cultural supports

Richard is a member of the Leech Lake Ojibwe Indian Reservation in Minnesota. He was raised by his paternal grandparents in the village of Onigum. He left the reservation the day after high school graduation, entered the US military and served three years as a paratrooper assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division based out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. After his discharge, Richard entered the University of Minnesota with a major of general studies and a secondary in Indian studies. He also holds a degree from the St. Paul Seminary, the Archdiocese of St. Paul, Minnesota. Richard is a licensed alcohol and drug counselor with the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy. Richard is a licensed alcohol and drug counselor with the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy. Richard applies his theology to the study of Ojibwe muk kun dwe spiritual beliefs, focusing on the nature of divinity and the relationship between Creator and the world of the bear. Richard currently works for the American Indian Family Center of St. Paul and the Indian Health Board of Minneapolis as an Elder in residence. He is married to Evelyn Wright with one child, Jay Wright, who is a computer science major currently working for investigations with the Wells Fargo Bank. Richard is using the teachings of rituals and traditions of Ojibwe Cree ancestry. This comes with a teaching to not diagnose in English methods, but rather uses niijimowinmiwinzha. This is a personal reflection to suggest to his people they can return to their rituals. This is personal reflection to suggest to his people they can return to the rituals of their tribes and seek out Elders and other helpers of the tribe to maintain balance in life. Richard is the author of The Way of Our People, weekly inspiration for American Indians in recovery.

Dustin Walter is Ampskapii Pikunii (South Peigan) from Montana, one of the four tribes of the Blackfoot Confederacy. Dustin has a B.Sc. in Nursing and Master’s of Education in Educational Research from the University of Calgary, with focus on Blackfoot wellness practices. Dustin is a fourth-year Doctoral student in Community Health Sciences, specializing in Population and Public Health at the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary. His research focus is Indigenous healing and approaches to trauma work, and the implementation of these approaches in supporting wholistic wellness. Dustin is also a Singer/songwriter and SAG-AFTRA Actor and film maker. The songs that he experienced growing up on the reservation and throughout his life have taught him to be in touch with his Blackfeet world. As a passionate storyteller, Dustin is honored to pass along his musical teachings and cultural knowledge to the next generation.

Gitchiaya Waabananangokwe Donna LaChapelle is an Ojibwe Dakota woman enrolled in the White Earth Nation. Donna's passion is to teach and share all that she has learned from her elders through a cultural lens that encompasses history, ceremony, song, and language. The elders gave Donna a foundation to build on her life experience and a foundation that is rich in spirit and the value of ancestral knowledge. Donna's education has been lifelong in the study of the healing arts and American Indian studies at the University of Minnesota. Donna is a faculty member for the Center for Mind and Body Medicine in Washington, DC and carries a certificate in Indigenous focusing-oriented therapy. Donna is a UMICAD Level 1 addiction counselor and currently lives in Hinckley, Minnesota, where she contributes to her community through spiritual care, cultural healing, and education.