by Carolyn Cannini
This month we are excited to announce that our t-shirt shop, Little Bluebird Studios is launching a national t-shirt reclamation effort. Through Project GreenTee we will “reclaim” used t-shirts from our friends and supporters all over the country for redesign in the Little Bluebird shop. We will be working with some talented and artistic students to design new screen prints that will be printed and sewn onto the existing shirts to create unique custom-made clothing. Redesigned t-shirts will be for sale through our youth center and the Little Bluebird Studios online storefront. For examples of reclaimed and redesigned work from Little Bluebird Studios, click here.
The idea for Project GreenTee was born during a recent brainstorming discussion of several AYM staff members about what we can do to increase social and environmental consciousness and responsibility within our organization. Although Project GreenTee is a small step, we believe that through efforts like this we can model a creative, resourceful and sustainable ethic for our students. We believe that these principles of business not only align with strengths within the White Mountain Apache culture, but are also indispensible elements of thriving contemporary businesses.
Project GreenTee further provides us a tangible avenue to explore with students the spiritual significance of reclaiming and redesigning something discarded. We hope to use the visible transformation of the cast-off, used t-shirts into new, presentable and unique clothing as an illustration of what Christ is doing inside each of us as believers. We pray this project will create open doors to share the good news, the message of reconciliation in Christ, with searching students.
If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. II Corinthians 5:17-19
If you would like to partner with Project GreenTee for your next church, school or community group service project, click here to find out how!
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Meet Carolyn Canini
Kevin and I came to Whiteriver in August of 2007 with a small short term mission group to do a work project and lead Kids Club in East Fork. We had been in Whiteriver for approximately 12 hours when I felt this huge tugging inside and I did something crazy that has changed our lives forever. It was Sunday morning and we were sitting in church on the rez, so I wrote a note in a tiny notebook and passed it to Kevin. He looked at me like I had written in another language when he read it:
“I’ve been thinking about staying -- here.”
Later we discussed Kevin’s dream of many years to live in Arizona and the desire in both our hearts to serve God through a ministry like AYM. We started praying, we started dropping hints to Ron, and then God began amazing us as the preparations gradually came together over the course of the last year.
We arrived in Arizona one week ago today and we still have some boxes to unpack, some address changes to make, new schedules to get used to, and a whole lot to learn. One thing we do know is that God is faithful and that we wouldn’t be here without his tugging and without the counsel of the many people in our lives who have shaped us and loved us. Our hearts are full of gratitude for your friendship and care and concern for us.
Another thing we know so far—the air here is fresh and clean and the pine-covered mountains are incredible! The air in the south part of Columbus is not really that fresh and clean, so when I got here and first took a whiff outside our new place I thought I smelled leaking natural gas. Someone told me that was the smell of PINE. Like I said, I have a lot to learn!
(Carolyn graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from Ohio University and completed her Master of Social Work degree from The Ohio State University.)
“I’ve been thinking about staying -- here.”
Later we discussed Kevin’s dream of many years to live in Arizona and the desire in both our hearts to serve God through a ministry like AYM. We started praying, we started dropping hints to Ron, and then God began amazing us as the preparations gradually came together over the course of the last year.
We arrived in Arizona one week ago today and we still have some boxes to unpack, some address changes to make, new schedules to get used to, and a whole lot to learn. One thing we do know is that God is faithful and that we wouldn’t be here without his tugging and without the counsel of the many people in our lives who have shaped us and loved us. Our hearts are full of gratitude for your friendship and care and concern for us.
Another thing we know so far—the air here is fresh and clean and the pine-covered mountains are incredible! The air in the south part of Columbus is not really that fresh and clean, so when I got here and first took a whiff outside our new place I thought I smelled leaking natural gas. Someone told me that was the smell of PINE. Like I said, I have a lot to learn!
(Carolyn graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from Ohio University and completed her Master of Social Work degree from The Ohio State University.)
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Funtivities!
by Marissa Bidderman
One place where relationships between AYM and teens have suffered in the past is the summertime. AYM usually operates on a school calendar, and the summer usually consists of short-term missions groups coming out too. This has often resulted in a little bit of disconnection with the teens in the summer. With this in mind, the staff decided that this summer we would not only keep the Kennel open, but would extend hours and plan weekly activities to do with the teens. These activities were named: "Funtivities". There are even teens that have come to these events that do not come to the Kennel, so now, this school year, these teens may also come to our programs at the Kennel now that we have met them and gotten to know them. So far, we have taken them to Sedona (Slide Rock State Park), and tubing at the Salt River. Slide Rock is a natural rock "waterslide" area just outside of Sedona; it is so beautiful there with the green trees and red rock. There is even a cliff to dive off of (40 ft?) which a few of us took the plunge from. And most recently we went tubing for about a 3-4 hour trip down the Salt River in Mesa (outside of Phoenix). It was HOTTTT (funny, almost like you're in the desert :-) so being in the water was a most welcome relief. I think it has been good to take some of the teens off the rez for even just a day; most will not be able to take any summer vacations with their family so it's been good just to get wet and have fun with them.
