Havre workshop teaches strengthening Native families

Members of the Chippewa Cree Tribe of Rocky Boy's Indian Reservation and four other tribes became certified this week in a program aimed at strengthening American Indian families.

In all, 20 people from law enforcement, courts, schools and social service programs from the Confederated Salish and Kootenai tribes, the Sioux Assiniboine and Blackfeet tribes and Chippewa Cree Tribe took part in a three-day long course sponsored by the Native American Fatherhood and Families Association. People who complete the course become licensed facilitators able to teach the course themselves.

Former state Rep. Bruce Meyers, R-Box Elder, who works for the White Sky Hope Center and is a certified facilitator, said Stone Child College hopes to offer courses using the curriculum in January

The event was co-sponsored by the White Sky Hope Center and Rocky Boy TANF program.

The training began Tuesday and lasted until Thursday, with classes running from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Trainees read out loud from the 270 page training manual and engaged in group discussions and exercises to become certified to teach the program.

Albert Pooley, president of the association, said the curriculum is based on his more than 40 years as a therapist.

After the course was over Thursday, Pooley said he believes family is the heart of American Indian people. The high rate of divorce and other social ills, he said, are breaking families apart and tensions in households represent a threat to native people.

"Once our families are scattered our culture is dead, and we are dead as a people," Pooley said. "We can pretend to be Natives, we can dress and act (like natives), but we are gone."

The program, Pooley said, helps mothers and father's identify the purpose of life, which is to have a family that is safe and happy.

Far too often such happiness and safety is missing from families, he said.

"Children are in foster homes, they are in group homes, they are in jail, they are on the street, but not home," he said.

Pooley said children are not home oftentimes because of selfish reasons of parents.

His book also touches on issues such as substance abuse, violence in the home and suicide.

Pooley said he wants to help people understand they are important, especially as it relates to family.

"I want our mothers and fathers to look at their role as a sacred role and I want them to link past generations to future generations," he said.

Pooley said his programs are used by departments of more than 200 tribes nationwide.

Meyers said Pooley spoke at an event at Stone Child College in September attended by 105 people from 56 different families within the community.

He said at the event that people broke out into six groups to engage in discussion on different topics and people became very involved in discussion.

Meyers said five people from Rocky Boy are certified to teach the program after having gone through the training session.

Stone Child College plans to teach courses on the Sacred Mother, Sacred Father program in January. Meyers said the hope is to get the heads of different departments on Rocky Boy to require their employees to attend the classes taught by facilitators, who can then pass the knowledge on to people taking part in different tribal programs.

Pooley said unlike other programs, he does not judge the people who are ordered to take the program.

Instead of focusing on people's problems and condemning them for doing something such as engaging in domestic abuse, he tries to lift them up, coordinate a relationship with them and then assist them.

"I want them to understand that they are worth a lot, especially to their children and loved ones," Pooley said.

Knowledge, he said, though important, rarely changes people, feelings do.