In the old days, warriors within the tribe would see to it that the elderly and the disabled were taken care of, and paid special attention to make sure these tribal members were not neglected. The warriors would go out and hunt for them and make sure their homes were built in a way that they could live safely among their family and their people.

Native American Independent Living is a fledgling operation that is designed and built upon the traditional warrior spirit. Based in a small office in Laguna Pueblo, NAIL believes in dignity and choice for people with disabilities and for elders.

"One of the services we see a need for and we are trying to fund are home modification projects to help our elders stay in their homes," said Michael Martin, office manager/independent living specialist for NAIL. "We believe in and advocate for independent living and to keep our elders out of rest homes unless absolutely necessary."

NAIL has identified home accessibility modifications — such as widened doorways, ramps, grab-bars and other assistive technology — as one of the major areas elders and people with disabilities need help to maintain their independence and avoid nursing homes.

"There is a lack of resources in Indian Country when it comes to health care and especially long-term care," said NAIL Executive Director Joseph Ray. "Our Baby Boomers deserve home- and community-based care. It seems like the aging population is multiplying 2 or 3 times overnight. There are no nursing homes on tribal lands. There is a tremendous need for infrastructure in tribal communities. Right now if an elder or disabled person falls and breaks a hip, they go away for treatment and don't come back."

The cost of nursing-home care, according to NAIL estimates, is $36,000 per year for an individual. Martin, a citizen of Laguna Pueblo who also serves as the IT person for the organization, said they can provide simple home modifications such as a grab-bar for a bathroom for as little as $20. NAIL has 26 clients they are trying to serve — and the average cost to meet all the needs of those clients, which includes a wheelchair device to load one disabled woman two feet into her truck, as well as building walk-in showers and high-rise toilets, is about $3,000 each.

NAIL, which is a nonprofit serving the Pueblos of Acoma, Cochití, Isleta, Jemez, Laguna, Santa Ana, Sandia, San Felipe, Santo Domingo and Zia, is currently involved in fundraising for its programs and is raffling off two bull-elk tags for hunts on the Laguna Pueblo this fall.

The cost of a raffle ticket is $25 and can be purchased by going to www.nmnail.org. The drawing will be held Oct. 17, and first prize will get a bull-elk hunt on the Jackward Unit on Laguna Pueblo lands Nov. 20-23. Second prize will get a bull-elk hunt on those same dates on the Bell Rock Unit on Laguna. Both hunts include two rooms and two nights at a local hotel. Whoever wins the tribal tags, they will not be counted against that person's eligibility for a New Mexico state elk tag.

There will be other prizes as well, including hand-painted Acoma deer and antelope pottery. All proceeds will be used to fund home-accessibility projects for elder and disabled tribal members.

Ray, who is also a citizen of Laguna Pueblo and has been paralyzed for 22 years since a car accident, said he thought it would be easy to go to tribal leaders and ask them for funding but, "I guess I had naïve beliefs. The leaders have hearts, but they have so many issues they have to deal with."

Got that warrior spirit?

Harlan McKosato, a Sauk/Ioway, is host of the syndicated radio show Native America Calling, which airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on KUNM, 89.9 FM.