by By CAROL CRAIG
Yakama Nation Review
TOPPENISH, Wash. – He started out as a teacher, became a principal then a superintendent.
Adam Strom continued to evolve over the years and will now be Haskell Indian Nation University’s women’s basketball coach for the next three years.
According to Strom, his way of life did not change until after he made one significant decision. When he sat down to talk with the Yakama Nation Tribal Council May 6, Adam Strom said he was “grateful.”
“It is an honor to be in presence of the tribal council and be recognized as such,” Strom said.
He continued by describing his announcement he made 10 years ago. “I was an addict, laying on my porch and she [his wife] didn’t like what I was doing,” he said. She told him she was going back to the Yakama Reservation.“ I chose to come back from Hermiston, Ore. and it was a life changing event,” Strom said.
After coming home he was immersed into the Yakama culture and tradition. “I found identity coming home. I was a coach, mentor, husband, dad and I was a recovering alcoholic,” Strom said.
He is proud to say Yakama students at the Yakama Nation Tribal School were his teachers. “Here I found out I was a root digger learning from the students. They know our traditions,” Strom said.
After a decade of sobriety he said he has realized something.“ This education I was born into,” Strom said.
He saw his father fight his own addiction .“My brothers showed me those addictions too,” Strom said. He left the Mt. Adams School District to coach basketball at Yakama Tribal and he found a new way to fulfill his education process through basketball. He grew up watching his dad coach and always took his advice.
His mother, Phyllis Strom reminded him to do what his dad asked of him. “When I started coaching she said I must take care of number one,” Strom said. told him to look in the mirror, saying, “You have got to grow up before the kids grow up.”
Today, Strom said he has a clean and clear mind.“ I couldn’t have done that without education,” he said. He shared his life history with staff and encourages staff to love the students.“You need to be a teacher,” Strom said.
Now teachers are sharing their experiences in life with the students. Strom said he had strong support continuing into education .“Every supervisor has had a positive impact on me, even as principal,” he said. He mentioned the YNTS teaching staff who continue to work on their education and he is proud of all of them. “They are setting the bar high for students and teachers,” Strom said.
This time next month, Strom will be head coach at Haskell.“This wouldn’t have happened if I didn’t come back home,” he said. Since he first took office at YNTS, it has become an accredited school and modernization keeps going on. “This academic institute is on the rise and when I come back in three years I’d like to see a new school,” Strom said.
The YNTS transformation is evident with more students attending, the sports teams advancing into league play and teachers interacting with students. His biggest fear is for the students.“ It is that the students be loved the way I loved them,” Strom said. “They need discipline, but still need love when I leave.”
Yakama councilman Dana Miller said the YNTS is losing an excellent principal and superintendent. “I was shocked when I saw that he submitted a resignation letter,” he said. Councilwoman Terry Goudy-Rambler said when Strom returns he’ll be welcome with open arms. “You are truly a strong role model for our young, even for me,” she said.
Yakama General Council Vice-Chairwoman LaRena Sohappy wished Strom well. “To go far away from home is a challenge,” she said. “Now your addiction to the hoop will instill others,”Councilman Virgil Lewis Sr. told Strom he is still making visible footsteps. “You are being a trailblazer for our people,” he said.
The tribal council gifted Strom a blanket and councilwoman Charlene Tillequots had a beaded tie to take with him on his new journey.
(Story reprinted with the permission of the Yakama Nation Review. All rights reserved)
