August 14
Carl Rose

August 16
Lori Dashner

August 17
Leola Edminston

August 19
Dave Pero
John Lyden

August 20 Esie Corbine	August 23 Ramona Wilson Bob Wimer	August 24 Margaret McBride Sandy Kolodziejski Randy Hmielewski
August 26 Darla O'Claire	August 28 Arlene Smart Bruce Malouf	August 29 Sandra Rameriez Robert Blanchard Francis LaGrew
August 30 Donald Smart	August 31 Gerald Gordon

For the last 17 years, Lake Superior Ojibwe have traveled to and canoed across Sandy Lake to remember and honor the ancestors that perished in the winter of 1850.

In 2001, the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) along with other Tribes erected a memorial to honor the 19 Tribes who traveled to Sandy Lake nearly 170 years ago for promised food and payments as part of their Treaty agreements. They arrived to find nothing.

The Sandy Lake Tragedy was an attempt by U.S. officials to forcibly and illegally remove the Ojibwe from their homelands. More than 3,000 people traveled to Sandy Lake, Minnesota, after being told they would receive their annuities there instead of at LaPointe, Wisconsin. Some stayed and waited. As many as 400 Ojibwe died due to disease, starvation and exposure.

On July 31st, in the largest memorial gathering yet, Elders, Youth, Tribal Leaders, Chiefs and Tribal Members traveled back to Sandy Lake to once again canoe across the lake, feast, and, as Bad River Tribal Member Adam Oja, who has come for the past six years, expressed, "Honor the loved ones we lost and what that means for us today."


The Memorial Ceremony has grown over the last decade. Bad River Education Department Staff Lori Lemieux and Stephanie Julian shared, "We came with Bad River youth, a lot have never been here. Before we left, we watched the GLIFWC Sandy Lake video to get a better understanding about why we were coming here and what this memorial was actually for. We brought Lacrosse, likely the first game in over a hundred years at the Sandy Lake Memorial site." The Education and Youth Department are looking to implement Sandy Lake history into their summer curriculum.

It wasn't long after the tragedy that Red Cliff's Chief Buffalo made the historic journey to Washington, D.C., to plea for the Ojibwe, who became the 12 Tribes now in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan through the Treaties of 1836, 1837, 1842, and 1854. Today, the Tribes send Members to the Sandy Lake Memorial Ceremony "Mikwendaagoziwag - We Remember Them" to paddle across Sandy Lake, and be received on the shore by relatives and allies, feast, and hold prayers and songs.

This year's Memorial Ceremony began with Mic Isham, Jr., Executive Director of GLIFWC, opening the ceremony and offering introductions. More than 50 paddlers set out for the two-mile journey. Once they arrived across the lake, Tribal Members greeted each canoe at the landing, where a feast of traditional food was prepared and shared. Many Tribal Leaders, including Mike Wiggins, Jr., Bad River Tribal Chair and Voigt Intertribal Task Force Vice-Chair, spoke on the importance of honoring those that journeyed almost 170 years ago. He shared that it was good to see grandmothers, youth, and so many come to Sandy Lake and share the history, and sing, dance and pray together.

A Pipe and Water Ceremony were conducted, and the Mole Lake Singers provided honor songs. Many expressed their gratitude for everyone attending and for the Memorial Ceremony tradition of remembrance continuing.

On August 5th, the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development announced its 2019 Native American 40 Under 40 award recipients.

Dylan Jennings has been named an award winner.

Each year, the National Center recognizes 40 emerging Native American and Alaska Native leaders who have demonstrated leadership, initiative and dedication, and made significant contributions in business, their professions or in their communities.

This year's class - the 11th - features leaders from a wide variety of fields, including tribal and state government, gaming, tribal economic development, business and consulting, academia, health care, the law, theater, marketing, and hospitality. Winners hail from 18 states and Washington, D.C. Over 30 unique Tribes and Native affiliations are represented among the winners.

