Be My Huckleberry event a hit at school

One way to get people involved might just be to throw a good party.

Or as they call it at the Indian Education Program at Lake Roosevelt Schools, a "Family Engagement Night."

They had a good one last week, as 230 people showed up to an event they'd planned for 100.

"We were blown away by the attendance," program coordinator Ashley Three Irons-Atkins told the school board Monday night.

The theme for the Feb. 22 event was a valentine "Be My Huckleberry" relationship-building emphasis. Dinner was provided for attending families, along with some make-and-take gifts, a gift to make for someone else, and a self-care gift to keep, said Ashley Three Irons-Atkins, the program coordinator.

"These events allow us to bring our community together in a way that is lighthearted and fun, with a focus on wellness and the prevention of high-risk behavior," she explained. "Our Title VI grant provides the opportunity to develop a strategic plan focusing on increasing parent participation and increasing activities for the prevention of suicide and substance abuse."

The youth served huckleberry Italian sodas. The event also featured a traditional drum, and couple-dancing, door prizes - including home-made huckleberry pies - themed T-shirts to hand out, an info table providing cultural huckleberry quick facts, and some huckleberry themed hide-art. 

The Indian Education program partnered with other school programs and the Colville Tribes' Youth Development Program to host the event.

One of their major goals this year was to connect directly with the LR community and families beyond the school day and promote positive relationships.

"Some of the influential vision behind the family night was to showcase how traditional practices can be expressed in a contemporary, creative form," Atkins said. "Huckleberry picking is a continued relationship-building practice for a lot of families, and it was a great theme for our Valentine's Day month celebration."

But the party was an outgrowth of continued effort toward filling specific needs, Atkins said.

"Last spring, we sat down with the parent committee and collaborative programs to look at our grant needs assessment," Atkins said. "A summary of our areas of need includes academic support, wellness opportunities and cultural integration. Along these lines our program has spent a great deal of time over the last couple of years negotiating cultural curriculum resources, and seeking to integrate Indian Education in all aspects of our school throughout the day. We've developed a lot of resources, activities and classes, such as the culture class, Native American Literature class and supporting the tribal language classes."