The Basket Weaver: November 2020

November 2020

THE BASKET WEAVER

Two Feathers Native American Family Services COMMUNITY FOCUSED | CULTURALLY ROOTED | PREVENTION BASED

The Basket Weaver Two Feathers Native American Famil y Services br ings y ou monthl y updates about the p rograms, ev ents, and news from our agency to your inbox. Just as a basket is wove n, we hope that The Basket Weaver wil l weave connection, inspirat ion, and community with our l oc al famil ies and communities.

IN THIS ISSUE GREETINGS FROM LEADERSHIP

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SPEAK YOUR LANGUAGE

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TWO FEATHERS NAFS RECENT NEWS & EVENTS

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YOUTH & STAFF HIGHLIGHTS

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LOCAL ARTIST COLORING PAGE

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Greetings from leadership: A MESSAGE FROM OUR NATIVE CONNECTIONS PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Aiy-Yu-Kwee’!

I’m Shoshoni Gensaw-Hostler (Yurok).

I started my journey with Two Feathers NAFS in March as a Mental Health Clinician. I have since taken on the position of Native Connections Director for the Hoopa area. Along with providing direct counseling services I am also working on implementing an Indigenous School Based Mental Health system. This system is going to be youth driven and informed by our new Youth Ambassadors. Our Youth Ambassadors will practice their leadership and advocacy skills both on a local and national level to create positive impact by representing the youth voice, creating opportunity for youth driven projects, and connection to other indigenous youth. I am passionate about youth work and feel fortunate to have the opportunity to work so closely on projects that create such lasting impacts in our youth’s journeys. Keep an eye out in our newsletter for updates on our Native Connections Program!

Woh-klaw’

Shoshoni Gensaw-Hostler

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Speak Your Language

"I am from (place/village)"

Hupa

Whe:do:n' (place/village) na:whay-ey

Yurok

(place/village) mey'-u-me'-chok

Karuk

(place/village) ni’aramsÎiprintih

Tolowa

Shii (place/village) dee-ni' (nvsh-li~)

Wiyot

Yil (place/village) darrudalilh OR Yil (place/village) dadalilh

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Which village do you come from?

If you do not know, use this opportunity to ask your elders and learn how to say it in your native language.

If you are not on your homelands, on whose Indigenous territories are you a guest?

If you do not know, text the name of your city and town (i.e. Arcata, California) to 1-907-312-5085 and find out or visit native.land-ca

Wo-hlklaw' - thank you to all the language speakers, learners, and teachers who continue to support us in ensuring we can include language in our newsletter and programs.

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Two Feathers NAFS Recent News & Events

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Community Interventions: PSAs in Hoopa Valley Since September, our clinicians and other staff members have collaborated with agencies across Hoopa Valley to create Public Service Announcement handouts. This was in response to issues around the pandemic, opioid crises, mental wellness, and more. Contact us at glsdirector@twofeathers-nafs.org if you would like the PSAs (available in color and greyscale).

Check out one on addressing anxiety on the following page.

Current available PSAs:

6 Simple Ways to Address COVID Anxiety by Building More Self-compassion Stress Reduction: Self soothing with the Five Senses

Supporting Someone in Crisis

Understanding Oxycodone & Other Opioids: Part I, II, III

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simple ways

TO ADDRESS COVID ANXIETY

BY BUILDING MORE SELF COMPASSION

1. Acknowledge the stress.

Take time to acknowledge that we are stressed and hurting.

Allow ourselves to notice and name our difficult thoughts, feelings and acknowledge the situation that has triggered them.

3. Disarm the critic.

2. Be human.

Let’s validate our pain as a natural and normal part of being human. Our painful thoughts and feelings are not a sign of weakness, defectiveness or mental illness.

When we feel low or highly anxious we tend to criticize ourselves and feel as though we have failed, made mistakes or have acted in ways we don’t approve of. Let’s take the power out of that harsh self criticism by allowing those thoughts to come and go and not holding onto them.

By Two Feathers Native American Family Services Adapted from ACT Made Simple

4. Hold yourself kindly.

When life is difficult, when we’re in great pain, we need support and kindness more than ever. Let’s talk to ourselves kindly, give ourselves messages of support and understanding.

5. Make room for your pain.

When we practice opening up and making room for our pain, that is an act of self-kindness, This frees up our time and energy to then focus on things that enhance our life rather than struggling with the pain.

6. See yourself in others.

Everywhere we turn people are struggling and suffering in ways similar to you. We can acknowledge and empathize with their pain and recognize this is part of being human. We develop a sense of “common humanity” in that we are not alone in our suffering, we are part of something much bigger.

