Native inmates in Maine's prison system have been able to practice their traditional spiritual ceremonies for the past 15 years thanks to the efforts of a number of Wabanaki citizens, but in particular the work of Brian Altvater of Sipayik, a Passamaquoddy pipe carrier who has now conducted 80 sweat lodge ceremonies in four of the state's prisons.
      Altvater says that when he first started back in 2007 the inmates had "nothing other than a few books to connect them to their culture and their tribe. Doing a sweat helps them keep a connection with home and the people they know, and it's an outlet to sing and pray and dance in our language." The sweat lodge is a cleansing and purification ceremony and a time for prayer. "For me, it's a way of life and about problem solving," Altvater says. "I tell them that whatever's happened in the past, they can't change. I'm not here to judge. But you have a clean slate today, and I want you to honor this way of life and maintain this good way of living."
      In the sweat lodge, "every pole in there has medicine in it. The cedar, the tobacco, the sweetgrass, the rocks all have medicine in them. When you pray, that's medicine. When you get together with people with a common goal that's medicine."
      During the ceremony, tobacco is placed in a pipe, lit and then smoked, representing the prayers going to the creator and one's ancestors. "What you pray to the most is your blood relations who have gone on before you. They are the ones who will respond to you most immediately. The spirits are willing to do their part, but you have to do your part, too."
      Of the sweat lodges, Altvater notes, "A lot of inmates say it has changed their lives and they don't look at things the same any more. They're very thirsty for this way of living and the practices, and they're very respectful."
Change in the prison system
      The effort to allow Native practices in the state's prison system began in 2006, when the Sipayik Criminal Justice Commission, headed by Denise Altvater, had asked the Department of Corrections about having Native inmates be able to access traditional ceremonies. The Maine Indian Tribal State Commission worked to facilitate the discussions, and in 2009 the department adopted changes to its rules to allow sweat lodge ceremonies and other activities to support the observance of Wabanaki spiritual practices. A Wabanaki Tribal Advisory Group was formed to advise the state prison authorities on Native practices, and Brian Altvater notes that the current commissioner of the Department of Corrections, Randall Liberty, has been very supportive of the efforts.
      The first sweat lodge was actually held in May 2007 at the Bolduc Correctional Facility in Warren and conducted by David Gehue, a Mi'kmaq from Shubenacadie, N.S., Altvater and Arnie Neptune, a Penobscot elder. Altvater then continued working with the inmates, and he now conducts the sweat lodges each spring and fall at four prisons: the Maine State Prison in Warren, the Maine Correctional Center in Windham, the Mountain View Correctional Facility in Charleston, and the Downeast Correctional Facility in Machiasport.
      Altvater provides the poles, rocks, birchbark, the pipe, cedar and sage, while the correctional system provides the firewood, water, blankets and tarps and a meal afterward. He built sweat lodges at each facility, and they would last for several years before needing to be rebuilt.
      He notes that when one is in a sweat lodge in the middle of a prison "you could be out in the middle of a field, it's so peaceful. You'd never guess you were in the walls and fencing of a prison."
      While they are offered first for Native inmates, including those who are not Wabanaki, other inmates can participate if there is room. As many as 22 have taken part at one time in a sweat lodge. Sweat lodges for women have been held only at the Windham prison.
      Sweat lodges must be conducted by a pipe carrier, and initially Altvater assisted his spiritual teacher, David Gehue, but then he continued with them. Richard Silliboy of the Aroostook Band of Micmacs also helped in conducting the sweat lodges for a number of years.
      During a ceremony there are four rounds, with one for each of the four directions. Each direction is represented by an animal, a color, a season and time in one's life. As with the medicine wheel, "all things move in cycles, the seasons, the things in this life," Altvater says.
      "When people understand their clan system, all else falls into place," he says. "There's a reason our people are drawn to the east and the dawn. For the Wabanaki people, that direction is represented by the eagle. They are morning people, and the time of day is spring, the first light of day. They're in tune with the environment and their spirituality in the spring more than at any time of the year."
      Altvater notes, "Those who come into the lodge who are intellectuals struggle more with the ceremony" than other inmates. "They can't reason everything out. They can't let things unfold and happen and see with their mind's eye. They struggle and sometimes can't complete the four rounds of the sweat lodge ceremony."
      Once inmates are released back into society, there may not be any follow-up by the prison system, and some may return to the way of life they were used to before going to prison. Altvater says some have asked him to do sweats with them after they have been released, and he believes the sweat lodges help reduce the rate of recidivism. "Once you go into a sweat, your life will never be the same," he says. But he notes, "All the work is done by the creator and one's ancestors." All that those participating have to do "is be present and open-minded during the ceremony, while being respectful." He adds, "My role is just to provide the ceremony and the teachings. What they do with them is their choice after that."
      While he's been volunteering to do the sweat lodges since 2006, he was hired three years ago as a wellness coordinator by Wabanaki REACH (Restoration, Engagement, Advocacy, Change and Healing), which promotes truth, healing and change in Maine and Wabanaki communities. Altvater says that the one function he loves the most in working with REACH is conducting the sweat lodge ceremonies at the prisons.
      Since 2014 Wabanaki REACH has included the correctional facilities in its Wabanaki well-being program area, and over the years many peace and healing circles have also been conducted with Native inmates in the state's prison system. In addition, Wabanaki REACH created a newsletter called The Messenger that is mailed regularly to them and has provided medicine pouches for spiritual purposes.
      Maria Girouard, director of Wabanaki REACH, comments that "Brian's decades of dedication is humble, respectful work so critical for the well being of Native inmates who seek connection to their culture and community in order to be better human beings."
      On November 17, inmates at the Charleston Correctional Facility presented Altvater with a wooden plaque they had made to thank him for his 15 years of service and for being there that day to conduct his 80th sweat lodge ceremony.

Changing lives
      Gehue, who was Altvater's spiritual teacher and passed way in 2011, was blind, and Altvater says that one inmate who took part in the sweat lodges told him, "It took a blind man to make me see." Of Gehue, he notes, "He could see more than anybody I've ever met in my life."
      Altvater says the inmates have been very grateful and send him cards. "They've told me how it's changed their life and asked how to move onto the next step of their spiritual journey." He has responded that he will help them, since he in turn has been helped by others.
      Among the teachings he has learned and passed on are: The best way to say you're sorry is to never do it again; and if things can't change in your life now, then don't worry about it.
      Sometimes the inmates will tell him their dreams that are related to the sweat lodge ceremony, and he tries to help them interpret them, if he can. But he notes he just passes on the teachings he was taught, does not judge the inmates or get involved with any of the prison politics. "I'm just there to conduct the sweat lodge ceremony in the way I was taught."
      Altvater observes that without his connection with his ancestors "I could never do this and participate in this way of life. It's enriched my life. It's made me feel whole." Noting that he's in recovery, it has also helped with that process. He points out, "You cannot be a pipe carrier if you drug or drink. When I received a spirit name over 20 years ago, I vowed never to drug or drink for the rest of my life."
      "Doing this all these years -- I get a lot out of it. It's really rewarding for me. Just doing a sweat lodge ceremony feels so natural, refreshing and energizing. That never gets old."
      Of the ceremony and the way of life, Altvater says, "It's about spirit and helping individuals who are struggling. We all struggle."