Blog Archives

Nihitaa' Binaanish Winterizes a Local Home

8/17/2020

Storage shed used as a domicile winterized by NB.

Nihitaa' Binaanish volunteers recently made a home visit just down the road at request of a community member concerned about her brother's health and poor living condition. Her brother lives in a 14x28 ft storage utility shed that is crudely unfinished on the inside and is heated by a deficient stove. There is no indoor plumbing although water and electricity are available immediately outside his house. This community member has a compromised medical condition which includes lupus, kidney malfunction (requiring dialysis several times per week,) and diabetes. All these have rendered him infrimed and unable to do much. He is unmarried and has no children so his sister is trying to advocate for him.

Nihitaa' Binaanish has started a process to involve the family, the community and the wider NB network to help their neighbor. Pastor Fred Thomas wired his home with the help of a 14-year old nephew of the homeowner to whom he was mentoring. The local Navajo chapter, Red Rock Chapter contributed funds to buy insulation. NB is lining up volunteers to install the insulation and raising funds to buy drywall materials. With God's mercy and grace along with the hard work of family, community and friends, we hope to have our neighbor's humble home ready to live in safely this winter.

Thank you for your prayers and support. We are soliciting donations to complete this project.

Jennfer Holmes, Nihitaa' Binaanish Board Member

DONATE HERE

Unsafe stove in storage shed home

Storage unit home before wiring.

Installed wiring

Next, insulation and drywall will be installed.

0 Comments

Scholarships for Navajo Women announced

8/1/2020

0 Comments

Navajo women studying pre-med and education receive $3500 to further goals of serving the Navajo Nation

$2500 Scholarship: Jonnie Woody

$1000 Scholarship: Marcella Kee

Jonnie is from Shiprock, NM and has done volunteer work in the Philippines as well as on the campus of NM Tech in Socorro where she is a junior majoring in biomedical science. She comes from a large rural family, and due to the Covid19 pandemic she is currently out of a job. She has a 3.18 GPA and is passionate about helping Navajo tribal members manage and overcome type 2 diabetes, a disease which she herself has overcome through healthier habits, setting goals and using current technology. She plans to attend medical school and serve as a physician on the Navajo Nation, helping her people address generational trauma and disease through culturally sensitive practices. “I want to challenge the current relationship between western medicine and Native American people,” she stated in her scholarship application.

Marcella will be a sophomore at UNM-Gallup, and she wants to inspire high school students on the Navajo Nation to attend college. She hopes to put supports in place to raise the high school graduation rate on the Navajo Nation. Even though her first year of college was different than she expected, she focused on her studies, used available resources and maintained a 4.12 GPA. She hopes to encourage other native high school graduates to do the same. She found time to volunteer at a tutoring center and was noted by her professors as being outgoing and collaborative. “Being a native educator gives other native students a way to connect with a teacher who can understand their background,” she said in her application.

Los Alamos Community Funds Scholarships for Navajo Women
by Jennifer Holmes, Nihitaa' Binnanish Secretary.

Scholarships are based on academic merit, dedication to serving the Navajo people and financial need. Donations are appreciated and can be made at julieshelpers.com or sent to White Rock Presbyterian Church, 310 Rover Blvd., White Rock NM 87547. More information about Julie Meadows, the scholarship application forms, past winners and photos can be seen at the scholarship website, julieshelpers.com.Jonnie Woodie is a junior at NM Tech and is doing biomedical research with one of her professors on treating type 2 diabetes. Marcella Kee is a freshman at UNM-Gallup who wants to inspire native youth as a teacher on the Navajo Nation. Both young women will be receiving scholarship aid from the Los Alamos-based Julie’s Helpers Memorial Scholarship, administered through White Rock Presbyterian Church.
The scholarship honors the memory of Julie Meadows, a young mother and LANL employee who died of a brain tumor in 2009. Shortly before she was diagnosed, Julie participated in a mission experience with White Rock Presbyterian Church on the Navajo Nation. This experience left her with a desire to support Navajo women in their educational pursuits, as a way of positively impacting life on the reservation. Her family, church, friends and community have supported the scholarship for ten years, raising over $33,500 for 20 scholarships since 2011.
This year, two awards are being made to women who exemplify Julie’s spirit of family devotion, strong work ethic, community service and educational achievement.
Nihitaa' Binanish is a proud supporter and funder of the Julie's Helpers Memorial Scholarship.

0 Comments

NB News

Nihitaa' Binaanish Winterizes a Local Home

Scholarships for Navajo Women announced

Author

Archives

Categories