"The 2019 class of our Native American 40 Under 40 award winners is a truly impressive group of amazing young leaders," said Chris James, President and CEO of the National Center. "They join a growing community of past winners who are already making a difference in their communities and professions. I look forward to honoring their achievements and welcoming them into the 40 under 40 family."

The awards gala will take place on August 24th at the Sheraton Grand at Wild Horse Pass in Phoenix, Arizona.

Congratulations Dylan!

This week, you'll see 30 Bad River youth door-knocking and talking with community members with the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community (LCO) College!  

Lynn Bigboy, Youth Director, shares, "Having our summer youth involved helps engage them in a college experience.  We're excited to see the youth engage in the community!"

The youth met with Jimmy White, LCO College's Recruitment and Admissions Specialist, this past Monday to learn about furthering their education and how that is important in our community.

Jimmy explained the initiative, saying, "It has many goals, including helping students gain community service skills, life experience, and being able to learn and share knowledge."

LCO College has many opportunities for youth to experience. For more information, contact Jimmy White at 715-558-5304, or 715-634-4790, ext. 148.

A warm welcome to Bad River's new Dental Assistant Katie Hudak!

Katie started July 15th and shares, "I was blown away when chosen to work in Bad River."

She has been a dental assistant for five years, and is certified in Dental Assisting. She is from Ashland, and wanted to work at Bad River Dental and be closer to home.

Katie attended Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton and graduated with Dental Assistant Degree in 2013.

"I enjoy the position and freedoms. Every day is different, every client is different," said Katie.

She also said that she is looking forward to retiring with Bad River, hoping it's her last career stop. She likes to spend time with her family, including her husband and son, who was born in April, in her free time.

Welcome Katie!

Boozhoo,

I am excited to share the new program that is starting at Bad River Social Services. 

The Biizindadedah Project  is a cultural family prevention program that incorporates the 7 Grandfather Teachings and talks about mino bimaadiziwin in all of our sessions.

We work with the family as a whole, as well as having break outs with the adults and youth. It is a great opportunity to build a good foundation of learning healthy behaviors. 

If you have questions, concerns or any barriers, please reach out. We are always looking for Elders and guests who would love to be a part of the program.

Miigwech!

Maggie Morrison
Biizindadedah Project Director
Office: (715) 682-7127 ext. 1432
Cell: (715) 292-5390
Email

In an effort to increase the duration of breastfeeding in Tribal communities, 14 women from across the state participated in the Indigenous Breastfeeding Counselor Training held in Green Bay.

Participants included home visitors, community members, peer counselors, and community health staff from Bad River, Red Cliff, Lac du Flambeau, Oneida Nation, Lac Courte Oreilles and Ho-Chunk Nation. This training was provided free of charge through Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council's Breastfeeding: The Traditional Way program.

Paige Wiggins and Sue Lemieux participated from our community.

The training, developed by Camie Jae Goldhammer, MSW, LICSW, IBCLC (Sisseton-Wahpeton) and Kimberly Moore-Salas, IBCLC (Navajo), was a Native-centered course seeking to provide participants with clinical skills to begin serving breastfeeding moms in Tribal communities. Ms. Goldhammer indicated that she wanted Native women to be able to have a training that addresses the specific historical and cultural implications of breastfeeding and parenting impacting Native families.

The five-day training covered the biological process of breastfeeding, the psychological, sociological, and cultural issues facing breastfeeding families and the public health impacts and implications of breastfeeding, along with counseling and assessment skills. Attendee Allie LeSieur from Lac du Flambeau, stated, "The information was given in multiple avenues - lecture, video, and group activities. The presenters were culturally sensitive, respectful and provided many opportunities for clarity."

As breastfeeding support often predicts the length of time a mother breastfeeds, participants were instructed on effective counseling skills specific to breastfeeding and working in communities with a complex trauma history. This included active listening, using open-ended questions, and validating thoughts and feelings. "I am excited to be able to help our indigenous mothers who are already lacking the extra support," Ms. LeSieur said.

The cultural aspect played heavily in the development of this training and was a component that resonated with participants. "Breastfeeding is our tradition. Our ancestors did it and knew this was the best way to feed your child. I would love to help support our families for the optimal goal of healthy, strong, future generations," said participant Barb Baker-LaRush of Lac Courte Oreilles.

