The Visiting Group fosters and facilitates sustainable person-to-person relationships based on the values of Reciprocity, Respect, Responsibility, and Relevance by supporting Indigenous communities in meeting their goals, including holding an annual culture and language youth camp; providing detailed information on lodging for Indigenous peoples when visiting Boulder Valley; and creating opportunities for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people to visit one another.
Vision Statement
The Visiting Group commits to a society where Indigenous Peoples are honored, respected, and integral to life in the Boulder Valley.
The Visiting Group commits to a society where Indigenous Peoples are integral to life in
the Boulder Valley.
Visiting Group Contact
For general inquiries on Visiting Group information: Contact Sallie Robinson Ward at sallierw@me.com
For lodging inquiries only: Contact Linda Woods at lwcounsel@gmail.com
Outdoor Equity Grant Fund
Arapaho Language & Culture Camps GoFundMe
Are you interested in hosting an Indigenous member in your home or Are you an Indigenous member that would like to request a place to stay?
To Host an Indigenous member please fill out this form
Indigenous people looking for a place to stay fill out this form
Support Arapaho Language & Culture Camps
The Visiting Group with RRB is fundraising for Arapaho Language & Culture Camps. Arapaho elders and students will be in their ancestral homelands of Colorado, August 2024 and planning into 2025 is taking place. These educational experiences will help students learn Arapaho history, language, culture, science, reading, and writing (English and Arapaho). Elders will teach prayer, values, and language. Students will know who they are, where they come from, and have this knowledge for the rest of their lives. “We could hear the songs of our ancestors in the wind through the trees and feel their footprints as they walked in this place.” – 2022 Camp Attendee.
In support of this event, Right Relationship Boulder is seeking donations through GoFundMe.
Go to GoFundMe HERE
Blessings and prayers for all who donate. May you receive abundance for your generosity!
News & Media
Sky-Hi News: Arapho Elders and Youth Return to their Ancestral Lands this Summer at YMCA
Pictures and Videos from 2023 Arapaho Language & Culture Camp
2023 Arapaho Language & Culture Camp Quotes
“I live in the city with light pollution and this was the first time I have seen the stars like this.”
“I loved going tubing and star gazing.”
“I don’t want to leave.”
“We are so grateful for the cooks and all their hard work and heart in the food.”
“It has been a blessing to hear stories of from elders and in the language.”
“This has been an amazing opportunity to bring the tribe from Wyoming and Oklahoma together, youth that have never met each other and live in the same state were able to meet and be together.”
“I learned that my ancestors that were in the Sand Creek Massacre—that all our people wanted was peace.”
“(Addressing RRB volunteers): Thank you for making the relationship with the Arapaho right.”
“In the beauty and the spirit we could feel our people, our ancestors knew this place. We felt safe here.”
“Without language, our culture dies, and so do we.”
2022 Arapaho Language & Culture Camp
Reflections from Camp Attendees:
“It was perfect to reminisce about our ancestors who loved this area.”
“This was awesome! Thank you so much!”
“We didn’t want to leave home to go back. We call this our home.”
“In the beauty and the spirit we could feel our people knew that place. We felt safe there. There were only 2 canyons that lead there so we felt safe. No one could sneak up on us.”
The elders in general wanted to: “…rename the mountains…they are our mountains and our home.”
“The history of the place does not include any information on Arapaho. They need to correct the brochures to include true history. This feels important. This hurt us. In 1914 our elderly shared the names of the stream and the mountains…”
“To have the proper names is important… we feel it would enhance people’s understanding of the land when they visit.”
“We could hear the songs of our ancestors in the wind through the trees and feel their footprints as they walked in this place.”
“We felt healed to just stand on this land.”
“We would stay all summer if we could.”
Highlights from 2023 Annual Report
~ 2023 Camp: Completion of second annual Arapaho Language & Culture Camp at The YMCA of the Rockies in the summer of 2023. Hosting: 18 Youth, 5 Elders and an additional 8 adults, supporting a total of 33 people. RRB Volunteer and YMCA staff participation in Giveaway ceremony at camp.
~ Media Coverage, including Ski-Hi News article: Arapaho Elders and Youth Return to their Ancestral Lands this Summer at the YMCA, released August 26, 2023. Brochures sharing the story of camp 2022 distributed by The YMCA of the Rockies through 2023 to gain public awareness of Arapaho history and presence.
~ Consultation & Collection of materials: Monthly consultation with the Arapaho and implementation of feedback for future experiences. Collection of testimonials and materials from camp participants (videos, photos, quotes, etc.).
~ Continued partnerships with: The YMCA of the Rockies, Rocky Mountain National Park, and CU staff.
~ Expansion of camp event planning to 2024 and 2025.
~ Recruitment of additional volunteers, specific to grant writing. Gained support from one experienced grant writer and two volunteers newer to grant writing. First grant applied to in September 2023, awarded a portion.
~ Outdoor Equity Grant (Colorado Parks & Wildlife) recipient, raising $50,000 to be allocated in 2024 and 2025.
~ Fundraising in 2023 resulted in: grassroots GoFundMe donations ($5,549), direct donations ($5,100), grant awards ($50,000), totaling $60,649 raised for upcoming language and culture revitalization projects.
~Updated, maintained and managed database of local Boulder hosts who provide free lodging for Indigenous persons visiting Colorado.
~ Collaboration with fiscal sponsor, Mediators Foundation, regarding management of finances.
Highlights from 2022 Annual Report
~ Completion of first in-person Arapaho Language and Culture Camp at YMCA of the Rockies in summer 2022. Hosting 16 Youth and 8 Elders.
~ Consultation with the Arapaho, Billie Sutton, and Teresa HisChase regarding feedback for 2022 camp by meeting with the elders who attended.
~ Collection of feedback and materials from participants of 2022 camp (photos, quotes, etc)
~ Continued partnership with the YMCA of the Rockies, Karen D’Onofrio
~ Consultation with CU professor, Andy Cowell, PhD, regarding long-term vision of working with tribes and CU
~ Revision of 2023 Camp based on 2022 camp feedback to Snow Mountain Ranch in Granby, CO
~ 2023 Camp event planning, fundraising, launch of GoFundMe. Raised approximately $9,600 by December 2022 toward camp lodging
~ Successful fundraising efforts for camp 2023 (in-person, email, social media, RRB newsletter inclusion of camp information)
~ Correspondence with donors for camp 2023, additional fundraising ideas implemented. For example, a paragraph on camp will be included in the Botanical Liaisons, LLC, upcoming newsletter
~ Vision for 2024 Camp to include both Cheyenne and Arapaho per tribal input
~ Advocacy with Outdoor Equity Grant for possible future inclusion of Indigenous persons whose ancestral homelands are in Colorado and with current Colorado citizens for their language grant.
~Updated, maintained and managed database of Hosts who provide free lodging for Indigenous persons visiting Colorado.
~ Collaboration with fiscal sponsor, Mediators Foundation, regarding management of fundraising efforts.
~ Networking with additional volunteers willing to support with free grant writing and future camp venues.
~ Design and funding of welcome gifts for 2022 camp attendees.