GLACIER COUNTY - A groundbreaking step for healing and hope has taken root in Blackfeet Country.
Sukapi Lodge, located just two miles west of Browning, has officially become the first licensed and certified Native American–owned and tribally-run mental health center in Montana.
Founded by Karrilyn Monroe and Tiara Show, the center represents a first-of-its-kind approach to mental health care — one rooted in Blackfeet culture, understanding, and the unique experiences of Native people.
Watch to learn more about the Sukapi Lodge:
“It was just us, you know, pouring our hearts into our community and learning from experience and thinking of what we need. So it's really cool to see like research and ethical practice go into that. And then seeing it work,” explained Tiara Show, a case manager with the facility.
Sukapi Lodge, meaning good or well in the Blackfeet language, first began last year. What started out as a youth transitional home has since grown into a full-fledged mental health facility that offers licensed counseling, peer support services, youth programs, addiction recovery assistance, and much more.
"It's amazing all of the obstacles that we have gone through to get to where we are. And so we really wanted to build this to be a place that our community can come to and feel safe, and so we kind of built that with what we would have liked it to be when we needed those services," Sukapi Lodge Director Karrilyn Monroe said.
One area that sets the center apart is its approach to blending Western therapeutic methods with Blackfeet traditional values. Clinical Social Worker and Addictions Counselor, Erika Madplume, says that she thinks it’s important to address past and cultural traumas to better help and understand problems on the reservation.
“There's our mental health, emotional health, physical health, but there's also that spiritual aspect within our Indigenous way. That's a really important aspect that most people, especially non-natives, don't include. Indigenous ways of knowing are valid and, you know, relevant in today’s society and just as healing as scientific ways.”
The establishment of Sukapi Lodge marks more than just an accomplishment. It’s a model of possibility for other tribes and reservations across the nation. Advocates hope its success will inspire similar culturally tailored mental health centers elsewhere.
Monroe added that they couldn’t have gotten as far as they have without the support of tribal leaders such as Councilmen Gervais, BullShoe, Comes At Night, and Hall. “I think it’s really important to acknowledge those who’ve helped us get to where we are, as well as the staff who have worked hard and laid a lot of groundwork.”
As the doors of Sukapi Lodge open wider, the message is clear: healing is possible, and it starts here, at home, in Blackfeet Country.
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