Healing Lodge finalist for major award Center helps youth, families heal from trauma of drugs, alcohol

Wendy Harris - Staff writer

The Healing Lodge of the Seven Nations in Spokane is a finalist for the American Indian Tribal Governance Awards, a prestigious award sponsored by Harvard University.

The Healing Lodge is an in-patient treatment center that helps Native American youth and their families heal from the trauma of alcohol and drug abuse. The 30-bed center is owned and operated by regional tribes, including the Spokane, Colville and Kalispel tribes of Washington; the Nez Perce, Coeur d'Alene and Kootenai tribes of Idaho; and the Umatilla Tribe of Oregon.

"We are just thrilled," said John Guenther, Healing Lodge administrative director. "It brings credibility and honor to our program, and it validates all the hard work we are doing."

The awards program is administered by the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. The Healing Lodge is among 16 finalists chosen from a pool of 80 applicants from 61 tribes and multi-tribe collaborations across the country.

In June, eight of the finalists will be selected to receive "high honors" and $10,000 to share their success story with others.

U.S. Rep. George Nethercutt, R-Spokane, who helped the center apply for the award, commended the center's achievement.

"This honor is well-deserved for their work in bringing tribal nations together to solve some of the difficult issues Native Americans face in confronting drug and alcohol abuse and its effects on children and families," Nethercutt said in a prepared statement.

The Healing Lodge focuses on blending Native American culture and spirituality with mental health and chemical dependency treatment. Since its creation in 1989, the center has served more than 1,500 youth from more than 150 tribes.

The treatment approach has been successful, Guenther said. Despite the fact that Native American youth have a higher number of risk factors, the center has been as effective as other treatment centers.

Guenther said he hopes other tribes can replicate their model to help more Native American youth.

•Wendy Harris can be reached at (509) 459-5433 or by e-mail at wendyh@spokesman.com.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Answers

Ah, this is the key: "The Healing Lodge focuses on blending Native American culture and spirituality with mental health and chemical dependency treatment."

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002