Hoonah Indian AssociationA

Hoonah Indian Association Interviewees: Darlene See & Amelia Wilson Tlagoonks

1. How did this work come about? And why was it necessary?

Darlene: I had been previously working on using art programs with adult survivors of

violence. I attended a workshop with the 7th Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples and asked

them if we could apply for the Native Women’s Initiative grant. I received information about the

grant and decided to apply. Our group had limited funding, so I talked with another colleague

about the grant and we decided that we wanted to do something with “Raven’s-Fal Weave,”

which is one of the oldest forms of weaving in our community. Weaving in this way requires one

to be mindful of the importance of being in the moment, and not to bring trauma into in the

weaving; it’s something that is very healing. A non-Native brought this artform back from Russia

to the Native women.

An important factor for applying for the grant was that we began to notice the terrible

statistics of violence against women and saw a lot of abuse, many survivors, and knew about the

depth and seriousness of the scars that were being carried. We could relate to it all and

remembered that some of the best healing moments in our work were with women. So, we held

discussions with people that were going to be involved in this work and about what needed to be

talked about and decided that this project would be necessary in order to help begin addressing

and healing the effects of violence against women in our community.

One of the motivating factors was that a fire in Hoonah burned up all lot of treasured

items, including the weaving that had been done, which was a terrible loss for our community.

For a long time, past colonization and trauma made it so that no one was weaving and more and

more we believed that it would be a healing experience for women who would start weaving

again.

Amelia:

I got involved because I believed that weaving would be an important part of the healing

that women needed. The title of the project “Strength for Women” was about how to literally use

“weaving” as the strength of the project. What we were doing was important because it created a

space that did not exist; a space that would bring women together to connect, gather, and weave.

Life is busy and demanding and we believed that what we would do would help to create an

opportunity for women’s healing. I felt a strong connection with women and the gatherings built

better relationships and support and the arts served as conduit to help healing.

Weaving offered the use of our first traditional art form that gave participants in our

program a sense of accomplishment as they created beautiful art. As they weaved, they gained

the strength to discuss and reclaim that which was taken away from them. Once we invited a

domestic violence worker to group to speak about violence and prevention, which was important

for many of the women to hear. A lot of women in the community didn’t know the weaving was

happening, but as word continued to grow and they started linking up with one another,

participation and interest began to grow. The art that was created was symbolic of the treasure

that was inside each of the women that were weaving. As interest grew, we took a trip to the

“Tribal House,” which is a symbolic place that is alive and in our original homelands. A lot of

special things happened when people went there. The weaving that was being done created the

space and a safe environment where women could share deep, personal stories. It was not

possible before. We made sure that the language we spoke was both Tlingit and English.

2. To accomplish your work, how does your project draw upon the best of what has been or is in your organization and community?

Our use of arts as an approach to healing violence has been successful. Weaving is a

traditional art form that we understand and can use to do our work. Our people are weavers; it is

an important part of who we are. In our experience, other approaches to healing violence have

been less successful and have not always used traditional approaches. We combined art with

traditional language and traditions; we ate together, laughed together, and bonded over fresh,

healthy foods, and traditional foods. Respected elders with a lot of life knowledge who were

fluent in tribal language and traditions were brought in to help teach the participants about

language and life.

Amelia: There was a lot of humor and enjoyment that took place as women interacted

with the elders and learned new things about language and traditional ways. All of what we were

doing made it a very supportive and enjoyable environment. What we were doing made it so that

women could more easily feel the trust and support and could articulate what had happened to

them. We came to the tribal house which was symbolically important, which is not always open

to all, but Darlene had access to it and is connected to those elders that watch over it.

3. (a). Why did you get involved and what makes you stay? (b). What is important about what you do and what do love most about the work

Darlene: One of the things was that we believe is that culture and being together can be

healing. We wanted to be involved and to see more traditional healthy women weaving in the

community so that it would catch on. Amelia: It opened my eyes and strengthened me and

boosted my self-esteem. I see what weaving it can do to create healing and I wanted to pass it

onto others, so they get can the benefits. For me, it is an opportunity to learn, create, and see

change happen. (b). We love humor and time together; it is healing. Eating and creating

together, creating beautiful, meaningful art was important. We bonded and formed deep

connections with one another: a sisterhood. We know that the “ancestors are with us, watching

over us and we feel them. We loved laughing and enjoyed the sacred space.”

4. When your organization has been operating at its best what have been the best, most inspiring, and creative moments and accomplishments of your project?

Darlene: For me, it was seeing a particular weaver, weaving a bag for sister who was

a survivor of violence. At was at that moment that it all fell into place for me. I watched and

listened as she shared deep details as she weaved. I could see that she was feeling so good to share

her story. Before she had a secret, and as she weaved, she suddenly became freed from the past

and began to tell all that had happened to her. All the weight was lifted off her shoulders. Her

father, whom she loved and had lost, was one of her main protectors. She used some of her

father’s shirt as the lining in her weaving as a way to remember that he would always be there for

her.

