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>Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 16:28:36 -0700 (MST)
>From: vcornelia@cybermesa.com (Cornelia Vandenburg)
>Subject: walk for wellness for Indians needs support
>
>To whom it may concern,
>
>The Indian organsiation White Bison, who works on rehabilitating Indian
>people who are addicted including the ones that are in prison, is
>organsising a walk for wellness in Indian Country. It starts on April 2nd
>in Los Angeles en goes all the way across the USA to DC.
>The walk needs support, walkers, donations for food for the walkers and
>just plain financial support.
>If you think you want to help please email Frank Adaikai (Navajo) at:
>
>navachip@aol.com
>
>THAnk you
>
>Elija van den berg
>
===

Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 18:10:09 -0700 (MST)
From: vcornelia@cybermesa.com (Cornelia Vandenburg)
Subject: walk

Hi there,

This is an important initiative and deserves support.

THanks

Elija

---
Hi Elija,
This is the most recent full story. You can send it out whereever you think
appropriate. It is saved as an attached text file. I'm feeling much better.
Now I have to be careful about stress and cheerfulness! How are you?
Richard

The Journey of the Sacred Hoop
By Richard Simonelli

The Journey of the Sacred Hoop across America is about to begin.

>From April 2, until July 10 of 2000, a Hoop of 100 Eagle Feathers will be
carried from Los Angeles, California to Washington, DC on a Walk dedicated
to bring healing from drug and alcohol abuse and an ending to domestic
violence in American Indian and Alaska Native communities everywhere. But
the addictions and domestic violence epidemic we live with is not confined
to Native America. All four directions or ethnicities--the Red, the Yellow,
the Black and the White--are cordially invited to make the walk with us and
to share in the conferences and other wellness events along the way.

A Journey of 3800 miles begins with a single step. That step will be taken
on Sunday, April 2 at the Southwestern Museum in Los Angeles after an
opening ceremony and Blessing featuring wellness advocate and actor Danny
Glover, Native American Elders, and ceremonial support from local
California Indian tribes. California Governor Gray Davis has been invited
to participate at the send-off. Walkers based in California will then carry
the Hoop across the desert to Blythe, California where the caravan will be
met by their counterparts from Arizona. In the manner of a sacred relay,
the Hoop will pass through some 10 states and become the centerpiece at
eleven wellbriety conferences between Phoenix, Arizona and Washington, DC.
 

The Sacred Hoop
What about the 100 Eagle Feather Hoop which is such a powerful rallying
point for this historic walk? In 1994 an Indian man had a vision. In his
visionary experience, he saw a small willow tree shed its leaves and form
itself into a circle of about four feet in diameter. As the vision
continued, he saw the feathers from both Golden and Bald eagles fly through
the air and arrive at the willow hoop. One by one the feathers attached
themselves to the hoop until a total of 100 feathers were fastened around
the circumference of the willow. As the days and weeks passed after his
vision, he understood that he was to facilitate the construction of such a
hoop inside a sacred American Indian purification, or sweat lodge.

After speaking about his vision with elders in order to understand its
significance, word went out on the "moccasin telegraph" that eagle feathers
were needed. One by one, they began to arrive from Native peoples from
around North America and even from around the world. The visionary Hoop
became a reality.

The 100 Eagle Feather Hoop is the vision and inspriation of Don Coyhis,
Mohican Nation, who was raised on the Stockbridge-Munsee Indian Reservation
in Wisconsin. Coyhis is also the Founder and President of White Bison,
Inc., an American Indian non-profit organization of Colorado Springs,
Colorado. White Bison is the hosting or facilitating organization for the
Journey of the Sacred Hoop Walk. White Bison has been facilitating programs
of sobriety, recovery and community healing and change in both native and
non native communities in the US and Canada since 1988. Coyhis will be
participating on some of the Walk.

In 1995 a gathering of indigenous elders from all four directions took
place in Janesville, Wisconsin. At an empowerment ceremony during the
gathering, the elders placed the following four gifts into the new Sacred
Hoop: 1) The power of healing individuals, families, communities and
nations; 2) The power to instill hope into all who spend time in sincerity
at the Hoop; 3) The power to create unity among people and activities
inspired by the Hoop; and 4) The powers to forgive the unforgivable.

