Sixty years have passed since Holbrook Indian School opened with just one building situated on the high desert of Arizona. Today, the sprawling 320-acre campus, home to 75 Native American boys and girls, is like an oasis in the desert — its lush green lawns and newly-planted flower gardens creating a tranquil atmosphere for students, faculty and visitors.
The focal point of September’s 60th anniversary celebration was the grand opening of the new $1.1 million boys’ dorm, a spacious, 18,000-square foot building which was funded through donations and is entirely debt-free.
The new facility has two wings, one for students at the high school level and the other for students in the lower grades. Seventh- and eighth-graders are housed in individual rooms, two students per room like the high schoolers, and the elementary school students are housed in semi-open pods of four boys each. Each age group has its own dean, and there is a head dean for the facility. Mark Tamaleaa, former youth leader of the Camelback church, has moved his family to Holbrook to fill that position.
At the dedication ceremonies, the new dorm was named Colson Hall in honor of the Colson family of Oregon, which has contributed generously to the construction costs for the new dorm.
Dr. Don Sahly, President of Griggs University and International Academy for the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in Silver Spring, Md., was present at the dedication. With his help, high school students will be able to work on the accredited Griggs home study program that will allow them to complete a year of college credits while attending high school. School officials hope that within three years, a full associate degree program will be available for students interested in advancing their education.
Cyril Miller, former president of the Texas Conference, received special recognition for his work in the fund-raising program for Colson Hall.
Another plaque was presented to Ellsworth McKee of Collegedale, Tenn. The McKee family has been a generous supporter of the Native American work at Holbrook Indian School.
Colson Hall also includes offices, a computer lab, a laundry room, a large recreation room with a service kitchenette, and a chapel. The design is the same as the girls’ residence hall, which was dedicated in 1995. Each hall has a capacity for housing 60 students. The campus also includes a church, a classroom building, vocational arts and a library.
The dining hall is supervised by master chef Norman Tagalog, who recently moved to Holbrook after working at a five-star resort in Dallas, Texas. Tagalog demonstrated his creative food preparation at the reception that followed the dedication service. He presents attractive, nutritional meals in the newly-transformed dining hall, which is styled like a sidewalk café with flowers, posters and other decorative objects and art.
More About Holbrook
According to its website, Holbrook is "a special place where Native American children learn in a loving, accepting, and safe environment. Where teachers care about them individually. But most of all, where teachers are dedicated to changing the world for our 'first children' — with love — today and every day of the year."
Principal Paulette Jackson and her staff have a vision for the Holbrook students. They are committed to offering every student a job skill before they graduate, whether it be a demonstrated competence in welding, auto body, culinary skills, office practice or pottery. "We plan to continue to offer a variety of skills that students can take into the job world, whether it be to put themselves through college or as a career when they return to the reservation," she explains.
"We believe our job to be to introduce our students to the love and grace of Jesus," said Jackson. "We provide the safe environment and home atmosphere that many of our students have not experienced. In this environment we can more readily share Christian values and our Adventist beliefs."