Amelia: The stories that unfolded in the artwork were unique from each woman.

There was great depth and meaning. One participant had a father who couldn’t afford the

raven’s tail weave, due to the expense. She worked and worked on completing the Raven’s shawl

for him. After some time and a lot of hard work she finished and gave him the blanket and then

brought a picture of him dressed in the blanket with a big, beautiful smile. The Raven’s shawl is

very limited and expensive to create, but now women participating in the project were able to

create them and I was inspired by their participation and dedication. The issues that some of the

participants were dealing with ranged from cancer to substance abuse. They felt disconnected

and it was very inspiring for them to reconnect to culture.

5. (a). Thinking big, outside the circle/box, what is the dream of the organization (What might be)? b). How might this come about and how would you communicate this dream to others?

Amelia:

(a) To not be isolated or to be one-time experience or project. We have seen what

happens when you bring people together and how the connections, activities, and relationships

bring about change and healing. We want to keep going and create our own weaver ’s guild that

would be highly inclusive and have the same initiatives. We want to be able to purchase materials

and make a place to keep women learning. We have dreamed of creating a healing robe that is

made by our women’s classes that would represent the strength we have to heal ourselves and the

successive generations of our people. It takes many. The cost to do something like this would be

high but worth it. Wearing a robe is a sign of prestige. It brings about respect and status of those

wearing it and it is revered by the people. Such a healing robe would be used for healing events;

a women’s robe would be for healing women and it would be a powerful symbol and statement.

Darlene:

(b) Creating more weavers, who get more experience, learn more techniques, experience

greater healing, and to develop skills that will help the community dream about all the

possibilities. Our community has been here for thousands of years, we have a strong history of

being at the forefront of having skills and craftsmanship in the arts, strength from our ancestors,

and stories of survival in our history. We are matrilineal society, and in the past, our women have

been resilient and strong. We can regain that strength. We survived hardships, wars, and glaciers

that moved as fast as a dog runs. When men were away women had to step up. Men went

hunting and to war. During difficult times, women took over. Women were part of political

system, and most women were shamans, a very revered position in society.

6. What do you appreciate most about those that you work with and what do they appreciate about you?

Amelia: Darlene has a vision and makes into reality with a lot of hard work, connecting

people, figuring things out, and using her good relationships that she has with others. She made

things happen and worked for success. She has skills to teach us; skills we did not know about and

she is a good cook (laughs).

Darlene: I appreciate Amelia’s encouraging optimism and sense of hope. Amelia got

hired into Hoonah Heritage Foundation (HHF) in a leadership position. She built linkages

between HHF and Ravens and was involved in networking and strengthening partnerships.

Amelia stood her ground. Amelia’s gift was to be really clear about staying in the community.

She provided the effective work that should be in the community.

7. What do you feel are the most important strategies and practices of your project? (b) How do they serve to empower the community? (c) What has your community appreciated most about what you do?

Darlene: Working in the community to reconnect people with what we used to know

and how we used to live. This takes building the appropriate cultural protocols in the community

that can reorganize and re-empower. We have had traditional practices that have been used and

been here before; they’ve have been used for thousands of years and are still available to us.

Today, people are still trying to connect to the practices and do potlatches, ceremonies, and

follow traditions. But the protocols that go with them are not fully understood and connected,

and we are trying to help in our own way to do that. I think people appreciate what we are doing

with our work. We believe that appropriate prayer and actions will happen when things come

together; positive things will happen in the right time.

Amelia: We believe that strong and positive motivation of the women will help lift up

the men so that they can change. As women, we need to remain strong to lift them up.

8 and 9 What positive images do you and your organization envision for the future of your work and the people you serve? What commitments do you and your organization have to make sure you are the right path that will lead to positive changes in the organization and community?

Amelia: We see ourselves as committed to work together as organization to rebuild

bridges and reestablish good will, promote healing through our work, and helping to revive what

is necessary to heal. We are committed to work with all people. When we see people gathering,

connecting, telling their stories, creating, and healing and growing, we know we are on a positive

path.

Darlene: I think we will know we are on the right path to positive change when it

becomes clear to our community and board members that change is happening and we have

funding that is self-sustaining.

Applying the Appreciative Inquiry 4-D Cycle

I. Discovery: The Discovery phase is a search to understand the “best of what is” and “what has been.” It begins with a collaborative act of crafting appreciative interview questions and constructing an appreciative interview guide. Appreciative interview questions are written as affirmative probes into an organization’s positive core, in the topic areas selected. They are written to generate stories, to enrich the images and inner dialogue within the organization, and to bring the positive core more fully into focus.

