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Hopi Mission School Newsletter PO Box 39

Kykotsmovi, AZ 86039

Phone 928-734-2453

Fax: 928-734-5126

E-mail: HMS@HopiMissionSchool.org Website: www.hopimissionschool.org

Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in my hand. ~ Jeremiah 18:6 Fall 2009

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Enrollment and Staffing Update lasses began on August 17, following a week of orientation and preparation by the staff, many of whom are new this

year. Enrollment began at 50, but by October 1 had increased to 52. Class numbers are K, 6; 1st, 10; 2nd, 7; 3rd, 9; 4th, 5; 5th, 8; and 6th, 7. Before school ended in May, the prospects for filling a large number of vacancies were favorable, and that has turned out to be the case. Our new principal is Valyn Anderson, a seasoned administrator from Blanchester, Ohio. He has spent a number of years in educational leadership in the Middle East, Europe and South America, as well as in the U.S. His wife, Jean, is the third grade teacher. Scott Hankins, administrative assistant, has come from Norwich, Connecticut. He is a graduate of Oberlin College, Yale School of Music and New York General Theological Seminary. He has served in a variety of offices in the Episcopal Church.

Stan Pettengill is teaching second grade. He has degrees from John Wesley College and Jordan College. He has worked with Youth with a Mission for over 20 years in many international settings, ending up on the Hopi reservation. Two of his daughters are students at HMS.

Lynda Coats is teaching sixth grade, coming from Montgomery, Alabama. She is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi, and has over 30 years of experience in a variety of educational assignments, both teaching and administration.

Margaret Barter comes from Maine, and is a graduate of St. Olaf College. Her primary assignment is computer instruction, supplemented by assisting other teachers as needed.

Emilie Finn is from Prescott, Arizona, and is a graduate of Prescott College with a degree in music. She is the music and art teacher, and chapel director.

Rachel Sylvain comes as a volunteer through Mennonite Voluntary Service, from Saint-Jerome, Quebec. She has a diploma in Early Childhood Education from Saint-Jerome

College. She is the athletic director, teaching physical education and coaching.

Roni Abeita, from the village of Polacca, is the office receptionist.

Ed Nutumya, who had served as cook several years ago, has returned to work with maintenance and custodial services.

Continuing staff include Veldina Roy, Kindergarten; Joilyn Zimmerly, 1st grade; Devon Martin, 4th grade; Kevin Reagey, 5th grade; Wave Dashee, librarian; DeeAnn Shelton, cook; Belinda Poleheptewa, bus driver; Leon Poleheptewa, maintenance/computers/kitchen; Melinda Wight, Title I; and Nina Dawahe, volunteer. Bill Zuercher from Hesston, Kansas, serves as newsletter writer and editor, and provides some administrative support on a volunteer basis.

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Volunteer Center Being Put to Use

he new Volunteer Center was completed and dedicated in mid-April, as reported in the Spring newsletter. Since then, it

has seen steady use. The first occupants were a youth group from Kingman (KS) Mennonite Church who spent a week in late May, leading a Bible school for community children.

Since then other occupants have been a native American youth group On Eagles Wings; a volunteer working in the library for several weeks; a Korean group; a church group; a group attending a local revival meeting of several days duration; family members and friends of staff; and other volunteers. As mentioned in our Spring newsletter, we welcome volunteers who can come for a few weeks to a few months to occupy the small apartment in the Volunteer Center to oversee its occupancy, ensure its proper maintenance, and

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otherwise assist with duties around the school. There is no charge for housing, and meals are provided whenever the school cafeteria is open. Anyone interested can make that known by checking the related line on the checklist at the end of the newsletter.

In the Spring newsletter, we recognized Jim and Doris Yoder from Newton, KS, as volunteers who have spent many months in service to the school over the past 8 years, supervising the construction (and feeding the workers) of the new buildings, culminating with the Volunteer Center. In July, the Yoders organized and hosted a picnic at their home in Kansas, inviting all the volunteers from that area to join together for food, fellowship and sharing. Over 60 persons responded to that invitation, being treated to a pictorial review of the building projects that have been completed during the current decade.

One more substantial building project is in the longer-range plans. That is a second staff duplex to replace a single-wide mobile home that is barely adequate for housing for long-term staff. This project will not be undertaken until the needed funds are in hand or committed.

As a footnote, since Jim does not have a building project currently at our school, he is giving leadership to the construction of a modest home for a survivor of the Katrina hurricane in Picayune, Mississippi. That home was framed in one day with volunteer help on the campus of Hesston (KS) College, disassembled in pieces for transportation to Mississippi, to be reassembled and finished over an 8-week period in October and November. This project is being sponsored by Mennonite Disaster Service—an agency known to many of our readers.

