Amasani Report - March 2013

by C.J. Robb

The month of March has been a busy one for the Adopt-A-Native-Elder Program.  In addition to gearing up for the spring food runs, we have also been visiting schools in the Salt Lake Valley, teaching Navajo culture and customs as part of the Amasani program.  On the first of the month we visited the Montessori Community School and set up in their gym after school to visit with the kids and their parents.

The Montessori Community School has faithfully sponsored three Elders for more than eighteen years, and has made a real difference in their lives.

The Amasani Program was originally started to introduce traditional Navajo Culture to young children.  These children will be the last generation with the opportunity to interact with, and learn from these traditional Elders and their connection to mother earth.

Lupita Francis drove all the way to Salt Lake to teach corn grinding to the children.

Art Sleeper, Beverly Benally, Bobbi Coleman, and our Shiyazhi Princess teach the art of carding and weaving.  Art donates a rug to the rug show auction every year as part of a package that includes original pieces of art made by our gifted volunteers.

Carmen Nez, the mother of two Shiyazi Princesses taught the children how to tie a traditional hair bun.

Rodger Williams regularly takes time off work to sing traditional songs and tell traditional stories, just as he has done for his own children and grandchildren.

Carla Sydenham shows off some of ANE’s extensive collection of children’s rugs.  Many of these rugs were woven by children the same age or younger than the school children in attendance.  The Children’s rugs are for sale at the shows in order to allow the program to continue to support young weavers in hopes that this traditional art form will continue to be passed on.

On March Sixth we traveled to St. John the Baptist in Draper where volunteers Meredith and Tina worked with the kindergarten and first graders to collect food for the Elders.  They also packed and donated one hundred and eighty preschool bags that will be given to children on the upcoming spring food runs.

Here Linda shows the kindergarteners a traditional hogan, a style of dwelling many of our Elders still call home.

After a weaving demonstration by Beverly Benally, the kids are invited to test their knowledge by weaving yarn through their fingers.

Shirlee Silversmith brought her traditional grinding stone and cradle board to show to the kids.  Shirlee gave a beautiful explanation about the importance of corn to the Navajo people and brought the kids up to try their hand at corn grinding.

Here Beverly shows the kindergarten girls how to tie their hair into a bun just like the Navajo Grandmas.

 The Amasani program is a wonderful and truly meaningful part of ANE, and like everything we do, could not happen without dedicated volunteers.  Thank you to Lupita Francis, Carmen Nez, Rodger Williams, Bobbi Coleman, Beverly Benally, Andrea Berman, Cindy Cook, Carla and Stan Sydenham, Art and Sandy Sleeper, Shirley Silversmith, Masuda Medcalf, C.J. Robb and everyone else who makes what we do possible.

And a special thank you….

To the 4th graders at Upland Terrace who collect food for the food runs every year, here are some of their smiling representatives who got to deliver it all to the warehouse just in time for food packing!

Amasani At Trailside Elementary

by Kathy Osborne

(Note: We are delighted to welcome Kathy as the new director of the Amasani Program.)

ANE's Amasani Program held a Mini Rug Show, the evening of September 10th, at Trailside Elementary School in Park City.  Most of the students and parents who attended stayed the entire two hours and enjoyed a hands-on introduction to Navajo culture and way of life.  It was an evening that they will remember for a long time to come.

Wendy Sanborn greeted participants at the door and directed them to activities and displays.

Shirlee Silversmith showed visitors how to remove corn from the cob and grind it into meal.  Many children found that keeping the corn in place while grinding can be a tricky business.

Eileen Quintana demonstrated carding sheep's wool and spinning it into yarn. Students got a sense of the labor intensive process that goes into creating a Navajo rug. Rug making takes skill and patience.

Children love stories and a storyteller who punctuates the story with a drumbeat makes the story that much better.  Rodger Williams held his audience captive as he shared traditional Navajo stories.

Kathy Osborne, the new Amasani coordinator, introduced books that were written and illustrated by Navajo authors.  The books were available to buy.

The loom sat in the center of the auditorium.  There Beverly Benally showed “eager weavers” how to turn yarn into a piece of art.  One little girl returned again and again to the loom to weave just a little more.  With Beverly's guidance, nearly a third of a rug was completed.

Carla Sydenham, Linda Myers, and Sandy Sleeper helped parents and children pick a special memory of the evening to take home.  Rugs made by young Navajo weavers covered two tables.  Each rug had the name and age of the artist. Having had the chance to card, spin, and weave, many wanted to purchase a small rug to take home.  But, there were also beautiful pieces of beaded jewelry and cuddly stuffed-fleece animals calling “take me home” as well.  Linda, Carla, and Sandy assisted in the decision making process.

Stan Sydenham finalized sales, always with a smile.

Off behind the rug tables, Nancy Haga, a flute player and teacher from Park City, showed small fingers how to play wooden flutes. Children worked hard to coordinate fingers and breath to make the music their own.   Nancy's music brought a sense of the desert southwest to Trailside School. 