One place where relationships between AYM and teens have suffered in the past is the summertime. AYM usually operates on a school calendar, and the summer usually consists of short-term missions groups coming out too. This has often resulted in a little bit of disconnection with the teens in the summer. With this in mind, the staff decided that this summer we would not only keep the Kennel open, but would extend hours and plan weekly activities to do with the teens. These activities were named: "Funtivities". There are even teens that have come to these events that do not come to the Kennel, so now, this school year, these teens may also come to our programs at the Kennel now that we have met them and gotten to know them. So far, we have taken them to Sedona (Slide Rock State Park), and tubing at the Salt River. Slide Rock is a natural rock "waterslide" area just outside of Sedona; it is so beautiful there with the green trees and red rock. There is even a cliff to dive off of (40 ft?) which a few of us took the plunge from. And most recently we went tubing for about a 3-4 hour trip down the Salt River in Mesa (outside of Phoenix). It was HOTTTT (funny, almost like you're in the desert :-) so being in the water was a most welcome relief. I think it has been good to take some of the teens off the rez for even just a day; most will not be able to take any summer vacations with their family so it's been good just to get wet and have fun with them.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Upcoming Event: Hoops On The Rez 2008
by Krystin Shipman, Columbus, Ohio
July 7th-11th 2008, Hoops on the Rez will be returning to Whiteriver for our 5th year. The highlight of my summer for the past 3 years has been traveling to Whiteriver to help run this basketball camp.
Hoops on the Rez is a basketball camp that serves middle and high school students on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation. Over the past 3-4 years, I have had the opportunity to meet many Apache teens, and develop great some great friendships. Each year many kids count down the days until we return to the rez for camp.
Continued...
Each summer, coaches from all over the US (Florida, Indiana, Tennessee, Idaho, and Ohio) all come together to pull this camp off. Our goal is to develop meaningful relationships with campers, encourage them to make positive choices and lead them to Christ. We end each day of camp with a devotional time, and pray for the teens as they are facing many temptations, tough home situations, and health issues. The campers are also encouraged to get involved in programs offered through the Kennel and Apache Youth Ministries.
Over the past four years, I have developed some amazing relationships with many Apache kids. It is always neat to receive emails, cards and letters from kids that I have had the opportunity to coach at camp. I have also committed to praying for each camper and their families throughout the years. Being involved in basketball for the past 18 years of my life, I have attended many camps as a player, and also as a coach. Hoops on the Rez is by far the most rewarding camp that I have ever been a part of. God has truly blessed me, and all coaches who have shared in this experience.
A Community Connection
A few months ago, a couple of the pastors from the youth department of Saddleback Church (Lake Forest, CA) came out to visit us to talk about a potential partnership. It was great getting to know them and share with them our heart for the Apache people. As we brainstormed together about what we might be able to do with so many volunteers we began to imagine having a "carnival" type of event in the backyard of our youth center. It would be a big event for the whole family. We also wanted to get work accomplished on our new building that will house a business education program and fix up our dilapidating skate ramps.
continued....
Over Memorial Day weekend they brought out a team of 45 junior highers along with several adult sponsors to do some outreach and work at our youth center. The weekend was amazing and the team accomplished so much. They were able to completely wire the building electrically, hang most of the drywall in the building, repair all of our skate ramps, and pull off a really neat community event in our backyard!
This team really blessed us by purchasing all of the supplies needed for the construction and by bringing all of the games and prizes for the event. We estimate that there were over 150 people that stopped in to enjoy the carnival with us. Knowing the stress and oppression that comes from living on the rez, it was awesome to see so many just relaxing, eating hot dogs, playing games and just having a good time with us and their kids!
continued....
Over Memorial Day weekend they brought out a team of 45 junior highers along with several adult sponsors to do some outreach and work at our youth center. The weekend was amazing and the team accomplished so much. They were able to completely wire the building electrically, hang most of the drywall in the building, repair all of our skate ramps, and pull off a really neat community event in our backyard!
This team really blessed us by purchasing all of the supplies needed for the construction and by bringing all of the games and prizes for the event. We estimate that there were over 150 people that stopped in to enjoy the carnival with us. Knowing the stress and oppression that comes from living on the rez, it was awesome to see so many just relaxing, eating hot dogs, playing games and just having a good time with us and their kids!
