Rendezvous offers RMS students a taste of history
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After a day dedicated to the development of future community members, the Ronan Middle School seventh and eighth graders spent Thursday at Kicking Horse Reservoir for the 23rd annual Rendezvous.
From horse-shoeing to tomahawk throwing, RMS students got a glimpse of what skills were inherent to their ancestors, but have faded into the background of modern life.
For the seventh-graders, the day serves as a hands-on history lesson. But for the eighth-graders, it’s a crash course in leadership as well as a review of Montana history.
“Eighth-graders are invited back (every year),” Eighth grade teacher Linda Jones said. “They’ve been here before and can add a lot for the younger kids.”
In former years, the kids participated in their very own powwows. Some of the staff members chaperoning the students, spoke about cutting pieces of meat from fresh venison hanging from one of the pavilions in years past.
Though this year’s rainy Rendezvous didn’t include a powwow or fresh venison, it did instruct the students in activities such as candle-making, archery, gold panning, fishing, setting up a tipi.
St. Ignatius resident Ben Corral devoted his time on Thursday to give presentations on the stick game. He explained that native peoples used the stick game to compete and trade with each other. Traditionally, sticks can be made out of wood or bone but modern sticks can be made out of plastic.
Another community member who volunteered his time was Shane Reum from Charlo. A farrier by trade, Reum brought two of his older horses to demonstrate the complexities of shoeing a horse. Reum explained that the ancient Greeks were the first to start shoeing horses. He compared the hoof of the horse to the toenail of a human being. Being careful not to cut the hoof too far, Reum displayed his skill by removing some hoof and fitting the shoe to the horse’s hoof before nailing the shoe into the dead part of the horse’s hoof.
Following the day’s activities, the seventh and eighth graders ate a hearty lunch of meat, beans and fry bread then left a bit early on account of the drizzly spring weather.