The Indigenous Breastfeeding Counselor Training was the final initiative of the three-year grant funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. "We know that many women don't meet their breastfeeding goals due to lack of support. By strengthening the support in Tribal communities, we hope to see breastfeeding duration rates continue to climb," said Cheri Nemec, Red Cliff Tribal Member and Breastfeeding: The Traditional Way Coordinator.

For more information about the Indigenous Breastfeeding Counseling Training, or for information on the Native Breastfeeding Coalition of Wisconsin, please email Cheri Nemec or call 715-588-1020.

Great job Paige and Sue!

Bad River Manoomin Celebration shirts are now available for purchase at the Administration building! Proceeds from these $20 shirts will go toward the Bad River Pow Wow. They're a steel blue color and come in sizes Small to 4XL.

The committee will ship the shirts for an additional $5 per order to cover shipping. Make a check or money order payable to "Bad River Pow Wow", and send to Bad River Pow Wow, c/o Doug Jennings, PO Box 39, Odanah, WI 54861.

Please enclose a note with your shirt size, your return mailing address, and a phone number to reach you.

If your size is not available, the committee will call to see if you want a different size or will return your check/money order.

Health & Wellness AODA Program Cultural Events

View Application

The fall 2019 round of applications for the Northern Wisconsin Outdoor Experiential Education Scholarship is now open.

This scholarship is designed to help youth (and adults!) of the Chequamegon Bay area participate in outdoor educational programs through programs like Outward Bound, Wilderness Inquiry or Northland College.

The deadline to apply is October 1, 2019.

 

View the Brochure

The Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College (LCOOCC) has recently been reauthorized by the Wisconsin Nursing Board to offer an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN).

The ADN program is taught at the Hayward campus. The Associate Degree of Nursing program will educate students in the art of caring and prepare them with evidence-based knowledge and clinical practicum to take the NCLEX-RN licensing examination upon graduation.

"This reauthorization approval of the Associate Degree in Nursing is a win for the Northwest Wisconsin region. Our ability to train nurses who want to live and work locally makes our community more sustainable," said Lisa Munive, Dean of Academic Affairs at the College.

The Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development projects the need for 5,327 new registered nursing positions by 2024, a 9.5 percent increase from 2014's total of 52,212 positions.

The 2019-2020 Associate Degree in Nursing cohort is currently at capacity. Students can apply for the waiting list of the 2020-2021 cohort at the College's website, or call Jimmy White, Recruitment and Admissions Specialist, at 715-558-5304.

The Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College (LCOOCC) has received approval from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction to offer the High School Equivalency Diploma (HSED). This move comes as a result of requests received by each of the Tribal communities the College serves.

According to the Wisconsin Information System for Education, the graduation rate for the state of Wisconsin for Native American students has averaged 78.3 percent for the past five years; however, these numbers vary widely (57% to 92.4%) within the school districts served by the College.

The College, in its role as a Tribal community college, has the role and responsibility of providing equal access to Tribally underserved populations.

"When students are lifted up with an education, their families and Tribal communities are also lifted up. Our College is poised and ready to offer this service and fulfill this very important responsibility." says Dr. Swagger, President of the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College.

Offering this service means that Tribal Members and others will have greater access and a pathway to earning the post-secondary degree. People may not pursue a higher education without this access. Also, successful completion of the GED/HSED creates a greater likelihood that graduates will enroll in college level courses.

Sherry Holly, Alternative Education & GED/HSED Administrator, states in the approval letter, "The Tribal communities of Bad River, Red Cliff, Lac du Flambeau, St. Croix and Lac Courte Oreilles will be best served by the he Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College GED/5.09 program services."

Students can apply for the HSED/GED program online, or call Jimmy White, Recruitment and Admissions Specialist, at 715-558-5304.

Visit these sites for current employment opportunities:

Bad River Lodge and Casino

Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission

Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College

Job Center of Wisconsin

Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program (CEP)

2020 Census Jobs