Sept. 30—JAMESTOWN — Officials on Monday, Sept. 30, celebrated the opening of a new program at the James River Correctional Center that they say will help reduce recidivism.
The Akisni Warrior Lodge program is a culturally based recidivism reduction program that provides a six- to 12-month therapeutic community designed to change fundamental negative beliefs, the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said in a news release about the event. The structured program is based on the belief that change is possible and that this can be achieved by healing the body, mind, emotions and spirit.
The program is open to all eligible inmates, said Chad Pringle, director of the James River Correctional Center. The program brings Native American teachings and core and creates a therapeutic culture.
Recidivism refers to a person’s relapse into criminal behavior, according to the National Institute of Justice website.
The Aksini Warrior Lodge Program includes the work of the Nu’iju Healing Place program in Alaska, said Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller.
The Aksini Warrior Lodge program is a partnership between the James River Correctional Center, the Leona M. And Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Southcentral Foundation and the F5 Project.
James River Correctional Center Director Chad Pringle said the program incorporates Native American teachings and culture and creates an environment where people can support each other and hold each other accountable to make positive changes in their lives.
He said five inmates have already gone through the program.
“Because of their hard work and dedication to self-improvement, they (collaborating partners) have really launched the program into a really positive trajectory that these five guys will turn around and become mentors for the next people in the group,” he said.
Curtiss Heidebrink said four more people will participate in the program.
“I am excited and I will walk this journey hand in hand with you,” he told the new participants.
Miller said the state of North Dakota is grateful to have drawn inspiration from the Nu’iju Healing Place program in Alaska and that there is a version of it in the state.
“With the strong inspiration of Native American culture, in the Akisni Warrior program we bring great honor and respect to the rich Native American heritage that is the foundation of the state of North Dakota,” she said.
Miller said Akisni means well-being, recovery and healing.
“The warriors participating in the program use Native American tradition with a trauma-informed and communal focus to bring healing to the whole person – body, mind, emotions and spirit,” she said. “We are excited to see the combination of Native American culture, whole-body healing and the incredible change it can bring through the Akisni Warrior Program.”
Miller said the state has invested heavily in corrections reforms to reduce recidivism.
“We have also invested in behavioral health to address addiction, support recovery and break the cycle of behavior that too often requires intervention from our criminal justice system,” she said. “The introduction of the Akisni Warrior Lodge provides opportunities for those in our correctional system who want to make positive change and we know it will help reduce recidivism in the state of North Dakota.”
North Dakota First Lady Kathryn Burgum said the Akisni Warrior Lodge program is the place where recovery and healing begin, where lives are transformed and where the cycle of incarceration can be broken.
“This is a place where help is not just a word, but a presence that inspires all who enter to believe in the possibility of a better future,” she said.
Burgum said individuals who successfully complete the program can share their stories and mentor others to help break the cycle of addiction and incarceration.
“I am so inspired by what this lodge will achieve, not only transforming the lives of the people who come here, but also having a significant positive impact on families and communities for generations to come,” she said. “The work that will be done here will create a ripple effect of the power of recovery throughout North Dakota and beyond. The men who live here and bring recovery and positive change to communities will be the faces and voices of recovery.”
Colby Braun, director of the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, said the Akisni Warrior Lodge program goes back to his department’s mission of transforming lives, impacting change and strengthening the community.
“What Akisni brings is a whole bigger part of the community that we’ve been looking for for a long time,” he said.
Thomas Weber, service coordinator for the Akisni Warrior Lodge program and inmate who went through the program, said he self-medicated to numb the pain of losing his mother and grandmother before he turned 10 years old. He said he and his siblings were uprooted and pulled away from their home, school and support system.
Despite everything that happened, Weber had a successful marriage for 10 years with two children, graduated from college twice and was successful in his work.
“On paper I look like a model citizen,” he said. “I was broken internally. I was broken for years and self-medicated for years.”
Weber said he eventually ended up in the James River Correctional Center and his wife went into heart failure.
“My children are now living a life that I experienced,” he said.
Weber said he has two choices when he leaves James River Correctional Center. He said he could continue doing what he did in the past.
“I know how to be successful. I have the skills and education to make a lot of money, but I know the struggle against addiction, inequality and depression,” he said. ‘I also know where that road will lead me. It will lead me here and probably death.”
He said his other choice is to face his pain, guilt and everything he has done wrong in life and make amends with the people he will see.
“What the Akisni Warrior Lodge has done for me and why it is so special to me: It has created a safe place for me to explore my new sensations that I feel after reconnecting with my body,” he said. “These new feelings that I have been numb to for so long now allow me to open up and express my pain, express my struggles and tell my story in an environment where I am not judged or scrutinized about things that are happened to me when I was a kid and finally I have a place to heal.”
Weber said he believes in the program because of the individuals who run it.
“These individuals have gone through the prison system,” he said. “They were in the same cells as me. They have come out to live meaningful productive lives and are now contributing to society, someone who has overcome the odds and emerged from prison to thrive and live in sobriety to live.”
