Youth Councils in Action
Serving the feast at Fort Hall’s annual round dance gave Mazie Countryman a direct way to support the community gathered around her. On January 19 and 20, 2024, she volunteered alongside the Fort Hall Youth Council, contributing to the work that helped welcome people across both days of the event.
Countryman, who identifies as Northern Arapaho, Eastern Shoshone, and Navajo, served as Northwest Representative in UNITY’s 2023–2024 National UNITY Council Executive Committee cohort. The cohort connects regional councils and individual members, represents youth perspectives, and develops leadership through cooperation and service.
At the round dance, that service was practical. Countryman helped serve food while the youth council supported a cultural gathering in its own community. Her reflection focused on the experience of people coming together.
“It was so Amazing to see the community come together a this round dance, it was nice to hear the laughter and see the smiles of many,” she wrote.
Her January involvement also included youth council meetings and attendance at the American Falls High School Powwow. Those activities kept her connected with youth-led work and cultural gatherings near home in Idaho.
The experience continued a service relationship she described in other reports. In December, she helped fill 350 stockings with the Fort Hall Fire Fighter program for a tribal Christmas event and participated in a STEM night at the Fort Hall Boys and Girls Club.
Her later spring updates described supporting Fort Hall Youth Council fundraising at school powwows. Together, the reports show a young representative returning to help with different kinds of work, from food service and holiday preparation to educational outreach and fundraisers.
That consistency connects with UNITY’s cultural and social development goals. Youth councils provide opportunities to practice responsibility in settings where relationships matter, and the tasks supporting a gathering are part of the leadership that makes it possible.
For Countryman, January’s round dance offered a clear example: young people serving alongside their peers while families and community members shared time together. Her account recognizes that contribution through the laughter, smiles, and sense of connection she witnessed.
