FALL, 2005
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By Cindy Hoaglen
 
The 2005 National UNITY Conference was in sunny San Diego, July 7- July 11, 2005 at the Town & Country Resort & Convention Center.  The Building Horizons Program took and chaperoned two Round Valley UNITY Youth Leadership Council members Sierra Dightman and Amy Want to the conference.  UNITY is a national network organization promoting persona development, citizenship, and leadership among Native American youth.  Unity's mission is to foster the spiritual, mental, physical, and social development of American Indian and Alaska Native youth and to help build a
Sierra Dighman and Amy Want pose with Native American actor Adam Beach
strong, unified and self-reliant Native America through greater youth involvement.  The National UNITY Conference is a time for youth from all over the United States to come together in a good way and learn skills to empower youth in their community and to revitalize their youth groups.
 
While at the conference Sierra and Amy had the pleasure to meet and speak with actor Adam Beach, who rose to fame in “Smoke Signals” and “Dance Me Outside.”  Mr. Beach spoke to the National UNTIY Conference attendees on the night of the talent show.  He described to them the difficulties that he has encountered over the years in his rise to fame and how he is alcohol and drug free and leads his life this way so that he can be an example to the Native youth of the United States.  Mr. Beach also facilitated a sunrise walk/run event.  Other motivational speakers that were present at the conference was Lightfoot, Chance Rush, and Billy Mills.  The youth who attended the conference enjoyed listening to all four motivational speakers.
 
Besides being able to meet and interact with other UNITY Youth Council members from all over, listen to great motivational speakers, the youth also had many workshops to attend daily.  The workshops topics ranged from; How to be fit in Indian Country, How to start your own UNITY Youth Council, How to start Rockin the Rez, HIV & AIDS Awareness, Violence on Reservations, and etc….
 
The two individuals who attended the conference was chosen to attend because, they where the only two individuals who had 70% attendance at UNITY weekly meetings and 70% participation in activities that UNITY decided to take help with in the Round Valley community.  The 70% attendance clause was an rule that the Round Valley UNITY Youth Council made at one of their business meetings by motion.  The Building Horizons Program hopes to be able to take more UNITY Youth Council members to the 2006 National UNITY Conference.  Building Horizons Program will once again be hosting weekly UNITY Youth Council meetings on Thursdays, at 1: 00 p.m.-1:40 p.m. at the High School.  Native American youth who are between the ages of 14 and 24 may come and participate in the UNITY Youth Council meetings.
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By Cindy Hoaglen
 
The Round Valley Indian Housing Authority (RVIHA) Building Horizons Program has been in operation for the past five years.  It started out to be a small program and has grown a great deal. The program was initially the Drug Elimination Program that was designed for the sole purpose of providing activities and events to detour the youth of the Native Community to stay clean and sober away from alcohol and drugs. We have now become the Building Horizons Program and are housed in our brand new state of the art building.  In our new building the Building Horizons Program is now able to provide the youth of our community safe environment free from violence, alcohol, drugs, and abuse while encouraging positive peer interaction and support.  The Building Horizons Program still focuses on encouraging the youth to remain alcohol and drug free but because, our environment has a high rate of violence both physically and mentally  the program has added curriculum designed to provide  self-esteem building, leadership training, homework assistance, classes on how to manage anger, alternative to violence workshops, and hands on arts and crafts.  All designed to provide opportunities to enrich students in body, mind and spirit. In the Building Horizons building the Tribal Police and Mendocino County Sheriffs' Office share an office.  These law enforcement agencies have an office in the Building Horizons building because we hope to encourage the development of closer relationships between the Native community and local law enforcement. It is also the thought of the Round Valley Indian Tribes and Round Valley Indian Housing Authority that if tribal members actually visually see law enforcement that they may be less likely to conduct illegal activities in the Native Community.
The average daily participation rate of youth who visit Building Horizons ranges from 25 to 45 community members.  When we have scheduled workshops for the day then the attendance will range from 40 to 50 community members visiting and participating in our activities.   Building Horizons building is open Monday-Friday from 10:00 a.m.-7:30 p.m. and the first and third Saturday of each month from 10:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m.  On Monday afternoons we have available to our youth homework assistance, life skills workshop (subject changes weekly), 8 station computer lab that enables them to either do their homework or play educational based games, ping pong and pool table that they can utilize once their daily homework assignment is completed .  On Tuesday afternoons we have available homework assistance, computer lab, prevention & intervention workshops (subject changes weekly), ping pong, pool table and etc...  On Wednesday afternoon we follow the same routine as the previous days but we have structured arts & crafts activity rather than a workshop.  On Thursday afternoons we have available homework assistance, computer lab, ping pong, pool table, and small arts & crafts projects and late in the afternoon we have our Junior Neighborhood Watch meetings.  Friday afternoons is generally our relaxed day where we allow the children to play on the computers for fun, have a cooking class, and have a movie in the evening with popcorn and hot dogs.  We always strongly encourage parent participation.  
On the third Thursday of every month the Building Horizons staff and other staff of the Round Valley Indian Housing Authority staff coordinate with Tribal Police and the Sheriffs department and conduct monthly Neighborhood Watch Meetings at Building Horizons.
During the next ten weeks the Building Horizons Program will coordinate with the Round Valley Indian Health Center and U.C. Davis Pediatrics department to conduct weekly one and half hour classes on Thursdays at 3:30p.m.  The Fit Kids Program was designed to encourage the youth of our community to develop healthier eating habits and the importance of being physically fit.
            In the near future we will be offering some parenting classes, more in depth curriculum on how to properly deal with anger management, talking circles, more in depth prevention & intervention tools, and etc….Building Horizons would like the youth to learn to STOP, FEEL, THINK, and then ACT.  We will also be having different cultural classes.  In these cultural classes we will not concentrate on just one tribe.  Building Horizons will bring in different instructors and the youth who participate will learn a little about; Pomo, Maidu, Nomailaki, Wailaki, Yuki, Concow, and the other tribes that are part of Round Valley Indian Tribes.  Come bye and join us.  Parent and community involvement is always encouraged and appreciated.