Shirley puts spark in Diné first lady role

Copyright © 2008
Gallup Independent
By Karen Francis
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — It’s easy to forget that the Office of the First Lady was dormant for nearly 12 years before Vikki Shirley, wife of President Joe Shirley Jr., restarted it.

From being stationed in a closet at the beginning of the president’s first term, the Office of the First Lady has come a long way, but there are still challenges. While Shirley has many important initiatives she is working on, she only has two staff members. She has been working as a volunteer all these years and had to start with a very small budget.

Despite the challenges, the first lady’s office continues to work on issues involving education, children, women and families. The first lady invites the Navajo people to join her as a volunteer in continuing the efforts that her office has begun.

People often use the office as a resource and it has been responsible for bringing in millions of dollars for various programs.

Part of her work on behalf of women will be taking her to Washington next week to be part of a federal task force to address domestic violence in Indian Country. As a member of similar task forces for the states of Arizona and New Mexico, her opinion on the issue is often sought out.

Known for her work with Mothers Against Drunk Driving, Shirley said the effort is now concentrating on the DUI Task Force and promoting legislative remedies. She often speaks out for more funding for jails and public safety, to help curb the problem with drinking and driving on the Navajo Nation.

Shirley has also helped to get funding for a pilot project where students with the Red Mesa School District act as peer counselors.

Studies show that the younger kids look up to the older ones, which could make peer counseling more effective, Shirley said.

Besides MADD, Shirley is also working on increasing literacy, preventing methamphetamine abuse, domestic violence awareness and promoting the Diné language.

The main issue that Shirley is working on is the First Things First initiative, which was passed in 2006. The Navajo Nation opted to create its own region for First Things First, and Shirley was appointed to the board. Funds for education, health, quality health care and delivery services are intended to complement existing programs.

“For Navajo Nation, they’re estimating at least $3 million for the first year,” Shirley said. The money comes from the tobacco tax, she added.

The first part that Shirley wants to get done is creating parenting kits for new parents.

In the first term, then-Vice President Frank Dayish tackled the methamphetamine problem on Navajo. Shirley decided that the issue was important enough for her to pick up where he left off when the second term administration came in.
“Our part is the prevention and public awareness,” Shirley said. “According to our statistics, there is a difference in use.”

With Shirley acting as a co-chair for an Arizona task force on methamphetamine, The Office of the First Lady has been doing publicity, advertisements and presentations on methamphetamine prevention. The slogan they have been working with is “Not even once.”

By working with grades eight through 12, Shirley said that the presentations having been working.

“A lot of them — it changes their mind,” she said about the children who see the presentation.

She is so passionate about the issue because of all the cases she has seen, including a meth baby.

“I don’t want to see any meth babies or anyone else using meth,” Shirley said.

Because President Shirley ran on a platform of education for his first term, Shirley began promoting literacy among the Navajo people. When students come into her office, which is frequently, she has books to give to them.

“We’ve always loved to read,” she said about herself and the president. “It’s just something we wanted to pass on to our people.”

Because her parents always encouraged her to read, she now encourages children to read as well.

On Tuesday, she looked through a box of donated books from the American Indian Services in Pueblo, Colo. She noted that the Toys for Tots program gives her book donations every year.

Sometimes she gets books written in the Navajo language, which helps with the next initiative she will be working on — preservation of the Diné language.

She also began a Navajo Nation First Lady Foundation to be able to get funding for the various initiatives. The Internal Revenue Service approved it as a non-profit earlier this year, she said.