Information

Program Overview

The YMCA Indian Princess Program is designed to foster companionship between a father and his daughter. The Program is open to all South Hills families and has been offering fun and adventure for South Hills families for over 30 years.

Each year in the fall, new enrollees are grouped into tribes, often organized by elementary school or neighborhood within each Township. The tribe provides the infrastructure for the new enrollees to gather and participate in a series of activities and outings over the course of the three to four years that they participate in the program. Tribes participate in their own “tribe” events and in “Longhouse” events. Longhouse events are organized and hosted by the South Hills YMCA for multiple tribes from the various South Hills townships and include three Campouts each year along with square dances, sock hops, a semi-formal dinner dance, ice cream socials, mini sail boat races, picnics and other activities. Tribe events are organized by the tribe and are typically exclusive to the tribe and their families.

The success of the tribe depends on the drive and organization of its members. Tribes whose members all contribute and participate in events and activities derive the most rewarding experience from the Program. While the Program focuses on the father/daughter relationship, it also fosters great and lasting friendships for both the daughters and fathers within the tribe. These friendships will often survive well beyond the term of the Program.

Your Responsibilities

By enrolling in this program, you have taken the most important step to create lasting memories with your child. However, we have learned a few insights to help make the experience more enjoyable for both you and your child.

• You get what you put into it. Like everything else in life, you get out of it what you put into it. But, in this case the return on investment is huge!

• Try to participate in as many activities as possible. While some Dads think that the campouts are the main attraction, some of your best memories will come from your tribe events or learning to square dance with your daughter.

• Be a contributor. If you view your role as a participant, then your tribe will fail. Successful tribes depend on everyone rolling up their sleeves and getting involved.

Help the Longhouse. The bulk of the Indian Princesses program is delivered by volunteers – Dads currently in the program. Some Dads get involved as a way of paying back for their positive experiences. Others see their involvement as a positive message for their children. Either way, we depend on Dads just like you to help make this great program work.

The Formation of a Tribe

New tribes are formed each fall at the Rally Night organized by the YMCA. Members of the YMCA and the Indian Princess Program will gather information (name, address, school, age of daughter, etc.) from all of the new enrollees in the Program. While the Princesses are entertained by camp songs, the YMCA and Program officers will group the new enrollees into new tribes. New tribes will select a tribe name from a list provided by the YMCA, introduce themselves to each other and begin planning their first Dad’s meeting. New tribes will typically have between 10 and 16 father/daughter pairs.

Each new tribe will be assigned a Skejunka. The Skejunka is a volunteer Dad that has participated in the Indian Princess or Indian Guide Program in the past and has often been the Chief of a tribe, or a tribe officer. The Skejunka’s role is to help the new tribe get organized, join the first several meetings of the new tribe to describe the program and ensure that the new tribe gets off to a great start.

New Tribe Gatherings:

New tribes will have several very important gatherings in the first two months of their formation. These are as follows:

1. The first Dad’s meeting – At the rally night, the Dad’s will select an upcoming evening to hold a “Dads only” planning meeting. The Skejunka will join this meeting and will often lead the meeting until a Tribe Chief has been chosen or elected. The purpose of this meeting is to explain the program to new participants and answer questions, select a Tribe Chief and other tribe leaders, share ideas for running a successful tribe and establish dates for the Name Burning Ceremony and first tribe event. This meeting should be held at someone’s home. or, alternatively, at a local restaurant.
   
2. The Name Burning Ceremony – This is often the tribe’s first meeting and is usually held at the Tribe Chief’s house, or the home of one of the tribe members. The purpose of this event is to give Dads and daughters a chance to meet and socialize. Your Skejunka will attend and lead the actual Name Burning Ceremony. In the Name Burning Ceremony, the big braves (Dads) and princesses (daughters) choose Native American names to adopt for the duration of the Program. Your real names and new “Indian” names are written on flash paper and thrown into a fire (fireplace or outdoor fire pit) to symbolize the taking of your new Indian names. Your Skejunka can make this ceremony as elaborate or simple as you wish. The main goal of this meeting is for everyone in the tribe to meet each other.
   