Indian Days n annual activity that is a highlight of the fall semester is the observance of so-called Indian Days, which took

place on September 16-18. On Wednesday, the children were encouraged to come to school dressed in traditional garb, which turns out to be a colorful experience.

On Thursday, a variety of simultaneous

demonstrations took place, with the students spending time at each as the day progressed. Those offering their skills and stories were Harry Nutumya, school board president, doing silver work and giving a personal testimony; Marion Montoya, preparing traditional foods; Ruby Chemerica, parched corn and Hopi language; Nita Koruh, basketweaving; Wave Dashee, ribbon shirts; and Karen Abeita, pottery.

On Friday, the final event was a clan

run, during which the children wore symbols of the clans to which they belong. Family members came to cheer them on during the run. At the conclusion of the run, a carry in lunch with many savory traditional dishes was enjoyed by students and family members.

Mrs. Anderson’s third grade students were assigned the task of writing about their participation. Here are 2 samples (unedited):

Yesterday my group drew a draw a

pickchur and I draw a sea and dinosoar. We

cleaned the twings [twigs] for a basket. My

group ate parch corn and made some food that

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was really fun. Today I am running for my

father. Jacob Yesterday was Indian Dem.D. I had fun

because I made a ribbon folder. My group B

made sumaviki [a blue cornmeal paste]. I leaned how to make pottery and parched corn

was good. I’m runing for Bitterwater clan and

Many Goats. Shosheena

Breakfast Service Begins or many years, the school has provided a hot lunch program for all students and staff, participating through the National

Student Lunch Program which provides the major source of funding, since a majority of our students qualify for free or reduced-price meals.

This year, for the first time in recent memory, breakfast is being provided, in which all students and some staff participate.

A few of our friends have chosen to make regular contributions to help cover student tuition or admission fees. Tuition is fully covered by the Arizona tax credit, and the Admission Fee has been discontinued. We do have students who need assistance in covering meal costs—those who do not qualify for free meals, or who find it difficult to cover their share of the reduced-price charge. Donations are welcome to help with this cost.

A Special Gift to Hopi Mission School by Melanie Zuercher

ow is a school like an organ donor? When it gives a part of itself to help another school thrive. The metaphor comes from a former

teacher at Chicago Mennonite Learning Center (CMLC), which this summer delivered most of its library intact to a sister school, Hopi Mission School in Kykotsmovi Village, Ariz.

CMLC closed for a year in September 2008, but it soon became obvious to the CMLC board decided there was no choice but to make the closure permanent.

This spring, the board sponsored a sale of furniture and other items from the school.

However, the library presented a special challenge.

“For a small school, we had a really good library,” says CMLC board chair Sueann VonGunten of Bristol, Ind. “It was such a useful thing, in total, that we didn’t want to just [give away or sell] a few books here and a few there.” The library was also Dewey Decimal System-coded and entered into a computer database.

Then someone had the idea to donate the library, almost in its entirety, along with the computer to Hopi Mission School. “Hopi Mission School, like some of the other [Mennonite Education Agency] schools such as ours and Philadelphia Mennonite High School, has less tuition support [for students] than some of the others,” VonGunten says. “We know how difficult it is to raise funds.”

The CMLC board was very supportive of sending the library to Hopi Mission School, she says. Volunteers from the DOOR program in Chicago helped pack up the books – between 6,000 and 7,000 volumes, VonGunten says – and load them in a rented truck. Richard Miller, a member of VonGunten’s congregation, Hively Avenue Mennonite Church in Elkhart, Ind., and a cousin to the Hopi Mission School principal at the time, Betty Handrich, offered to drive the truck to Arizona. And Marian Hostetler of Elkhart gave time this summer to help school staff begin to organize and shelve the books.

Editor’s note: This is an expansion of an article printed in the Spring Newsletter, giving a bit more background and context to the amazing gift of about 7,000 volumes. As anticipated, Marian Hostetler, a retired librarian from Elkhart, Indiana, spent about 4 weeks with us this summer, assisting school librarian Wave Dashee in integrating the books into the school’s library. The duplicate books, and those that were deemed above the sixth grade reading level (of which there were several boxes), were donated to another school on an adjoining reservation.

Both the Chicago Mennonite Learning Center and Hopi Mission School are affiliated with the Mennonite Education Agency and its Mennonite Schools Council.

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Campbell’s Product Labels and

Boxtops for Education ome of our newer readers will not be aware that through the collection of Campbell’s product labels, our school

has acquired three vans since 1995: a 15-passenger van first, then two 7-passenger minivans, the most recent of which was acquired in May 2003 with 1,100,000 labels. With “soup inflation”, the number of labels now required for a van is 1,600,000. At last report, we had accumulated 808,210 labels.

