Indian Time - A Voice from the Eastern Door

The Akwesasne Freedom School (AFS) is holding their first ever online quilt auction weeks before their major fundraiser of the year the Annual Dinner & Quilt Auction. The AFS is a full Mohawk Language Immersion school for children in grades Pre-k through grade 8. Funding for the school is completely through private donations, grants and the hardworking effort of the parents and families of children who attend the school.

“We really want to appeal to those who can’t make it the weekend of the Annual Dinner & Quilt Auction,” said Aronhiaies who is the Administrator for the school. “This year we will only auction off one quilt to test the system, so that one day we might be able to hold a live online auction together with the in-person auction at the Annual Dinner.”

The quilt was chosen from the many that were unpaid for from last year’s annual dinner and will be available for bids beginning August 1 through August 8. To register for the online auction you have to go to the schools website at http://www.freedom-school.org and supply your name and email address in order to bid. Payment options include paypal, which allows the successful bidder to use credit cards like Mastercard for payment.

The Annual Dinner itself is scheduled for the weekend of August 27 & 28 with many activities for the whole family. In addition to the standard steak and cornbread dinner offered on Saturday, there will also be bounce houses, a talent show, horse shoe tournament and a silent auction to name a few of the activities on day one. The second day has the main event and revenue generator for the school, the quilt auction with many quilts donated by families of children who attend the school. While the auction is going on there are many other activities to keep the children busy like a volleyball tournament, kick ball tournament, storytelling and a movie showing.

The most talked about component of this year’s Annual Dinner is the revival of the Survival Race. Last year organizers of the Annual Dinner brought the Survival Race back with this year’s competitions difficulty level far surpassing any that have gone before. To date, ten teams have registered for the race with competitors coming from across the Haudenosaunee territory to compete for a $1,000 cash prize. The actual route has yet to be released but activities include five events: swim for ½ mile, canoe for 6 miles, bike for 10 miles, back pack for 1 mile (80lb pack for men, 40lb pack for women) and a 6.2 mile run. To register the team must pay a $150 registration fee and can consist of a maximum of 6 members with at least 1 female on the team. Organizers predict around 15-20 teams to participate this year.

All of these fundraising efforts go to support the programming at the AFS, who made changes this year by making all grades into Mohawk Language Immersion programs. Previously the grade 7 & 8 classes had been an English language transition for the students, and this has been phased out over the past year. They have also gone back to year-round school with a three-week break in between their releasing and moving up ceremony that concludes the end of a school year. Enrollment for the school is up from last year with around 60 students learning the Mohawk Language.

The AFS was highlighted at this year’s Sweetgrass First Nations Language Council bi-annual conference called Raising Our Voices. Louellyn White had presented her researching finding on the Language Immersion and Education at the AFS. In her presentation she explained that the AFS uses a holistic model of indigenous education where the Kanienkeha culture is taught through the language. The school employs traditional Mohawk approaches to education, instilling values of respect, peace, community and connection to the natural world. This process creates children who are respectful and tend to take on leadership roles in their lives. Students who graduate from this program have many successes in their family lives and careers, with some coming full-circle by teaching at the school.

“The AFS might not produce 100% fluent speakers in all cases,” said White during her presentation. “But the students are grounded in their cultural identities.”

White also pointed out that the grassroots fundraising effort solidifies the sense of community between the parents, children and staff at the school. The fundraising committee is currently canvassing the community for support of both the Annual Dinner and the operation of the school itself. Having parents and teachers put in the work to provide students with a quality education is a great example for students to see.

For more information of any of the activities being organized by members of the Akwesasne Freedom School contact their main office at 518-358-2073.