3. The Square Dance – The Square Dance is the first Longhouse event of the season and is typically scheduled in late September or early October. This is a great opportunity to attend a fun event and meet up with your tribe. This is also an opportunity to invite your daughter’s friends that were not able to attend a Rally Night, but that might be interested in joining your tribe. YMCA and Program leaders will be on hand to enroll any late joiners.
   
4. The first tribe event – As a new tribe, you should try to schedule a tribe event prior to the first campout. This is a great opportunity to establish momentum for the tribe and get into a rhythm of monthly events or activities for your tribe. A list of suggested outings and events can be found here.
   
5. The first Campout – The first campout will be held at Camp Kon-O-Kwee in Zelienople. This is a special campout for all of the new tribes. Campouts are certainly one of the most memorable elements of the program. All tribe members should be encouraged to attend the first campout.

Tribe Leadership:

There are several leadership roles within the tribe. The most important role is Tribe Chief. It is critical to the success of the tribe for a Chief to be selected during the first Dad’s meeting. Often, a member of the tribe that has participated in the Program previously with another child will volunteer to be Chief. If all of the members are new, a natural leader might step up, or the tribe might nominate and elect a Chief. While Chiefs typically lead the tribe for all three or four years of the tribe’s existence, some tribes have found success in making the Chief a rotational assignment, with a new Chief stepping in each year or part of a year.

The following are the key leadership roles within the tribe.

Chief – The Chief is the leader of the tribe and is primarily responsible for communication to the tribe members. Relying on email, the Chief is responsible for encouraging and reminding the tribe members to sign up for and participate in activities, outings and events. The Chief is also responsible for establishing a monthly rhythm of tribe activities and delegating organizing responsibility for these events to other tribe members on a rotational basis. The Chief is also responsible for staying in touch with the Longhouse officers and Program leadership and communicating any news or developments to the tribe members. The two most important roles of the Chief are communication and creating momentum for the tribe.

Longhouse Representative – Many tribes will nominate a Longhouse Representative to ease the workload on the Chief. The primary responsibility of the Longhouse Rep is to attend the monthly Longhouse meetings (first Monday of every month at 7:30 pm at the South Hills YMCA) and disseminate updates and key information to the tribe. SECONDLY, ADMINISTRATING THE TRIBE EMAIL, AND PHONE LIST THROUGHOUT THE YEAR IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. This is a great position to fill on a rotating basis, with each tribe member taking a turn at attending the Longhouse meetings.

Wreath Sale Representative – Each November, the Indian Princesses Program holds a holiday wreath sale to raise funds for the Program. All of the Princesses are encouraged to sell holiday wreaths and each tribe needs a representative to coordinate the sales efforts for the tribe (collect order forms and money, pick up wreaths at the YMCA and ensure that each Big Brave and Princess get their wreaths to distribute. The proceeds from the Wreath Sale fund FREE Longhouse events and an annual gift to Camp AIM.

Partner with Youth/STRONG COMMUNITIES CAMPAIGN /Camp Aim Representative – Each year in March, YMCA volunteers raise over $175,000 to underwrite Camp AIM; a summer day camp for the region’s mentally and physically challenged children. This is a great opportunity for the Princess Program to give something back to its community and each tribe is asked to participate in a fundraising phone-a-thon to support this worthwhile program. The Partner with Youth Representative will coordinate the efforts of the tribe and participate in the Phone-A-Thon.

There are many variations on your approach to tribe leadership and you are encouraged to come up with a plan that ensures excellent communication among the tribe, while sharing the workload. None of the leadership roles are overly demanding on time, and each can be rewarding for you and your daughter.

Table of Contents

Letter from the Program Director

Purpose

Objectives

Aims of Participants

Motto

Program Overview

Your Responsibilities

The Formation of a Tribe

New Tribe Gatherings

Activities

Tribe Leadership

Vests, Patches and Coup Sticks

10 Habits of Highly Successful Tribes

Home | Chief's Letter | Calendar | News | Camp | Photos | Longhouse

The Princess Patter is a newsletter for the South Hills Area YMCA Princess Parent/Child Program

South Hills YMCA, 51 McMurray Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15241
412-833-5600