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Happy Hearts and Healthy Minds
(Chamberlain, S.D.) –Happy Hearts and healthy minds. For over ten years, students at St. Joseph’s Indian School have practiced healthy ways to celebrate wellness and sobriety in the month of February. This year, a kid’s carnival, blacklight volleyball, summer-themed dress-up days, and other fun events took place to celebrate healthy, drug-free choices.
St. Joseph’s Indian School’s Substance Abuse Prevention Committee creates events throughout the year that show students ways to have a good time without drugs and alcohol. Chris Blasius leads this committee and is the Prevention and Residential Support Associate at St. Joseph’s Indian School. She works closely with all students on drug prevention and healthy choices and also helps organize seasonal sobriety events across campus.
“Native Americans are disproportionately affected by substance abuse compared to other ethnic groups, and the children in our care are not an exception. Almost all of the students have been affected by substance abuse at some point in their young lives. If it’s not with their immediate families, they’ve seen the devastating effects of drugs and alcohol within their extended families and communities,” said Blasius. St. Joseph’s Indian School believes that putting importance on prevention is crucial in helping our students grow into well-rounded individuals.
To continue on the path of promoting healthy choices and wellness, St. Joseph’s Indian School will have a Sobriety Walk on April 24. A guest speaker will talk about the importance of a healthy lifestyle and
living a drug-free life. The walk begins on campus and splits into the four directions that are sacred to Native Americans as students and staff loop through the community.