Since 1995 the White Bison 100 Eagle feather Hoop has been brought to
hundreds of native and non-native communities in the US and Canada so that
individuals of all ages might pray in their own ways in the presence of the
Hoop. The Hoop came to be called the Hoop of Nations as it traveled to the
many hundreds of Indian nations in North America. Wherever it goes, it
carries the gifts of Healing, Hope, Unity and Forgiveness. Now the Hoop is
about to pass through hundreds of native and non native communities as it
wends its way on the Journey of the Sacred Hoop Healing Walk.
 

The Conferences
The Journey of the Sacred Hoop is like a traveling university. In addition
to hosting hoop ceremonies and feasts along the route of the Walk, eleven
communities will be sited for special educational conferences, each
teaching specific information about Recovery, Treatment, Prevention and
Intervention regarding substance abuse and domestic violence. Here is a
glimpse at the conferences.

ALCOHOL AND DRUGS
The conferences with a drug and alcohol focus will introduce the Medicine
Wheel and the 12 Steps program which has been pioneered by White Bison. The
Medicine Wheel and the 12 Steps is a culturally specific approach to the 12
Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, rendering 12 Step work friendly and
accessible to Native people. This cognitive model of the 12 Steps is a
basis of all White Bison's recovery work and may be used by both native and
non native people in diverse areas of recovery.
 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND PREVENTION
Very little hard information is available on Native Americans and domestic
violence. One study indicates that in cases of severe violence Native
people suffer at a rate nearly 36 per cent higher than white families. But
it is well known among Indian people that the trauma of family violence in
Indian communities is serious and severe. One goal of the conference on
domestic violence is to present and discuss those domestic violence
prevention and intervention programs around the country which are known to
be working. This sharing of "best practices" is a grassroots way of helping
a network of domestic violence healing to grow. Talking circles will be
utilized to share the traditional ways of dealing with violence and how
harmony was traditionally maintained in the community.
 

FATHERHOOD
The Fatherhood conference focuses especially on native men's healing. It
provides resources so that native men may create and sustain men's healing
groups in their own communities. The fatherhood conference teaches a four
part  model for Indian men which includes 1) Embarking on a new beginning;
2) Discovering Feminine Strength; 3) Experiencing Wholeness; and 4)
Generosity or Giving Back. The conference will touch on five issues
important to native men. These are, 1) Alcoholism and other addictions; 2)
Multi-generational trauma and cultural oppression; 3) father/son
relationships; 4) Spirituality; and 5) Role modeling and service to the
community.
 

BOARDING SCHOOLS
The boarding Schools conference takes on a subject unique to Native
Americans: forced attendance at residential schools from the 1870's well
into the 1960's. The conference airs the issue of multigeneration
historical trauma that affects native people even if they themselves didn't
attend a boarding school. The boarding or residential school experience in
native culture is one fact directly responsible for the high incidence of
alcohol and drug abuse as well as family violence among First Nations
people.
 

NATIVE YOUTH SUICIDE AND FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME
The conference on Native Youth Suicide and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome will
focus on two well known facts about Indian country. Both youth suicide
rates and fetal alcohol rates are far above those of the wider society.
Healing youth suicide in native communities is begun by addressing the
strong feelings of worthlessness experienced by some native youth. Teaching
youth the skills of self-appraisal and conscious awareness of their own
self-talk through the Medicine Wheel and the 12 Steps learning program is
one weapon against youth suicide. In the case of fetal alcohol syndrome,
the Medicine Wheel and the 12 Steps program especially for women will be
shared with conference participants.
 

LOST CHILDREN OF ALCOHOLICS
Nearly every Native American raised within the Native community has in one
way or another been affected by alcoholism even if they themselves have not
been a drinker. There are behavioral qualities and characteristics which
all adult children of alcoholics (ACOA) share in common. When this
well-known body of knowledge is presented in a culturally appropriate and
specific way, all of a sudden a person's personal issues around parenting,
relationships, jobs and employment and many other parts of life become
understandable. The Lost Children of Alcoholics conference will share ACOA
information in a culturally meaningful way.
 

HONORING THE WOMEN OF THE FOUR DIRECTIONS
A conference honoring women of the four directions--all women--will be a
multicultural meeting place to share the experience, strength, and hope of
the women's struggle across ethnicity, nationality and race. Re-asserting
women's ways has been an important part of the coming-together time and the
environmental and social healing which is happening now more than ever. The
Native sisters, Asian sisters, Black sisters, White sisters and Hispanic
sisters have their own cultural differences, but the power of the
sisterhood is unifying and strong and will be honored in this conference.
 