Two Feathers Office (707) 839-1933 Crisis Hotline (707) 382-0629 8am - 5pm, M-F twofeathers-nafs.org

Fall Festivities F O O D S O V E REIG N T Y SER I E S Every other Friday, our Food Sovereignty Series team hosts a conversation with local Native leaders on cultural foodways and seasonal food management.

October was especially insightful! On October 9th, Meagen and Robert Baldy offered knowledge on how to process deer meat, including jerky and canning. There was discussion with co-hosts David Hostler and Bubba Riggins on traditional protocols around hunting and honoring harvest.

On October 23rd, Tina West and Shoshoni Gensaw-Hostler dove into the many different types of squash and how we can utilize them. Miss West gave brief histories of the Three Sisters and how Jack-O-Lanterns came to be, while Shoshoni described multiple ways to prepare this versatile fruit.

Make sure to catch our next episode on tradition and acorns with Marva Sii~xuutesna Jones and Bertha Peters, Friday 11/6 at 2pm on Two Feathers NAFS Facebook Live. If you missed any episodes so far, you can find them on our Two Feathers NAFS YouTube Channel.

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H A L L O W E E N C O M M U N IT Y FU N Covid-19 challenged our team to be extra creative this year with Halloween festivities -- but we were still able to have fun with the community!

It was enjoyable to share socially-distant space with some of you during our 2nd annual Spooky Halloween Bash in Hoopa. We got to spend time with princesses, pirates, and animals while eating yummy treats.

On Friday, October 30th, we hosted a caravan on the coast, where we dropped off Halloween goodie bags to community members dressed up in costumes.

We also put on a Pumpkin Carving Contest with cash prizes.

Congratulations to...

1st: Heather Campbell 2nd: Alex Hodge 3rd: Harmony Richards

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Fire Response As a response to the fires impacting Happy Camp and surrounding areas, a handful of Two Feathers NAFS staff formed a Fire Response team. Since early September, the Fire Response team has organized bi-weekly deliveries to evacuees and displaced families with the help of contacts on the frontlines. We especially thank Vikki Preston for her continued communication, strong heart, and dedication to the community. We also give a shout out to MarlenĂŠ Dusek for her support in co-creating wellness boxes with other community members for elders in Karuk territory.

Our team is currently working on gathering donations and brainstorming care packages that uplift wellness during such a trying time. They are also in discussion about long-term programming around traditional land management and restoring the community's relationship with fire.

If you would like to find out ways you can support Fire Response through Two Feathers NAFS, contact us at Zach.R@twofeathers@nafs.org.

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To support Happy Camp community members directly, donate to this link.

Are you a Two Feathers youth in need of a bike?

Are you looking for an activity to do outside safely during the pandemic?

Our new Bike Wednesday Bike Club is launching soon! Once you sign up, you will be contacted as bikes become available.

For any questions, contact Amada.L@twofeathers-nafs.org.

Click here to sign up today!

Bike Wednesday

Bike Club

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Youth Highlight

(Karuk/Yurok/Tolowa) Mettah Albert Thomas Kuska has been nominated by Two Feathers Youth Advocacy Team because of his efforts to fulfill his responsibility to be a positive role model for the younger generation. He is 15 years old and a Sophomore at McKinleyville High School. Some of his extracurricular activities include Football, Native American Club and a participant of Two Feathers youth programming and conferences. To start off the school year, Mettah is managing 4.17 GPA while also attending multiple Football practices per week! His work ethic, matched with his self efficacy puts him in great positions of leadership.

We are extremely proud of the person Mettah is becoming. Two Feathers is proud of who you are and what you represent! Keep up the good work Mettah!

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Employee the Month

(Community member & guest in Wiyot Territory for 29 years) Our staff is asked every month to nominate an a team member who they believe has demonstrated the organization's values of Building Family, Achieving Holistic Wellness, Teamwork, Mindset in a Good Way, Accepting Accountability, and Meeting community Needs.

This month, we congratulate Jennifer Oliphant, Chekws: Hope For Tomorrow Program Director! Thank you for everything that you do for our team. Jennifer is very supportive and will always find time to check in with others no matter how busy she is. We appreciate her sense of humor, insight, and bright energy especially on hard days. Jennifer is a leader and role model in cultivating mindset in a good way through her understanding of equity, decolonized work, and social justice and her dedication to implementing her values. Thank you Jennifer for going above and beyond for your team, Two Feathers, and the community!

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Local Artist Coloring Page

"Hello, my name is Sorren Thunder Richards!

I'm a 26-year-old multicultural artist from the Hoopa Valley, Yurok and Western Shoshone tribes. My art form is inspired by my cultural background and the events of today that are effecting the ways of Indigenous life."

Instagram: @thunder_cub Facebook: Sorren Richards

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