The discovery of the community needs of the project centered on an understanding of the

toll that violence against women was taking, and a belief in the value, strength, and healing

capacities and wisdom of time-tested cultural practices. Staff had convincing insights about how

the introduction, organization, and return of traditional weaving circles in a program could serve

to attend to the traumas of their participants. They believed and discovered that those that took

part in this traditional art form would have cathartic, healing experiences:

“We began to notice the terrible statistics of violence against women and saw a lot of abuse, many survivors, and knew about the depth and seriousness of the scars that were being carried; we could relate to it all. We wanted to do something with ‘Raven’s-Fal Weave,’ which is one of the oldest forms of weaving in our community.

“Weaving offered the use of our first traditional art form that gave participants in our program a sense of accomplishment as they created beautiful art. As they weaved, they gained the strength to discuss and reclaim that which was taken away from them.”

For Darlene and Amelia, drawing on the positive core of what is best in their community

meant understanding who their community truly is and how the value of bringing survivors

together, using traditional approaches, required the skills of insight:

“Our people are weavers; it is important part of who we are. In our experience, other approaches to healing violence have been less successful and have not always used traditional approaches. We combined art with traditional language and traditions; we ate together, laughed together, and bonded over stories, fresh healthy foods, and traditional foods…We came to the ‘tribal house’ which was symbolically important.”

Darlene and Amelia have learned that communities have strengths and resources that can

be built upon. Being involved and staying in the community to do this work was healing for the

staff and it created a strong connection to the past. There is a enduring belief that culture is

sacred, healing, creates healthy connections, and brings about empowering links to the past:

“We believe that culture and being together can be healing. We wanted to be involved and to see more traditional, healthy women weaving in the community. We bonded and formed deep connections with one another: a sisterhood (laughing). We know that the ancestors are with us, watching over us and we feel them. We loved laughing and enjoying the sacred space.”

The discovery of “life-giving forces of the organization,” happened as the staff observed

the depth of healing that occurred with the weaving and how it gave birth to creative moments

that bridged deep emotional gaps in the lives of participants and their families.

II. Dream: The Dream phase is an energizing exploration of “what might be”: a time for people to explore their hopes and dreams for their work, their working relationships, their organization, and the world at large. It is a time for groups of people to engage in thinking big and thinking out of the boundaries of what has been in the past. The intent of the Dream phase is to identify and spread generative, affirmative and hopeful images of the future

To dream is to envision what might be. Hopes blossom when one can think big and

communicate it to others. A part of the dream is recalling the resilience, strengths, symbols, and

circumstances that are connected to the people, especially the women, that insured survival and

growth during challenging times:

Amelia: “We want to keep going and create our own weaver’s guild that would be highly inclusive…we have dreamed of creating a healing robe that is made by our women’s classes that would represent the strength we have to heal ourselves and the successive generations of people. Wearing a robe is a sign of prestige.”

Darlene: “Our community has been here for thousands of years, we have a strong history of being at the forefront of having skills and craftsmanship in the arts, strength from our ancestors, and stories of survival in our history. We are a matrilineal society and, in the past, our women have been resilient and strong. We can regain that strength. During difficult times women took over; women were part of a political system, and most women were shamans, a very revered position in society.”

III. Design: The Design phase involves making choices about “what should be” within the organization or system. It is a conscious re-creation or transformation, through which such things as systems, structures, strategies, processes and images will become more fully aligned with the organization’s positive past (Discovery) and highest potential (Dream).

Transformation takes place in stages through the use of different strategies and processes.

Envisioning the changes depends upon the synchronous flow of the work between individuals.

Appreciation for the skills, talents, positivity, commitments, and social capital of colleagues is

important to the organization’s structures, processes, and pursuit of change:

Darlene: I appreciate Amelia’s encouraging optimism and sense of hope and networking to strengthen partnerships. Her gift was to be really clear about staying in the community.”

Amelia: Darlene has a vision and makes into reality with a lot of hard work, connecting people, figuring things out, and using her good relationships that she has with others.”

IV. Destiny: The Destiny phase initiates a series of inspired actions that support ongoing learning and innovation—or “what will be.” The Destiny phase, however, focuses specifically on personal and organizational commitments and paths forward which result in changes in organizational systems, structure, processes or procedures.

Strategies of change include commitment to change, the skill of reconnecting important

parts of the system, and the knowledge that things may only emerge in their own time:

Darlene: “Working in the community to reconnect people with what we used to know and how we used to live is important. This takes building the appropriate cultural protocols in the community that can recognize and re-empower. I think people appreciate what we are doing with our work. We believe that appropriate prayer and actions will happen when things come together; positive things will happen at the right time.”

An important aspect of the destiny of the project is that, despite that men have been the

major perpetrators of violence, staff are committed to using their skills, talents, and experience to

bring about healing for Native men.

Amelia: “Strong and positive motivation of the women will help lift up the men so that they can change. As women, we need to remain strong to lift them up.”