NATIVE LEADERSHIP--If You Lead, Be Sober
Native leadership includes tribal leadership but goes far beyond to include
community leadership of all kinds and leadership in nationally-based Indian
organizations. The stresses and challenges of leading in Indian country are
demanding and severe as well as rewarding, through service to the people.
But leading in Indian country will test the sobriety, recovery and further
wellness of the best of people. Wellbriety goes beyond sobriety or the
abstention from addictive substances. Wellbriety includes self-knowledge
and personal growth, especially within the framework of native traditions
and culture. Many of the conferences, and especially the conference of
Native leadership, present the Wellbriety journey of greater sobriety and
wellness.
 

STRENGTHENING OUR FAMILIES
The final conference of the Walk will take place in Washington, DC and will
focus on family healing and strength. Strengthening our Families will
explore traditional knowledge and traditional ways in the healing of first
nations families. The traditional cycle of life, including the eight stages
of human development, will be a topic of teaching, discussion and talking
circles. Knowledge of how to conduct family circle discussion nights for
youth, parents and others in the extended family will be talked about.
People will learn how to conduct the traditional native talking circle.
This last conference of the walk will be a prelude to the White Bison 3 day
Strengthening our Families conference to be held in Albuquerque, New Mexico
from September 21-24, 2000.
 

Come Join the Walk!
The Journey of the Sacred Hoop across America is a gesture of Healing,
Hope, Unity and Forgiveness for native peoples and for North America at
large. It sends the message "Stop the violence. Stop the Substance Abuse.
Stop the harm and pain in our Nation. Let's begin by wiping away our tears
and beginning the healing process together, a commitment that must be made
in unity."

Those participating in the Walk and its conferences will have a learning
experience and an experience of making friends and allies in the struggle
towards sobriety, recovery and wellness. The body of wellness knowledge
which is growing day by day in North American society will find a
culturally specific voice, friendly and understandable to native people.

Everyone is invited to join the Walk. Check the route and walk with us for
short or longer segments as fits your own needs and commitments. If you
can't come out to walk, consider keeping a sacred fire in your own
community and conducting a learning gathering of your own to support the
Walk and provide a resource for those at home. Undertake your own mini Walk
locally for sobriety, recovery and an end to family violence.

The Journey of the Sacred Hoop Walk is also a model for how wellness and
wellbriety can take root in other communities with specific cultural needs.
The 100 Eagle Feather Hoop provides a spiritual connecting point which is
culturally appropriate to Native people and others sympathetic with Native
Ways. Other communities will have their own special symbols or sacred
elements. It is said that the longest road that we will ever walk is the 18
inches between the head and the heart. The four gifts of the sacred Hoop,
and the human bonding that will take place on the Walk helps make that
connection. Making that connection, substance abuse and domestic violence
will begin to become things of the past.

It is also said that the Honor of One is the Honor of all. And if the Honor
of One is the Honor of all, then the Pain of one must also be the Pain of
all. There is no escaping it--we are all related and connected on Turtle
Island, the land also called North America. Join the Journey of the Sacred
Hoop for diversity, unity, inclusion, and the healing of our communities.

We need your support of the Walk with donations of money, resources or
participation.

Contact Laura Hom at White Bison, toll-free at (877) 871-1495 to make
contact and to find your place in the Walk.

E mail us at <info@whitebison.org> to communicate. And keep watching the
website at www.whitebison.org for news of the Walk and latest updates.

The TENTATIVE SCHEDULE

CITIES ** DATES ** EVENTS

LOS ANGELES, CA
April 2, 2000
Blessing of the hoop journey by elders, special presentations and Start

PHOENIX, AZ
April 11, 2000
Conference #1:    On Domestic Violence And Prevention

GALLUP, NM
April 16, 2000
Conference # 2: (Palm Sunday)   On  Alcohol And Drugs

ALBUQUERQUE, NM
April 23, 2000
Conference # 3:  (Easter Sunday)   Feast and conference on Fatherhood

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK
May 7, 2000
Conference # 4:   Feast and conference on Boarding Schools

TAHLEQUAH, OK
May 14, 2000
(Mother's Day)   Community Feast

TAHLEQUAH, OK
May 15, 2000
Conference # 5:   On Alcohol and Drugs

LITTLE ROCK, AK
May 25, 2000
Conference # 6 :  On  Native Youth Suicide  &  Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

