Student helps community, finds heritage
Student discovers heritage, helps community

By Tami Althoff

Published: November 25, 2007

NORMAN — For the first 12 years of her life, Caitlin Baker knew very little about her American Indian background. In fact, she was a little embarrassed when she attended the North American Indigenous Games this past year in Denver as a competitive swimmer.

"Everyone kept asking me what ‘res' I was from, and I was like, ‘What's a res?' ” she said. "Someone finally told me it meant reservation.”

Caitlin's American Indian mother was adopted, and her dad is white. She wasn't raised in an American Indian environment and never had reason to know what a reservation was.

"I didn't really stay connected to my Native American side,” said Caitlin, 13, a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. She came back from the trip thirsting to know about her heritage.

After research, which included holding focus groups with American Indian youths and visiting communities such as Anadarko, in the fall of 2006, Caitlin created a nonprofit outreach program called Competitive American Indians Turning Lifestyles Into New Beginnings, the acronym for which is Caitlin's name — CAITLINB.

Although her outreach work requires her to miss classes at All Saints Catholic School in Norman on occasion, Caitlin keeps up with her school work as she travels the state promoting swimming, sports participation, healthy lifestyles and community advocacy to American Indian youths.

Caitlin spent time this summer speaking and teaching swimming at Turtle Camp, a diabetes prevention program conducted by the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic, and in June she helped organize a swim clinic featuring Olympic Gold Medalist Josh Davis for the Boys and Girls Club in Pryor. In September, she participated in a second swim clinic in Tahlequah with Olympic swimmer Mark Spitz.

Also in September, she began partnering with the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic, Norman Public Schools Indian Education and the University of Oklahoma College Links program to offer an education program for American Indian second- and fifth-graders in Norman Public Schools. Caitlin shares her story, provides a nutritionist from the clinic to speak to the students about healthy eating and eats lunch on campus. Each student also is given a pedometer to wear during a tour of the campus.

In addition to her work with youths, Caitlin speaks to leaders about the need to build community centers and offer year-round programs for young people.

"I believe youth can change the statistics by having programs in place that motivate them and give them opportunities to be healthy and active,” she said. "We need more family centers, kind of like the YMCA in Norman, in native communities. They have the money. They just need to give kids what they need to be healthy.”

Caitlin said she hopes her efforts encourage youths to find a passion, set goals and believe in themselves enough to reach goals.

"Every child needs to be told and to believe that they can achieve greatness,” she said. "I want to be an example to minority youth that no matter your age, you can change the world. Many of these kids have parents that never graduated high school. I'm trying to show them they do have a voice and they have the power to change.”

For more information, go to www.caitlinb.com.

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