Orthodox volunteers work at getting HBSC facilities ready for Celebration
By John McGill
Tuesday, August 5, 2008 2:26 PM MDT
Not only was the arbor at the Heart Butte Society Celebration grounds in a state of disrepair Wednesday, July 30, the softball field was also falling apart. Undismayed, Pat Calf Boss Ribs Sr. worked with a crew of his own, slowly bringing the arbor back to life. Meanwhile a crew of young people and volunteer adults worked at the ballpark, rebuilding stands and dugouts.
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| One hundred volunteers, part of a group of Orthodox church members mostly from Ohio and Pennsylvania, came to Blackfeet Country to lend a hand last week. This subgroup worked at the Heart Butte Society Celebration softball field building new stands and dugouts. Photo by John McGill
Ann Salvator stands with Pat Calf Boss Ribs Sr. and his crew of workers at the HBSC Dance Arbor. Salvator and Angie Giallourakis of Yocama, an Orthodox church organization, brought more than 100 volunteers to assist with repair work at the arbor, as well as several other locations in Browning. Photo by John McGill
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There were a lot of volunteers, some at the arbor, some at the diamond, and as it turned out, several in and around Browning. One of the project's head people, Ann Salvator, was at the Dance Arbor that day, fielding calls on her cell phone while directing the volunteers around her.
"We're from a group called 'Yocama,'" offered Larry Anastas, an adult volunteer. "We're Greek Orthodox, actually pan-Orthodox, and our group is from Ohio and Pennsylvania, mostly, and we came through the Diocese of Pittsburgh."
Indeed, more than 100 Yocama volunteers arrived in Blackfeet Country July 25 and worked through their departure on Aug. 2. Salvator explained that one of the employees at Blackfeet Community Hospital,
Peter Reuman, used to work as director of research where she's employed as an epidemiologist, Akron Children's Hospital. That was the connection that brought Yocama to Browning.
Salvator said her group was made up mostly of young volunteers between 14 and 18 years old, but they'd brought professional people along as well. Four doctors, for instance, came to volunteer their vacations, along with their kids who also volunteered.
Besides work at the Heart Butte Society Celebration grounds, their people found things to do at the Blackfeet Care Center, the Blackfeet Boarding Dormitory, Browning High School and Browning Middle School. Their group assisted the Global Volunteers in building a fence at the Blackfeet Care Center, and the doctors offered their services at Blackfeet Community Hospital.
While Salvator said she hopes to make the trip to Blackfeet Country an annual affair, this year they came just to see what was needed and what they could do. "This time we had to seek out the needs," she said, "then work from there. We have no agenda or plans, so we're flexible."
Salvator said one of the best things they'd discovered about volunteering on the Blackfeet Reservation was how willing other volunteer organizations, already here, were to accept their help and assistance, as well as working with their program.
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