Amasani exists to promote understanding of and appreciation for Navajo culture.  This night the group wanted the children to participate in a service project for the Native Elders who would be visited on the next food run.  Bobbi Lees harnessed her inner teacher and provided colorful reusable sacks for participants to fill with “goodies": toothpaste, toothbrush, hand sanitizer, washcloth, chapstick, as well as a handmade greeting from a child.  Sandy Sleeper kept the assembly line moving and CJ boxed up the goodie bags and hauled them to the van. 

As families left, each child received a copy of a Navajo rug design to color at home.

Utahna Halona, Shirlee Silversmith's daughter, took many of the photos you seen in this blog.
Thank you for the great pictures.

To all those who volunteered to help with the Trailside Mini Rug Show, Thank You!  A special Thank You goes to Krista Ingles, a third grade teacher at Trailside, whose interest in and commitment to Navajo culture,  ANE, and expanding young minds, made the evening possible. The show was a memorable experience for all.

Amasani Program Classroom Activities - Fall 2011

by April Wilsey

The Classroom Amasani Program recently presented mini rug shows for Trailside Elementary School in Park City and Community Montessori School in Salt Lake City.

There were 100 second graders who attended the rug show at Trailside Elementary School that was held in the gymnasium during school hours.  Some of the activities the students participated in were:  making a talking stick, grinding corn, hair tying, experiencing some weaving on a loom, and learning about the rugs made by Navajo children on the reservation.  The students seemed to enjoy the activities and were able to keep the talking sticks that they made with their partners.

Shirlee Silversmith taught the students to grind corn while listening to a corn grinding song sung in Navajo.

Carla Sydenham and Linda Myers talked to the students about how the rugs were made by Navajo children.

Tanisha Quintana did traditional hair tying for the students.

The students experienced weaving at a two-sided loom.

The students enjoyed making talking sticks.  A talking stick was used by the Navajo while having group discussions.  The person holding the talking stick was the person who was allowed to talk.  This solved the problem of people interrupting one another.

The rug show held at the Community Montessori School in SLC was held in the evening in their gymnasium.  About 50 people, including parents and children, attended the show.  The parents seemed to enjoy experiencing the Navajo culture with their children.  Adopt-A-Native-Elder Program’s Shiyazhi Princess, Sariah Williams, was able to attend this evening show wearing traditional Navajo clothing and performing a dance with her father, Jonathan.

Shiyazhi Princess, Sariah Williams, and her father, Jonathan, performed the Eagle Dance.

Rodger Williams helped students make talking sticks.

Beverly Benally helped the children experience weaving at the loom.

There were books about the Navajo culture and a variety of Navajo crafts on display.

Amasani Program Activities - Spring 2011

by April Wilsey
(Note: April is the coordinator for the Classroom Amasani Program the purpose of which is to facilitate the adoption of Navajo Elders by school classrooms and facilitate cultural exchange between the two.)

The Classroom Amasani Program connects teachers and their students with Navajo Elders and their families.  It is our intention that both groups will be able to share their cultures and learn from each other.

When teachers decide to adopt an Elder for their classroom, a packet is sent to them including photo and bio of their Elder and other pictures showing the hogans and life on the reservation.   Also included are a AAA map of the southwestern Indian country that includes the Navajo Reservation, information about their culture, and two CD’s with about 23 issues of the Amasani Bahane Newsletter.  Each issue contains an article about Navajo life written by a Navajo.  There are lesson plans that go with Navajo stories, mapping activities and much more that can be taught to the class.

  Rodger Williams and April Wilsey have done four presentations at elementary schools beginning in February through April 1.  They have taken rugs made by Navajo children, turquoise jewelry, a ceremonial basket, and video of the Adopt-A-Native Elder Program to share with the students.  Recently Rodger added a Navajo Code Talker doll and information explaining how these very brave and patriotic Navajo soldiers created a code within a code to help win the war in Japan during WWII.  Rodger also takes his drum and sings Navajo songs and teaches them how to count to 10.

The Classroom Amasani presentatons are for any schools signed up in the program and live within a 45 minute drive from Park City.

For more information about this program you can read last year's blog about Amasani, or visit the Amasani page of our web site.  There is some free information you can download and print for your own use.

Amasani Program

by April Wilsey

A facet of the Adopt-A-Native-Elder Program that many people may be unaware of is the Amasani Program. Amasani means "grandmother" in Navajo.  This program involves both grandmothers and grandfathers.

The Classroom Amasani Program was created to increase awareness of the traditional life of the Navajo Elders and to build understanding through ongoing communication. The program provides educational materials for classroom use and opportunities for students to develop relationships with Navajo Elders, thus promoting a bridge between cultures and generations. An Elder may be adopted for one school year or continue with subsequent classes. 

This winter, Rodger Williams and I did classroom and school presentations about the Navajo Elders and the various programs that are in place to help them with food, firewood, yarn, and other items. Rodger was able to play his drum and sing some Navajo songs to the students, as well as tell Winter Stories to them. I brought Navajo rugs and jewelry to show the students. Also, a ceremonial basket and model of a hogan were on display.

Here Rodger is demonstrating the model hogan to students at the Community Montessori School in Salt Lake City. The roof is removable so students can see the interior layout of a traditional Navajo dwelling.

 

 Students listen attentively as Rodger plays his drum and sings.

To learn more about the Amasani Program visit the Amasani page of our web site. There you will find additional information as well as links to a variety of resources.