We want to assure our readers that we are still asking for labels from as many collectors as possible. Church women’s groups are our best collectors, but we are glad to receive them from any source. The list of eligible products expands from time to time. Of special note is the addition of paper products such as Kleenex and a host of others. While we can supply you with a paper copy of the lists of products both for the Campbell’s and Boxtops for Education collection projects, a faster and more up-to-date method involves accessing the internet. The links are as follows, beginning with the school’s website:

www.hopimissionschool.org Labels Labels for Education/All Eligible

Products Boxtops for Education/Participating

Products These lists can be printed off and shared

among members of collecting groups. Even though it has been over two years

since the collection items from Campbell’s labels have changed, we are still occasionally receiving batches of the fronts of labels with the Campbell’s name, which we have to discard. Another common “error” is to cut out the UPC symbol but not the adjacent icon. As we have reported in past newsletters, we can no longer use the front part of the label, but rather must have both the UPC symbol and the icon printed next to it. To illustrate this requirement, we will once again print below

what is needed, hoping this will catch the attention of those not otherwise informed.

Hopi Mission School Road to be Paved

ny of our readers who have visited the school will appreciate why the paving of a road deserves mention in our

newsletter. The school is located about 1/8 mile off Arizona Route 264, accessible on a sand road that becomes intermittently rough and rutted. Road graders pass through occasionally, offering a short-lived improvement.

During the past decade, if not longer, word would come that this access road was due to be paved. Orange marker flags would be put in place. Time passed, the markers would either be covered over with the frequent sandstorms or otherwise removed, until the next “announcement” that the improvement was imminent.

At long last, the time has come! A bulldozer has begun doing the roadbed preparation, with all the evidence being that a paved surface will soon follow. Again for those who know the terrain, the road to Hard Rock (a Navajo community) will be paved for a couple of miles from its junction with Rt. 264.

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Sports Report

he fall sport on the reservation, organized through the Hopi Elementary Athletic League, is cross country

running. There are 8 elementary schools on the reservation, of which HMS is the smallest. Although we had a total of 18 runners, the ages and grades were such that only the junior varsity boys had enough to run as a team of 5 members. All the other runners competed as individuals.

There were six meetings during the season, one of which was hosted on our campus. A post season finale was scheduled for October 4.

Arizona Tax Credit any of those of you in Arizona are aware that the state tax credit program that benefits private

schools, including Hopi Mission School, has been very much in the news in recent weeks. This is not entirely surprising, since Arizona, like most other states, is experiencing major budget deficits, and everything that siphons funds from the state treasury is under review. The focus of much of the publicity was that some of the Tuition Organizations (TO) that receive and administer the tax credit funds were accused of not meeting the distribution requirements, or were not meeting the expectation of enabling low-income families to be able to choose a private school for their children. We are pleased to report that the primary TO to which Hopi Mission School relates (Flagstaff Scholarship Fund) has complied with all of the requirements and

expectations, and stands to continue to benefit from this vital means of funding our school’s operations. With low overhead resulting from all-volunteer administrators, FSF pays out 100% of the funds that are contributed. The law allows TOs to keep up to 10% for administrative costs. Tax credit contributors will receive a letter and remittance form a little later this fall, with the hope that all will be able to continue their support through this cost-free vehicle that provides well over half of the school’s operating funds, without which it would not be able to continue operations. Supporting churches in Arizona will receive similar information, with encouragement to make this opportunity known to new donors.

Items for Sale everal items of memorabilia are available for purchase. These include T-shirts for $10, adult and youth sizes, in royal and

navy blue; mugs for $5, cobalt blue; and sweatshirts for $15, adult sizes, with or without hoods. Add $2.50 for shipping. Mail or email your request.

E-scrip Renewal ovember 1 is the time by which supermarket club cards must be renewed if Hopi Mission School is to

continue to receive the benefit when persons shop in their stores. The Escrip coordinator informs us that a significant number (well over 100) of those who signed up on our behalf, have not renewed and thus have ceased to benefit the school, even though they continue to use their cards. Our plea is for all

cardholders to take a few minutes to register

this renewal.

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The easiest way to renew one’s membership or to register new ones is to go online at www.escrip.com, and refer to Hopi Mission School’s group number, 51528. If internet access is unavailable, it is also possible to enroll on a paper form sent through the mail, which we can provide upon request. As a reminder, the following stores and states are included in this program.

Safeway in AZ, northern CA, NV, DC, DE, MD and VA.

Vons and Pavilions in southern CA and southern NV.

Adams Super Food Stores in CT & MA.

Genuardi’s in DE, NJ & PA.

School Has New Entrance Sign

n the Spring newsletter, we had a picture of the new entrance sign that was lacking the school’s motto. Since that time, it has been

added, and the full sign is pictured above. When you visit the school, this is what will greet you at the junction of AZ Rt. 264 and Hopi Mission School Road.

