Sand Point Culture Camp 2013 Report
This year Sand Point Culture Camp was held July 15, thru July 25. We had 50 students from fifth thru twelfth grades this year, and 31 students from kindergarten thru fourth grade. There were 40 adults attended evening classes.
Sally Swetzof was the Regalia Instructor. Six new regalia were started this year with 5 being completed. Three regalia were completed from last year, and weaves and panels were added to 4 regalia from the previous years as the students have grown.
Sharon Kay was the Weaving Instructor. Twelve new baskets were started this year with 6 completed and 4 others were completed from the previous years.
Lydia Vincler was the new drum making Instructor. She cut the wood for rims and had everyone bend their own rims to their preferred sizes. There was a total of sixty-one new drums made this year.
Karis Porcincula was the Full Crown Headdress Instructor. Ten new full crown headdresses were started along with 8 from last year. Seventeen full crowns were completed this year with 1 to continue on next year. Liz Chebetnoy completed a full crown headdress which was also put in the display case at the Qtt Rec Center.
Shalene Jackson was the Bering Sea Headdress Instructor. Fifteen new headdresses were started this year with all of them being completed, Shalene completed, a headdress which was also put into the display case.
James Kaiser was the stained glass instructor this year. Sixty stained glass projects were started and completed this year. The students and adults made Aleut masks, Aleut hats, Flowers and various other pieces.
Patti Gregory and Peter Devine were the Aleut Bentwood Hat Instructors. Seventy-three hats were completed this year.
Karis Porcincula and Liz Chebetnoy taught Aleut Dance to all the students from 3rd grade thru 12th grade. There was a total of 4 dance groups all performing various dances.
Josie Shanagin was the Aleut Language Instructor and worked with all the students. She taught the Kindergarten thru 2nd grade nursery rhymes in Aleut.
Teresa Smith was the Drying Rack Instructor. Twenty-nine Drying racks were completed this year.
Teresa Smith and Peter Devine were the Traditional Food Gathering Instructors. They constructed a Smokehouse, taught the kids to split fish for drying and smoking, gathered Octopus, Badarkies, Sea eggs and Kelp from the beaches. They taught the students how to clean, and eat all that was gathered. A seal was donated to Culture Camp this year by Patrick Brown and Teresa, Peter and Sally taught the students how to butcher a seal.
Anne Morris was the traditional foods cook. She taught the students how to make bread and doughboys, salmonberry jelly, how to pluck and cook geese, badarkies, fish and octopus. She also taught how to cut up salted salmon and make pickled fish. Jamal Berntsen was also a camp cook this year.
Carla Chebetnoy was the Bead Instructor. She taught how to bead glass balls. A total of thirty-one beaded balls were completed this year.
Eileen Dushkin was the K-4th grade Classroom Teacher with Kim Johansen as her assistant. They did arts and crafts with the kids and assisted with dance, language and fish and wildlife activities.
Bona Robinson from Izembak National Refuge was here along with Ingrid Harrold from Homer Fish and Wildlife who did the Youth Conservation Corps. Two students were picked from Sand Point Camp and two students from Unalaska Culture Camp took turns going to each other’s camps to help with teaching ecology, tide pooling, etc.
The Rose Urban Rural Alaska Humanities Forum sent three teachers out for the first week of camp to observe and participate in cultural activities to take back information to their schools.
This year at camp we had 3 apprentices and 3 laborers. Lanie Kuchenoff was a dance instructor apprentice, Keomi Chrim was the Bering Sea headdress instructor apprentice and Bobbi Dushkin was full crown headdress apprentice.
Sergio Porcincula, Max Chebetnoy and Brett Stokes were laborers who did all the heavy lifting, setting up and taking down weather ports, setting up and putting away camp supplies.
On the last day of camp we had a Community Potluck and student dance presentation. After everyone was done eating we had an Aleut Art Auction to help raise monies for next year’s camp.
