THE COUNCIL • PAGE 1 Non-profit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Anchorage, AK Permit No. 537 D e n a ’ N e n a ’ H e n a s h O u r L a n d S p e a k s VOL. 29, NO. 5 A REPORT TO THE MEMBER TRIBES OF THE TANANA CHIEFS CONFERENCE MAY 2004 Retired Nulato Health Aide: Pauline Peter When did you first become a health aide? the wrong date and they would go into 1968. I was in the sanitarium from ’52 labor unexpectedly so we had to deliver. to ’54 in Mt. Edgecumbe. I seen the nurses How many babies did you deliver? and what they did and that’s when I became I can’t even count. The oldest one I interested. I used to get all excited when the delivered is 25 now. Before that I helped nurses gave children shots, how they knew other mid-wives like Rita Esmailka and what shots to give and how much to give. I Esther McGinty. But I feel like that was my told them I was interested in becoming a first delivery. There was a friend with me nurse and they told me to work on it and too, but she was more like an aide because I’d make it someday. she was just crying. That was her sister-in- There was no such thing as law so she was crying all the way through. I Community Health Aide. The first doctor was being a counselor to her and a mid- was called the town nurse. I volunteered wife to the other. Then the baby was born from ’56, delivering babies. I delivered them with a cleft palate and I didn’t know such a myself without training. I volunteered for thing existed. So I told this doctor I delivered this baby, it was a little girl, they told me Reading the first health aide manual. This is an interview with Pauline Peter, 12 years, then in ’68 Andrew Demoski, the what it was. So I asked ‘what am I supposed a retired health aide from Nulato, who is town chief, asked if I wanted to be the town meeting at Travelers Inn (that’s Westmark nurse. I told him I didn’t know what to do to do?’ and they told me to send the mother now). This nurse said ‘go to my office’ and always busy, traveling, preparing for a and he just told me to do the same thing I and baby in because she’s got to learn how I said ‘could you give us a card?’ They always potlatch, overseeing her grandchildren’s was doing everyday. All we used to use was to feed the baby. They had special kinds of wanted me to be the boss because they health trips in Fairbanks, and visiting with Vicks, mentholatum, and aspirin-no kind nipples. That was in 1963. We used to deliver thought I knew my way around so I said her many friends in Interior Alaska. of antibiotics. babies anyplace-in their homes or in ‘Well, we’re just going to have to call a cab.’ Were there a lot of deaths? somebody else’s home or right in the clinic. The cabdriver looked at us funny and drove You worked from your house? We didn’t really have too many deaths The first time I ever had to break the us around the block to the building across Yeah, most of our husbands made a because people were living out in camp and water bag, I didn’t know what to do but the the same street. We got a kick out of that, having a healthy life; we had healthy baby was born okay. but we were just learning. We didn’t know strongbox with logs-that’s where we kept anything about coming to the city, we were the medicine, and right off too they didn’t lifestyles. Nobody ever did anything like Right now I’m really proud of these shooting themselves, so that was pretty village people. teach us about the medicine, we had hand young people who are health aides now. good. They had high school educations and it’s We worked out of my house for a long radios to communicate with the doctor and easy for them to learn the medical terms. time, five years maybe. Then we got an old other health aides. Then after we worked We had a few patients who had TB and we sent [them] to the hospital. We would For us we had to go to school to learn to building downtown and that’s where we for over two months we went to workshops. talk to the doctors on the radio and we read and write besides learning to read the started working. It had a kitchen and living There were 31 of us and all of us didn’t have described their problems, then they said that medical terms or understand the nurses and quarters so we had one corner for high school education. We all just had grade the first patient had to come to the hospital doctors language, it wasn’t easy for us. examining patients and another room for school education because we were brought in Tanana. If there was nothing wrong with Whenever we got a patient the husbands our medication. Rachel started working up in camp; we were considered to have them then they sent them back. just knew and they took a walk right out the with me but sometimes when she’s gone I’d gotten to the 8th grade. But I only got to the door. They never used to want to be there. work by myself, and when I’m gone she’ll Pregnant women, we used to take care work by herself. Sometimes we’d have a 4th grade; I got my GED in 1980. of them, most we used to try and send to One time we all came up for workshop, the hospital, but sometimes they gave us usually there was 31 of us, and we were all continued on back page... Arnold Marks: waiting for glory By Ginger Placeres, Editor One hometown basketball star has been awaiting something I wanted to do from the beginning, but I got intimidated by all of the math, his moment of glory as the season ends for the Nanooks. then after being in college a couple of years it just seemed easier.” Arnold Marks is an Athabascan, originally from Tanana As for ball, it’s an undeniable satisfaction for him, “We practice from 10:30 to 1:00 and many have wondered why he hasn’t had any court and then come back in and lift weights and shoot some baskets [on our own time]. We’re time this year. supposed to spend at least five hours a day with a basketball.” Dedication has always been Coach Sokaitis says “Arnold is a wonderful player. his game, a hometown high school star in Tanana. We’re not going to play him because he has gotten so Arnold has been diligent in college due to family support and a young family. “I got much better in the last year; he has two more years of the most support definitely from my mom, but also my step-dad and my dad supported eligibility. We have seniors in that position and I want to me, my sisters and bothers, and also my girlfriend and daughter. I think that having a save his eligibility, give him two more good years. But daughter made me really mature a lot and allowed me to get better grades in college he has done a tremendous job on and off the court, so instead of going out every weekend.” Both Arnold and Theresa (also from Tanana) are I’ll take 10 Arnold Marks any day. He’s someone we’re attending UAF full-time while raising two-year old daughter Reese. proud to have as part of our program. You know kids The importance of determination and responsibility is not lost on Arnold, “Rural look up to him; they see how hard he’s working [on] so schools have a huge disadvantage, it’s partially the attitude of the parents and the kids many things.” because they don’t value school or think about how much harder college will be. In high Why isn’t he playing, one asks? The official term is school I was a straight A student, when I came here I got like a 2.6 GPA. That’s the lowest “red-shirting” and that explains the lack of game time I got but I had to adjust and it’s hard. College is way harder than high school.” for Arnold. Because of eligibility reasons and the maximum time allowed as a college ball As far as planning for college hoops, students have to begin preparation from the 9th player, Arnold took this year off to prepare for quality time on the court later. Arnold has grade. That means knowing the specific NCAA guidelines immediately and taking the four more years at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks (UAF) and is up against two sport seriously. Arnold’s advice: “[Players] need to push themselves, even if they’re the seniors who play the same position; this means less time on the court if he were to play this best on the team. They should be pushing themselves beyond what they can do, because year. Rather than lose precious time on the court, Arnold made the decision to postpone pretty much everybody on the team [at UAF] were all-stars in their region.