As we commemorate the national day of remembrance for all who were harmed by U.S. Indian boarding schools, we tell the story of what happened over the course of a century across the United States and Canada.

With the "Indian Wars" costing significant amounts of money, time and the lives of white soldiers, the U.S. government decided to shift from fighting to assimilating. Children were removed from their families and taken hundreds of miles away to these schools. The reality is we will never know how many young people died in what essentially were prisons disguised as schools with a goal of eliminating the culture and language of Native children.

Bishop David Wilson and two members of the Great Plains Conference's Committee on Native American Ministries (CONAM) — Erika Washee Stanley and Denise Estes — help tell the story with significant contributions by Judi M. gaishkibos, executive director of the Nebraska Commission on Indian Affairs, and Dr. Gabe Bruguier, assistant professor, teacher and learning librarian at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. We also appreciate the contribution about United Methodist history from Dr. Ashley Boggan, general secretary of the General Commission on Archives and History.

The national day of remembrance is Sept. 30 each year, and it often is commemorated the Saturday closest to that date.

As part of this report, we would like to share two significant pieces of work to help us all understand better what happened. You can read a report from 2024 from the General Commission on Archives and History of The United Methodist Church at https://tinyurl.com/USIndigenousBoardingSchools.

Dr. Bruguier's research and his compilation of resources — including the work he contributed to for the Genoa Digital Reconciliation Project — can be seen at https://tinyurl.com/BoardingSchoolResearchGuide.

Bishop Wilson is planning a two- or three-session study guide for use during November, which is Native American Heritage Month. Please watch for that resource in mid-October.

This is the first in a 10-part series throughout the next 12 months spotlighting Native American history and culture.