From humble beginnings to published author

Sharon Shuck

By Andrea Busche

“Iwasborn in 1939 on ‘the Rez’ in the backwoods of Brookston. There were five of us kids and two parents living in a tar paper shack that didn’t even have two rooms — it was really one room with a partition. We had no running water, no electricity, and we used an outhouse. That’s just how it was back then. We were poor, but we didn’t know it.”

This is the story of how Sharon Shuck’s life began. Although humble, her life has always sparkled with optimism and dreams of a better tomorrow. And, drawing on the good times as well as the bad, she has plenty of fascinating stories to tell.

Over the years, many people have told Shuck they wanted to hear more of what she has to say, and soon she will comply. This spring, Shuck, at age 80, will become a first-time published author. From tar paper shack to published author, this is the story of how Sharon Shuck utilized the power of education to elevate herself to higher ground.

Early years

Shuck, an enrolled member of the Fond du Lac Band, was raised in poverty. But her childhood was rich in

Duluth Woman Embraces Her Role As A Native Storyteller

unique and special memories.

She remembers, for instance, that the plentiful Fiddlehead ferns growing near her home tasted like asparagus, and that her family had a pet porcupine. Her grandmother, who lived just down the road, was thought to be a natural healer. Once, when Shuck’s sister stepped on a rusty nail, her grandma knew exactly which root to apply in order to prevent infection and hasten healing.

Shuck’s father worked in Duluth’s shipyards, and her mother stayed at home with the children. After Sharon’s birth, two more children came along, bringing the total to seven. In 1947, the family moved to Duluth.

Professional and volunteer work

After graduating from Central High School in 1958, Shuck became certified as an LPN through Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College. She got a job at the VA hospital in Minneapolis and made a life there for 20 years.

Shuck got married in the early 1970s and moved back to Duluth after her marriage ended. She worked in the medical field until her retirement.

After retirement, she became interested in volunteerism and ultimately made six trips south to help with demolition and reconstruction for Hurricane Katrina victims. She had learned a lot about home repair after purchasing her own house in Duluth’s Kenwood neighborhood.

“I was living alone, and knew I had to learn how to work on my own house,” she said. “So, I took community education classes and some courses at the Home Depot.” She also credits a helpful neighbor for teaching her things like how to install siding, and the skills needed to work on cabinets and windows.

An interest in writing

While witnessing the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, Shuck wanted to write about her experiences but

Continued on page 24 struggled to put her thoughts on paper. While literate and educated, she had very low confidence in her writing ability. She decided to take matters into her own hands, and investigate resources for improving her writing skills.

Around this time, she saw an advertisement for Duluth’s Community Education program, and began taking writing courses. This led to her becoming a “regular” at Duluth’s Adult Learning Center (ALC). In addition to the writing courses, she also received help with basic computer skills.

Shuck didn’t stop there; she also joined two local writing groups. After some initial resistance, she finally agreed to read a short story she had written about her childhood aloud to the group. It was called “Storytelling from the Tar Paper Shack.” The overwhelmingly positive response shocked her.

“Everybody clapped,” Shuck said. “A lawyer from the group even gave me a computer so I could keep writing.”

The confidence and support she received from her writing groups and the ALC ultimately helped Shuck make the decision to write a book about her grandfather, Frank Doolittle, an interesting character who was born in 1886. Doolittle had endured the Catholic Indian Boarding Schools and even served a stint in Leavenworth Prison. “I want to be a Native storyteller, to share with the next generation stories not to be forgotten; to put the memories, thoughts, feelings, and emotion in writing,” Shuck said.

Through her connections at ALC, Shuck was introduced to the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, who helped her apply for, and receive, a $3,000 grant through the McKnight Foundation to help her get her book published.

Comments from ALC

Kris Rikkola, an instructor with the ALC, said, “Sharon Shuck has been a student in Adult Education classes at the Duluth Area Learning Center for the past 13 years. She attended the Adult Learning Center for many years to improve her reading and writing skills, but nowadays she attends for the purpose of revising and editing her book, ‘Blood Memories and Unbroken Spirit.’ Sharon’s book project has also prompted her to obtain computer skills that she never dreamed possible. We have many students in our adult education programs with incredible life stories, and Sharon is no exception. She has overcome many challenges, culturally and academically, following her passion to write her stories which are rich in the history of Native American culture.”

John Herold, one of the language arts teachers at the ALC said, “Sharon’s writing started as childhood memories to be shared with younger generations of Native Americans, written with standard grammar. That has changed now that she has a goal of teaching through her writing. I find her current project, about her grandfather, to be compelling for a few reasons. First is the sentence structure, sometimes referred to as ‘Rez speak,’ which has the authenticity of a native storyteller, which Sharon insists on using to honor her people. Secondly, this story presents the dominant culture’s treatment of Indians and the damage this has caused, particularly for Indians in the Minnesota-Wisconsin region. Lastly, Sharon presents the reality of cumulative adverse childhood experiences. She calls it ‘blood memories.’ She has a unique voice with an important mission.”

Rikkola added, “The teachers and staff at the ALC celebrate Sharon’s successes and her incredible story. The mantra ‘it takes a village’ is one that our teachers and staff share because we all work together to help our students meet or exceed their academic goals and have the pleasure of learning their life stories along the way.”

No excuses

Shuck can hardly believe the interesting twists and turns her life has taken as she enters her eighth decade of life. “I never dreamed at my age I would be publishing a book,” she said. She credits much of her writing success to her lifelong pursuit of education, and particularly her teachers at ALC.

“I can’t say enough about the Adult Learning Center, and all of the support and encouragement they’ve given me.

Before, I was ashamed of going to ALC for help, but now I don’t care, and I refer a lot of people down there. Too many people make excuses so they don’t have to get out of their recliners.”

Sharon Shuck’s book, “Blood Memories and Unbroken Spirit,” will be published in the spring of 2019 through Dovetail Press. D