Catholic Youth Rural Outreach at Box 277, Bigfork, MT 59911 US - Summer Mission Trip 2007
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Summer Mission Trip 2007 |
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| Mission 07 Takes a Leap of Faith |
History made its mark on the Crow and Cheyenne Reservations at a place known as Custer's Last Stand or the Battle of Little Big Horn. Our teens had the opportunity to serve the Crow people - the second largest tribe in Montana through home improvement and children programs, our youth were so blessed by the Crow people.
Demographics
The south central corner of Montana is home to the Crow Reservation. The Crow Reservation has roughly 8,000 tribal members living on it, they refer to themselves as "Absaroka" or "Children of the Large Beaked Bird." The Crow were considered fierce warriors by their neighboring relatives. They were traditionally agricultural people who sustained themselves on the food they farmed. After the arrival of settlers, they virtually quit farming altogether, and became warriors and hunters. In 1825, the Crow signed a treaty of friendship with the U.S. government. In a gesture of thanks, the government gave them 38.5 million acres of land in Montana and Wyoming. Today their land has been reduced to 1.5 million acres, located in the foothills of the Big Horn Mountains. The residents of this reservation suffer from the effects of extreme poverty, unemployment and rising high school dropout rates. Despite these struggles, the Crow people have a beautiful culture and resilient spirit – a proud example for all they meet.
What Happened?
Where to start?! Over the course of our week in Lodgegrass, our youth participated in many different types of ministry opportunities. Each group spent two days in what was called "kids club." During our stay in kids club, we were in charge of entertaining the children of Lodgegrass. This included singing songs, performing skits, giving them underdogs on the swings, giving "piggy bank" rides (some of the guys were throwing two kids on the shoulders), and finally praying over the children at the end of the day. The children of the crow were so amazing! Their beautiful smiles and laughter help fuel the youth through the heat and fatigue over the course of the day. Along with caring for the kids, we were also able to visit the elders of the tribe in the local nursing home. Here we learned to make beaded necklaces, bowl, listen to stories, and be taught how to play checkers (and by taught I mean worked by the locals). During the other two days, the groups scraped and painted many of the houses in the area, aided in the construction of a newly established foster care home, and became weed patrol for the children's playground. All and all, we were able to serve our Father in so many ways, while being exposed to the different, difficult and beautiful culture of the Crow people.
Other Activities
We were also able to participate in many other extra-curricular activities as well. We had our dose of cliff jumping, bridge jumping, and swimming filled on the first and last days. Also, we were able to learn all about the Crow tipi as well as visit the Battle of the Little Bighorn where Custer made his last stand. This, paired with a hike to the top of a mountain that overlooked nearly the entire Crow reservation aided in keeping us busy during the evenings. Overall, our trip was amazing! The spiritual growth of everyone, paired with a Christian hunger for service that was satisfied, made this trip an unforgettable journey that brought us all closer to our Father. Yahoo for Jesus!
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Demographics The south central corner of Montana is home to the Crow Reservation. The Crow Reservation has roughly 8,000 tribal members living on it, they refer to themselves as "Absaroka" or "Children of the Large Beaked Bird." The Crow were considered fierce warriors by their neighboring relatives. They were traditionally agricultural people who sustained themselves on the food they farmed. After the arrival of settlers, they virtually quit farming altogether, and became warriors and hunters. In 1825, the Crow signed a treaty of friendship with the U.S. government. In a gesture of thanks, the government gave them 38.5 million acres of land in Montana and Wyoming. Today their land has been reduced to 1.5 million acres, located in the foothills of the Big Horn Mountains. The residents of this reservation suffer from the effects of extreme poverty, unemployment and rising high school dropout rates. Despite these struggles, the Crow people have a beautiful culture and resilient spirit – a proud example for all they meet. About the Ministry We will focus on two primary areas of ministry: children and home improvement. Our work with children consists of a hands-on afternoon program led by your youth, known as Kids Club. Kids Club offers high-energy games, crafts, skits, songs and interactive lessons all designed to help kids come to learn about Jesus. Also during the week, we will have the opportunity to do home improvement. Our group’s willingness to refresh a worn out exterior of a house with a new coat of paint brings real hope and an opportunity to share the love of Christ. Participants will do two days of house painting repair and two days of ministry with children. Adult leaders will separate youth into ministry groups, and the youth in our group will be mixed with the youth from other groups for their week of service. |