Arlee students win MDT radio contest

By Lailani Upham

From left to right: Principal Jim Taylor, American Indian Coordinator Willie Wright, Kaylene Adams, Anthony Felix and Margene Asay, CSKT Tribal Health Educator stand with the students as they proudly display their certificates with cash stashed away, somewhere out of sight. Felix shared he was going to, “buy energy drinks and time on his phone,” with his winnings. Wright holds a framed certificate given to the school for student participation. Her Indian Club students participated as a class assignment for the contest. (Courtesy photo)

ARLEE — Drum roll please...and the grand prize for 60-second radio script goes to Arlee High School student, Kaylene Adams for her originality in a story of two young boys, told to her by her dad.

“I can’t help but remember those two 11 year-old boys that died from alcohol poisoning and freezing, or of all the crosses that line our roads,” are words from Adams script that Montana Department of Transportation chose as the winner to reach Montana reservation-wide radio audience, in hopes to reduce highway fatalities and promote behavioral change.

It’s not easy to simply read the entire script without feeling the pain, or possibly tearing up at the incident that happened not many years ago here on the Flathead reservation, due to alcohol.

Adams was awarded $250 for first place in the Safe On All Roads contest for her script titled, “Open our ears,” telling young people to “listen to our elders and parents.”

The Safe On All Roads (SOAR) contest is part of the Montana Department of Transportation Native American Traffic Safety program promoting traffic safety on the seven Indian reservations in Montana.

The goal is to increase seat belt use and reduce deaths and injuries from alcohol-related crashes on reservations.

Senior, Anthony Felix was the third place winner, taking home $125 cash prize in the SOAR contest with a script from a personal standpoint. “It’s based on a true story of a friend who died, Matt, during a car crash. I was supposed to be the designated driver. He was driving.” From the script Felix shares how his young friend left a party and happened to drive off without him.

Sophomore Kaylene Adams is surprised as she is handed a $250 check along with her certificate for taking first place in the SOAR radio contest. Adams says, “It’s a good way to start the summer.” She adds she will use her money to buy clothes for next year. (courtesy photo)

“While I was walking home I saw an ambulance drive by. The next day I did not see Matt at school. After I went to his house and his parents were not at home and I tried to reach them on their cell phone. It was at that point that I learned that Matt died and that they were making the funeral arrangements. I learned from the loss of my friend that life is too short and that a person needs to live their life to the fullest and that beer and drugs are not the way to go,” are the words from Felix’s script that will be heard this summer on local reservation radio stations.

The crash left a deep impact on the young man that turned his life in another direction, “that’s pretty much why I don’t party anymore,” he added quietly as if the moment of the traumatic loss somehow took a glimpse shot in his memory.

Native people comprise 6.2 percent of the population in Montana, but represent about 17 percent of the crash deaths, and on average about 25 percent of the alcohol-related fatalities in the state.

Tribal Health Educator Margene Asay, says they partnered with SOAR about a year ago. “I made it a part of health education with the approval of our Health Director Kevin Howlett,” Asay explained.

The State Highway Traffic Safety Bureau initiated a summer-time pilot program in 2004 to combat Native highway fatalities through education and community outreach on the Blackfeet Reservation. It was then extended to Fort Peck and Fort Belknap reservations in 2005 and Rocky Boy’s Reservation in 2006. That year, the name Safe On All Roads, SOAR, was introduced as the program identity. Expansion to Flathead, Crow and Northern Cheyenne reservations began in 2008 as an effort to reduce deaths and injuries among the Native populations. Funding for the program comes through the State Highway Traffic Safety Bureau.

Students from reservation-area schools were invited to enter the contest back in January, individually or in a group. Cash prizes were given to each winner. Frazer, Brockton High School, Box Elder High School and Arlee High School were the top scorers in the MDT-sponsored contest for the traffic safety radio scripts.

The second place winner in the 60-second radio script was Vicky Morning, a sophomore at Box Elder High School with her script titled, “Mournful Cries.”

Winners for the 30-second radio scripts were: first place; went to a group of 15 year-olds from Box Elder, Harold Whitford Jr., Breanna Matt and Frank Raining Bird. Second place went to Merlino Bear and Avis Big Track from Brockton High School for their script, “Smart Choice.” Third place went to Mariah Burshia, Francine White Dirt and Aariann Mazawasicuna also from Brockton H.S. for a script called, “Always in our heart,” about a loss of a friend.

Their strategy for the program is acknowledging that the most effective messages to promote behavior change come from within the audience communities and culture, rather than from outside agencies.

“I feel if we can save one life, it is worth it all,” says Asay.

Partners with the SOAR program are: Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Health Department, Fort Peck Community College, Blackfeet Community College, Chippewa Cree Tribal Law Enforcement, Fort Belknap Tribes Injury Prevention, Northern Cheyenne Transportation Planning and Billings Area Indian Health Service - Crow Unit.

Margene Asay with Tribal Health has noted arrangements with Anderson Broadcasting (KERR-Local Radio Station), has been made to have the students get their spot recorded sometime next week.

Kaylene Adams is the daughter of Bill and Wendy Adams.

Anthony Felix is the son of Alexander and Emma Felix.