A prayer was offered across from Fort Hall Elementary at the site of where a tragedy occured.
By LORI ANN EDMO
Sho-Ban News
FORT HALL — An effort to bring awareness to the community about the drug epidemic happening on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, the Carrying the Message group conducted a “Keep Drugs off the Reservation” caravan December 6.
Willeena George of the Carrying the Message group said they want to combat the problem “and bring awareness to our tribe that there is a problem here. I really was supporting Melanie Longoria – she’s the one who wanted to do the caravan so we went with it.”
George said it was last minute planning but they got it pulled together. “We need to start looking at the outside and what is causing our people to start using drugs and how to combat it.”
FHBC member Lee Juan Tyler sings at the last stop of the caravan.
Organizer Melanie Longoria said they were here to take a stand on getting drugs off our Rez, “Reason I wanted to do this is because I am in recovery and sometimes when you are out in your addiction we don’t have awareness, we don’t know the destruction we done to ourselves or to our reservation and it’s a part of my healing.” She said it’s a way of me giving back to her community and healing at the same time, “Because I have friends and family still out there still in addiction and they’re using. I want them to know it’s possible for them to be able to come into this red road and do good for themselves.”
It’s also about awareness because mental health is an issue out here and depression. “I’m working really hard on myself. I just want to lead by example and that’s mainly why,” she continued. There’s a lot of things happening with each other such as fighting that’s ending up in death. “I have lost friends and family to that so that’s why I put this on today,” she concluded.
The caravan began at Diggie Road with a prayer, a smudge with sage and Eric Chip Dann singing on a hand drum. The participants got into their vehicles and with a Fort Hall Police escort, started their way south on Highway 91. They stopped at Truchot Road to do another prayer, a song and smudge. They proceeded to Sheepskin Road turned west and drove through the Fort Hall Townsite.
The caravan stops to offer prayers on Truchot Road.
The caravan stopped across from the Fort Hall Elementary in front of a residence where tragedy occurred. Upon stopping the group shouted “Keep drugs off the Rez,” prayed again, smudged and then journeyed on to Highway 91, turned left at Agency Road, drove east to Eagle Road through the Fort Hall Housing and then near the softball field where there was additional prayers, cedar smudge, participants spoke and a couple of round dances.
Fort Hall Business Council member Lee Juan Tyler joined at the last stop. He and Richard John Kutch Jr. assisted Chip Dann in singing.
Carrying the Message MMIP is planning a Candlelight Vigil for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People Saturday, December 21 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Fort Hall Elderly Complex. Participants are encouraged to wear red. A candle lighting ceremony is planned, along with Christmas music. For more information contact Willeena at 208-530-3765 or willeenageorge@yahoo.com