Friday, May 9, 2008
Partnering with JOM
AYM is excited to be partnering with the Johnson O'Malley Program (JOM), which is a grant-funded program which provides supplemental services specifically for Native educational purposes. Recently, JOM put on a Native American Education conference that some of the AYM staff were able to volunteer at and attend, in attendance also were local high school students and teachers. There was a class offered about the dangers of meth use. Marissa attended this class and really got a lot out of it. She found out that Navajo county (which we are in) is #2 in the nation for meth abuse among high schoolers. This has just motivated us to pray that the kids that we minister to are not ensnared in this deadly trap. Also, there were workshops offered for Native American cooking (yum), Apache culture, and "the Power of Vision". One class worked with three teams of students all day the first day to create three filmed public service announcements. The students helped direct, act and script the short announcements which turned out really good. Overall, we really enjoyed the classes offered and went away feeling like we knew a little bit more about Native American life and culture.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Calling All Warriors!
A major ingredient that makes our ministry successful is the time that we spend with our students building meaningful relationships. After relationships are started we immediately look for ways to grow them both spiritually and in ways that will empower them to be productive citizens. We spend countless hours scheming plans to intentionally make this happen. This July our staff will be traveling with our students over to Missouri to partnered with On Eagles Wings. They host a summer conference for Native youth called the Warrior Leadership Summit. The mission of the conference aligns well with ours…to equip and empower Native youth to make a difference in their lives for Jesus Christ. This conference is a great opportunity for White Mountain Apache youth from Apache Youth Ministries to network and build relationships in a Christian environment with other Native youth. One of our students, Millie Lavendar, says,” I love meeting someone from a different tribe who’s also a Christian.” The youth have opportunities to be a part of large group praise and worship and attend seminars and workshops (battle councils) on issues related to Native America. Another one of our students that has attended is Angie Cody. She told me,” I love the battle councils…you go to a building and pick a class of your choice. You learn about issues and a Christian perspective to those issues.” She stated that her favorite part of the conference were the times of worship when youth would surrender themselves to the Lord.
On the lighter side, youth have fun through daily recreation times where various athletic tournaments are held, including basketball, skateboarding, volleyball, water games, and floor hockey, etc. This conference also provides them with the opportunity to hear from respected Native Christian elders and learn from their stories of hope and faith in Jesus Christ.
Immediately after the annual Warrior Leadership Summit conference, On Eagles' Wings takes ministry teams of Native American and First Nations young people onto reservations across North America through the month of July. This outreach ministry is called "Seasons of Hope" and has been used by God to bring healing and hope to many people. A few of White Mountain Apache youth from AYM have been apart of these ministry teams!
It costs students $200 to attend the conference (food, lodging, fuel, etc.) The students are expected to be a part of fundraisers and work to raise money for the trip. Some, however, could be a little short of their goal. If you are able to sponsor one of our student to attend this year please contact us as soon as possible. Please pray that this would be an amazing personal experience for our staff and students!
On the lighter side, youth have fun through daily recreation times where various athletic tournaments are held, including basketball, skateboarding, volleyball, water games, and floor hockey, etc. This conference also provides them with the opportunity to hear from respected Native Christian elders and learn from their stories of hope and faith in Jesus Christ.
Immediately after the annual Warrior Leadership Summit conference, On Eagles' Wings takes ministry teams of Native American and First Nations young people onto reservations across North America through the month of July. This outreach ministry is called "Seasons of Hope" and has been used by God to bring healing and hope to many people. A few of White Mountain Apache youth from AYM have been apart of these ministry teams!
It costs students $200 to attend the conference (food, lodging, fuel, etc.) The students are expected to be a part of fundraisers and work to raise money for the trip. Some, however, could be a little short of their goal. If you are able to sponsor one of our student to attend this year please contact us as soon as possible. Please pray that this would be an amazing personal experience for our staff and students!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
AYM Partners with GoodSearch
Make a habit of using GoodSearch (powered by Yahoo) and they will donate one cent every time that you search the internet! Although this doesn't seem like much, pennies will multiply if we all set this as our homepage or use it as our main search engine!
More impressively, the GoodShop side of the site offers significant donations based on a percentage of your online purchases through their site! Simply link to hundreds of sites like Walmart, BestBuy, Amazon, Ebay, etc. and those companies will donate a percentage of your purchase to AYM!
Partners...this is a simple and easy way to raise money for Apache youth just by "doing what you do" only through GoodShop and GoodSearch.com
To get started....just go to the site and
enter "Apache Youth Ministries" in the box.
To take a look at GoodSearch.com click here.
To see a list of stores partnering with GoodShop click here.
More impressively, the GoodShop side of the site offers significant donations based on a percentage of your online purchases through their site! Simply link to hundreds of sites like Walmart, BestBuy, Amazon, Ebay, etc. and those companies will donate a percentage of your purchase to AYM!
Partners...this is a simple and easy way to raise money for Apache youth just by "doing what you do" only through GoodShop and GoodSearch.com
To get started....just go to the site and
enter "Apache Youth Ministries" in the box.
To take a look at GoodSearch.com click here.
To see a list of stores partnering with GoodShop click here.
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