called Penobscot Days. Penobscot Days is a unique, community-wide celebration of life and health awareness. Club staff share that it has grown over the years and many departments from the Penobscot Tribe also come out to celebrate during this special event. Youth take part in sunrise ceremonies, traditional basket making, drumming, dancing, canoeing, and boat rides. Its a great day of fun for anyone that comes out to celebrate!

One lucky Club member won this mountain bike

continued on page 6

News from the Nations (continued from page 5) Boys & Girls Club of Grand traverse Traverse City, MI Youth and mentors from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Grand Traverse had the chance to visit the Great Lakes Childrens Museum. Many of them were very excited because they had never been to the museum before. During the visit, they learned all about Michigans fresh water lakes and the animals that live in them. Afterward, they were treated to a pizza party! Boys & Girls Club of the northern cheyenne nation Lame deer, MT The Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Cheyenne Nation in Montana won the U.S. Department of Educations Promise Neighborhood planning grant. More than 300 communities applied and only 21 were picked! The goal of the grant is to increase the number of kids that go to and finish college. The Boys & Girls Club and their partners will come up with ways to improve the health and safety of neighborhoods, and increase family involvement in student learning. Boys & Girls Club of Darlington EL Reno, ok As part of the T.R.A.I.L. program, youth from the Boys & Girls Club of Darlington put together a cookbook filled with healthy recipes to give their families as a gift during the holiday season. Each youth was asked to bring in recipe ideas from home for breakfast, snacks, sides, soups and desserts. Recipes from the T.R.A.I.L. Toolkit were also used. Club staff share that the most popular recipes are turkey chili, chicken chili, pumpkin pie cake and pumpkin pie chocolate chip cookies.

Boys & Girls Clubs of TAHLEQUAH TAHLEQUAH, OK Every week, youth from the Greenwood Unit of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tahlequah try new and interesting activities with Katie, a Native American Resource Specialist from Tahlequah Public Schools. Katie has been teaching youth about the Native American game of stickball. Stickball is a very old sport, similar to lacrosse and football. In the past, as many as 1,000 Natives from opposing Tribes would play. Sometimes the goals were made out of rocks and trees and would be miles apart! Youth share that they look forward to learning new things from Katie each week. They have also been learning about basket weaving and how to make bracelets.

Tahlequah Club members learning about the Native American game of stickball

What is a prehistoric monster called when he sleeps?

Answer: A dinosnore!

Diabetes Prevention Corner Making Healthy Choices!

Second Annual Red Mountain Half Marathon Encourages Healthy Living

On October 30, 2010 the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community held their second annual Red Mountain Half Marathon. The marathon took place at Salt River High School in Scottsdale, Arizona. This year, ten members of the Boys & Girls Club of Peach Springs participated in the 4.1 mile relay portion of the marathon. The Club members made up three teams with a Boys & Girls Club staff member or Advisory Council Member on each team. The members spent a month and a half preparing for the marathon. To train, they ran three times a week after Club hours and two days on their own. They were the youngest participants in the whole marathon. All the participants and community members in the marathon were extremely proud of the Club members for completing it. To thank the community for their support, Club members planted flowers at the Elderly Center. They enjoyed running so much that they plan to participate in the P.F. Changs marathon in January.

Boys & Girls Club of Peach Springs participated in the 4.1 mile relay portio n of the marathon

Try this yummy recipe!

Peanut butter apple bites Preparation Time: 10 minutes Makes: 4 servings (2 apple slices per person, 95 calories per serving) Ingredients:

8, -inch thick slices of apple 8 teaspoons of peanut butter 24 pieces of sliced banana (about 1 - 2 bananas) teaspoon of cinnamon cup blueberries (optional)
Utensils: 1 butter knife

Delicious Peanut Butter Apple Bites

Directions: 1. Using the butter knife, spread a teaspoon of peanut butter onto each apple slice. 2. Place three slices of banana on top of the peanut butter on each apple slice. 3. Sprinkle some cinnamon on top of the bananas. 4. If using, place some blueberries on top. 5. Enjoy! Source: http://bit.ly/gYfvYO

After School Snack

Tomato Basil Pizza Treats

Directions:
1. Preheat broiler. 2. Place English muffin on a small baking sheet. 3. Spread tomato sauce over top of muffin. 4. Top with cheese. 5. Sprinkle fresh basil and tomato on top. 6. Broil until cheese is brown and sauce is bubbly. 7. Serve immediately.

Ingredients

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whole wheat English muffin 2 tbsp. no added sodium tomato sauce 2 tbsp. part-skim mozzarella cheese 1 tbsp. fresh basil, chopped 2 tsp. tomato, diced

Serving Size: muffin (1 snack size pizza) Nutritional Analysis (per serving):
154 calories 10 g protein 6 g fat 3 g sat. fat 15 g carbohydrate 3 g fiber 16 mg cholesterol 239 mg sodium 227 mg calcium 1 mg iron

Puzzle
Use the key below to decode the hidden message!
Answer on page: 2

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