Blackfeet Life and the Reservation

Are you a visitor or just passing though? Blackfeet life and the reservation is not a singular lifestyle but a diversity of lifestyles that have an impact both small and large.  My name is Stephanie and I will do my best do describe and help you understand who the Blackfeet are and were.  Everyday I learn something new and interesting about my homeland (also my reservation) and I feel it is best to help our visitors understand who we are.  It is easy to judge a place based on looks and if your passing through, looks can be deceiving. 

The Blackfeet Reservation in located in northwest Montana along the east side of the Rocky Mountains.  The reservation shares its northern border with the Canadian border (The 49th Parallel), therefore, there are three ports of entry to Canada. The western side of the reservation is along Glacier National Park's border.  The southern boundary is located along Birch Creek and the east side is comprised of a portion of Cut Bank Creek and the remainder of the eastern boundary runs straight to the Canadian Border.

  My intention for this website is to provide information for our visitors from the perspective of a member of the Blackfeet Tribe and as someone who is also learning about my own history.  I am not a historian but am a scholar in training.  I am striving to update this site as I learn and if I find that made a mistake in the historical account, I will correct and update the information provided. I know there are several websites that provide historical information about the Blackfeet and I probably utilized them to help me expand my knowledge. However, not all the information on the various sites can provide a personal account of what it means to be from the Blackfeet Reservation and explain the nuances that create the present-day life of the Blackfeet People. I know I am not a part of every Blackfeet person's daily life, but I want to try to give visitors a guided view versus the "what you see is what you get." 

Oki! My name is Stephanie Vielle and I am from Browning, MT, and an enrolled member of the Blackfeet Tribe. For the first decade of my life, I lived in Browning in a house in Low Rent with my parents. I also attended a Christian School, known as the Summer Haven Christian Church/School, located in Heart Butte, MT. This school wasn't accredited and very few people probably knew about it. At this school, I learned how to read and clean.

In fourth grade, I began school in Cut Bank, MT, and attended the Cut Bank Public School System until the 8th grade. After the 8th grade, my mother moved my 2 brothers and me to Pablo, where I attended high school and graduated my junior year. 

After high school graduation, I tried out wildland firefighting as a hand crew. It was a fun time but seasonal work is a hit-or-miss kind of gig so I decided to join the military. At 19 years old, I enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and became an F-18 Fighter Jet Aircraft Electrician. I enlisted to serve my country for 10 years on active duty and 4 years of reserve. I am a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom campaigns and was honorably discharged from my service.  My rank was gunnery sergeant (E-7).

In 2017, I returned back to my hometown and applied for a director position in a new program that was created by the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council. I was employed for about two years before I was investigated on charges I was never formally charged with or told why I was being investigated. I was eventually laid off from my job via letter and in the letter, it was stated I could not grieve the decision that the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council came up with. After my layoff, I became a single, unemployed mother, and shortly afterward, the pandemic hit. 

During the pandemic, I applied for a foster care license and began fostering a two month old baby.  After two years of foster care, adopting her became and option and now she is no longer in the foster care system and will never be again! I have also had to opportunity to foster three other children, who are doing well in life. 

After the pandemic restrictions became less extreme, I decided to try for a position with the Blackfeet Tribal Government again but not as a director but as a coordinator for the Blackfeet Nurturing Center. Unfortunately, I could not commit to the demands of the position and resigned.  I also felt very uneducated for the position.  At this place is where I was inspired to apply for the University of Montana's Master of Social Work program.

To my surprise, I was accepted into the program and will begin this spring (2023)! I thank God for everyday for this opportunity and helping me grow from my all my experiences.