Newsletter via e-mail e continue to encourage as many of our readers as possible to receive their newsletter via email. We are

able to convert the text to PDF format, which means that most home computers can download it. And the pictures come through in color if you have a color printer.

Another benefit is that you receive the newsletter immediately upon completion, whereas the print version can take up to several weeks to copy, fold, label and mail. We send the e-mail version in 8 ½ by 11-inch paper format to make printing easier. And of course, there is no cost to us to send your copy by e-mail. You can request to be added to the e-mail list by sending us the checklist at the end. Or preferably, you can send an e-mail request to hms@hopimissionschool.org. We are trying to make sure readers do not receive both the email and paper versions, but if we have slipped up and you are getting both, please let us know so we can eliminate the duplication.

Student Writings Each of the teachers has a bulletin board on which they display items from their classes. These include drawings, art work, and assigned writings, which other students and visitors and examine and admire. Sixth grade teacher Lynda Coats has her class publishing a student newspaper this year. The Bruins’ –Rr-r-r is handed out at school every other Friday. Students are honing their writing skills and will be trained in interview techniques, proofreading, editing, and computer layout as the year progresses. A quick review of one of the first issues reveals Coming Events, announcement about a Revival, a PTO open house, Special Events at a recreation center on the reservation, identification of a class pet (animal, not student!), movie and book review, and some original stories. Fifth grade teacher Kevin Reagey has on display some creative writing done by his class. Here are two examples (unedited):

The Day Mr. Reagey was Missing

By Jack P.

One day Shiloh (Mr. Reagey’s son) was at

school. Mrs. Reagey was teaching Science.

Then Shiloh got a call from his friends. They

said your dad got kidnapped in a white van

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with flowers on it. Shiloh hung up the phone

and went back to class and told his mom he had

to go save his dad. So he was off to save his

dad. So he was so angry so he was on a

adventure. Then that day Shiloh found the

white van with the flowers on it. His dad was

screaming for help. So he found his dad and

the robbers caught Shiloh too so they were off

to Mass then Shiloh had heat vision and

mealted the ropes and they were free. So

Shiloh had a cell phone and called the police

and they came and caught the kidnappers. So

Shiloh and his dad went home and took a nap.

When Mr. Reagey Went Crazy

By Tyler Barton

It was a sunny day on a Friday the day Mr.

Reagey went crazy. It all started when he

could not find his glasses. He looked

everywhere til Levi said it’s on your head.

After that he lost his planner and he said,

“Who ever took it they were going to the

princpail office.”

But nobody found it so he did a spell.

When Mr. Reagey did the spell his vanes poped

out his eyes turned red and then the lava came

on to the school campus. A boy named Cole

tried to stop Mr. Reagey.

People were scared that they where

going to melt. Levi looked everywhere and

then he found the planner under all Mr.

Reagey’s papers. He rushed to show Mr.

Reagey. When he found Mr. Reagey everbody

filled with joy. The lava stoped and the trees

grow back and ever thing went back to normal

that’s how the day ended.

Pickup Received! n the Spring newsletter, we made an appeal for the donation of a serviceable full-sized pickup. That note caught the eye of Dean

Alison in Hesston, Kansas, who had an older model Dodge pickup that was no longer adequate for his tree-planting business, but still had a useful life for more limited use. Volunteers Jim Yoder and Ken Janzen arranged the timing of a trip to the school to enable them to deliver the pickup, which is now filling a need for the school. Just one more example of

how God’s providence through generous people has sustained our school, now in its 59th year.

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Under the providence of God, our Mission School is now in its 59th year of serving Hopi, Navajo and other students. We are able to face daily opportunities and challenges because of being blessed with so many faithful friends and supporters, whose prayers and gifts continue to sustain us.

Here are some of the ways to become involved with our ministry at Hopi Mission School: ___Please accept my/our gift of $_________ to help where needed. ___Please accept my/our gift of $_______ for this designation:____________________. ___Please accept my/our gift of $_______ to help cover student meal costs. ___I/we are interested in exploring the possibility of volunteering for occupying and

managing the volunteer center. ___I/we are willing to make a pledge of $____ for a new staff duplex, to be paid by

_________________. ___I would like to order a T-shirt___; mug___; sweat shirt ___. Size______ Color____ ___I would like more information about the Arizona individual state income tax credit. ___I would like information about the CORPORATE income tax credit. ___I would like information about the eScrip program (Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Adams

Super Stores, or Genuardi’s club cards—circle ones that apply). ___I would like updated information about Campbell’s labels collection, General Mills

Boxtops for Education, and/or Tyson Project A+ (circle ones that apply). ___Please send my newsletter via e-mail to this address:__________________________ ___Please note address corrections:

Name___________________________________________________________

Address_____________________________________City_________________

State/Prov.__________________Zip/Postal Code __________Country__________

Hopi Mission School PO Box 39 Kykotsmovi AZ 86039

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