MEMPHIS, TN
June 1, 2000    Conference # 7:   or event to be announced

NASHVILLE, TN
June 10, 2000
Conference # 8:   On Lost Children of Alcoholics

NASHVILLE, TN
June 11, 2000
Conference #9:   On Honoring the Women of the Four Colors

CHEROKEE, NC
June 22, 2000
Conference # 10:   On Native Leadership--if you lead, be sober

WASHINGTON, DC
July 10, 2000
Conference # 11:    On Strengthening Our Families and closing celebration

From: RichSimone@aol.com
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 19:57:21 EST
Subject: Sacred Hoop Walk
To: vcornelia@cybermesa.com
MIME-Version: 1.0

Hi Elija,
This is the Feb 8 media announcement saved as an attached text file. You can
send it out to anyplace you want. Thanks for the help. Glad you met up with
Frank Adakai. He and his wife Corie are the New Mexico coordinators.
Richard

Press Release                   For Immediate Release              Press Release

For More Information Contact: Richard Simonelli, Media Representative
White Bison, Inc., Direct (303) 245-8175, e mail: <richsimone@aol.com>

White Bison, Inc. Toll Free:  (877) 871-1495, E Mail: <info@whitebison.org>
Website: www.whitebison.org

February 8, 2000
 

The Journey of the  Sacred Hoop

A NATIONWIDE  WALK  FOR  HEALING, WELLBRIETY, and an
END TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

The WELLBRIETY MOVEMENT
The sobriety movement in Indian country is gaining strength and changing to
include greater wellness as one of its goals. Now, White Bison is
broadening it once again by teaching about Wellbriety, a new term which
combines wellness and sobriety in a balanced life. Don Coyhis, President
and Founder of White Bison, Inc. is emerging as an acknowledged leader in
sobriety, recovery, and now Wellbriety programs in Native communities. In
order to cause a social shift in the people's thinking we are planning to
undertake a Walk.

The WALK
The Journey of the Sacred Hoop Walk will result in the awakening of the
people, an awakening of our Native leadership, a change in the focus of our
society at large, and a spiritual reason for each person to look within
themselves by examining their own thoughts. Ghandi said, "You must become
the change you wish to see in the world."

The Walk will begin on April 2, 2000 in Los Angeles, California and
conclude in Washington, DC early in July. The Walk will be called The
Journey of the Sacred Hoop because the White Bison 100 Eagle Feather Hoop
will be carried by participants throughout the whole Walk. We also think of
this Walk as a Wiping of the Tears because the hurt of our Indian nations
will be wiped away in the healing activities of the Walk.

We  cordially invite  all tribal leaders throughout the country to walk on
behalf  of their people and communities.

The CONFERENCES
There will be eleven one-day workshops and conferences located in major
regions of the country along the route of the Walk. These conferences will
focus on the four directions of Recovery, Treatment, Prevention, and
Intervention for alcohol, drugs and domestic violence. As part of the
conference presentations, participants will be introduced to prevention
resources and "tool kits" for both individuals and families. These
prevention tool kits will include a network of 800 number hotlines,
cultural videos for Native Americans, reading material, training programs
and much more.

We cordially invite all four directions (Red, Yellow, Black and White) to
walk with us and share their strength, hope and vision for healing.
*************************************************************
 

The JOURNEY OF THE SACRED HOOP  Walk is being facilitated by White Bison,
Inc., an American Indian non-profit organization committed to providing
programs and educational resources for Native people's wellness. The Walk
is an inspirational and educational event that invites participation of all
races and ethnic groups. We want to hear one voice from all four
directions. That one voice sends one heart-felt and strong message: "Stop
the violence. Stop the substance abuse. Stop the harm and pain in our
nation." Let's begin by wiping away our tears and healing together, a
commitment that must be made in unity.

PLEASE HELP!
We are asking for you to join with us in this effort and make your voice
known within your community. We are asking for your support. To make this
walk happen we need: Lodging/Meals for Elders and Walkers; Van and Travel
Expenses; Food Certificates; Camping Supplies; and especially, Corporate
and small business donations and support.

Visit the website at www.whitebison.org for updates on the Walk.  Contact
White Bison toll-free at (877) 871-1495 or  at (719) 548-1000 or
<info@whitebison.org>, to learn how regional groups may become involved in
the Walk.

We need a few more core group walkers who can commit to walking some or all
of the Journey. Contact Laura Hom at White Bison to learn how you can join
the Walk

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