Indigenous Men’s Conference returns for a second year in Montezuma Creek on Sept. 19

by Sally Jack
Contriburting Writer
The second annual Indigenous Men’s Conference will be held Thursday, September 19 at the Montezuma Creek Community Health Center, located at 1478 E. Highway 162 in Montezuma Creek.
The conference is sponsored by Utah Navajo Health Services and is designed to provide a safe and supportive space for Indigenous men to connect, heal, and strengthen their communities.
The free all-day event celebrating men’s health awareness may be attended in person or by live stream broadcasting.
The event will include keynote motivational speaker Mike Scott presenting “Finding the Warrior Within;” D.J. Eagle Bear Vanas, thought leader, celebrated speaker and best-selling author of “The Tiny Warrior” and “The Warrior Within;” Alta Mitchell, alcohol and drug abuse counselor and licensed Dine’ traditional counselor; and Nate Nataani Brown, Dine’ cultural speaker.
Sahar Khadjenoury, committee member and fundraising coordinator, says,
“The first men’s conference was a success, and it is beautiful to see the way mothers, wives, sisters, girls, and grandmothers support these men’s conferences, and to see men who are holding themselves responsible for their own well-being and the well-being of their families. It is also beautiful to see the way this conference includes men of different tribes.”
The conference theme is Twin Wellness, and is based on the Traditional Navajo Story of the Hero Twin Warriors.
According to Traditional Navajo historian and storyteller Wally Brown, the original story goes back to the time when the two boys, Monster Slayer and Born for Water, went to visit their Father to obtain weapons to eliminate all of the monsters in the world.
He gave them magic armor, lightning arrows and stone knives.
“As the two boys were out destroying all the monsters they came upon the Poverty Family, or Te’e’. In this family there was a mother and a father, a daughter and a son. The family begged to be allowed to live. The reasoning was that if they were allowed to live, they would be of great assistance to the Dine’ (or The People).
“They told the two boys, “If you let us live we will make sure that the Dine’, when they see that their clothes are worn and ragged, they will go out and they will do what is necessary to make themselves new clothing. And when their shoes are worn they will be sure to go out and find the material to be able to make themselves some new shoes, or when they get hungry, and their children are hungry, then they will go out and work the fields or go hunt and do whatever is necessary to feed their children, that they will never be lazy in their working, that they will always be healthy, and they will grow to be people of the old age. If you will allow us to live,” they told the two boys, “we will help the Dine’ in that way.” And so the two boys allowed the Poverty family, Te’e,’ to continue living.”
Wally Brown comments, “They are still living among us today in the Navajo Nation. Among our people the Dine’, there is a lot of poverty, and it comes about because the teachings in many ways in the Navajo Nation have been forgotten— that we have to work and earn to provide our homes and to provide for our children and our families—these are the things that we are supposed to be doing and not be so dependent on the tribal government or the federal government or other people, for our own wellbeing.”
Then Wally warns: “The things that we don’t recognize as monsters—there are many of them, actually, that have crept back into the society of the Dine,’ is something that will destroy you, and devour you, and take everything from you.
“And not only your possessions but also your character and the things that really matter to you as an individual, your person. And it was not what was desired by the two boys when they allowed the Poverty Family to continue to live.”
Studies show that Indigenous men face unique health disparities, or monsters, including higher rates of chronic diseases, mental health challenges, and substance abuse.
A.J. Bitsouie, committee chair for the conference, says, “Before the pandemic we dealt with common issues of diabetes, heart disease, and renal failure among our people, but during the pandemic there was a huge increase in not only mortality, but depression, substance abuse, addiction, crime and suicide. Job scarcity has become a problem and poverty has increased. It was a wake-up call for the Navajo Nation that we need to be supporting our people mentally.”
The guest speakers for this conference are warriors.
They have had monsters to deal with in their daily lives, or can teach us how to break free from the monsters that hold us back.
They want to reach out to Indigenous men, and especially the youth to let them know there is help, and there is hope.
The journey for the twin heroes was perilous, but the boys never wavered.
They destroyed the monsters in their world and fulfilled their destiny
A.J. concludes, “We are holding this conference because we want to send the message to men that you are the protector of your home and family—you too can be Twin Warriors.”
To learn more please visit twinwarriorwellness.org .