MCDERMITT - This month's McDermitt Combined School alumni has such good memories of going to school there for 12 years that she joined the staff in the fall of 2007!
Darla (Brown) Camas was born Feb. 12, 1971, to Jeralyn Brown (MHS 1970) in Schurz, Nev.-coming home a few days later to Fort McDermitt. Her father is Webster Luther (W.L.) Thomas of Owyhee, but it was her mom who cared for and raised her, she said.
Darla's maternal grandparents were Osmus and Bonnie (Hinkey) Brown. As a small child, the little Native American girl, who was quite the tomboy, had short hair accommodating freedom to play outdoors with the boys.
While she thinks they all knew she was a girl, it was pierced ears that finally gave her away, ending the camaraderie that she had enjoyed during those pre-school years.
Darla started her formal education in the Head Start program at the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation. Christine Hardin was the cook for the school, and Joyce Franklin Masters was the teacher.
The class would laugh with Joyce at her inability to correctly pronounce the word "conscientious!" Darla felt blessed to again be guided by Joyce Masters during her sixth grade year.
At McDermitt, she had Jan Borum for the first grade and Miss Gruver for second and recalls how much fun it was when the first and second graders went on a camping trip to the Ruby Mountains.
She enjoyed the snow - sledding on the circle at the east side of the reservation as well as the snowman- building contests Edna Hill challenged them to on the football field during recess were a lot of fun.
In junior high, she remembers always fouling out in the basketball games coached by Cindy Sherburn, making her cry.
Though she didn't really have any favorite classes in junior high, she loved home economics in high school with teacher Tammy Nichols.
Always behind on her projects - she seemed to have a habit of breaking needles - she was happy when she finally finished a pair of shorts. Tammy told her how proud she was of her before she broke into laughter as Darla had sewn the pockets shut!
She also liked Mrs. Jefferson; science in John Moddrell's class; and as most, writing in Darlene Albisu's English class.
She played volleyball for Mary Kay Pace and was on the state champion basketball team coached by head coach Bob Pace and assistant Sherburn. She said that there were no jealousies among her teammates and a lot of desire to win.
She recalls teammate Michon Echave telling her to grab the ball and put it back up - and do NOT try to dribble! Darla readily admits that she was NOT guard material! During practice they scrimmaged against Bob and Mary Kay, Cindy, Elmer Porter (computer teacher) and Neil Stevens (football coach).
They were humbled with a loss to Owyhee that year and made sure that it didn't happen again. When they got to Carson City, coach Pace told them, "Just remember you are playing for the state title." Winning state was an exciting experience.
Darla liked her job at the Snack Stop and says that Randy (Murrah) Butolph (MHS 1967) became a mentor, teaching her what employers look for, and she was grateful to be able to buy her basketball shoes and prom dresses.
She met and began dating Sonny Camas on Jan. 15, 1988. Graduating in 1989, their daughter Taryn (MHS 2008) was born in 1990. Their second daughter Rayelle (MHS 2010) was born in 1992, and on Jan. 15, 1993, five years and two daughters after their first date, they were at the courthouse paying a speeding ticket when they decided that they were ready for a permanent commitment, and married while they were already there! This past January marked their 20th anniversary!
With a personal motto of "be productive," Darla knew she didn't want to be a cashier the rest of her life so Sonny and Geralyn agreed to watch over the girls while she attended school in Bismarck, N.D.
Finding it hard to be away from her family, Sonny, who had obtained his GED, and the girls joined her the second year.
Sonny earned a certificate in criminal justice, while Darla received an associate's degree in early childhood education. She finished with a 4.0 for the two years and was named Student of the Year by American Indian Higher Education Consortium. She was the student speaker at graduation, and earned several scholarships that she has used over the years at Great Basin College.
She still plans to get a teaching degree someday and, having 100 plus completed credits and lots of determination - it will happen! She spent from 1999 to 2007 working in the Head Start program that she had attended years before, joining staff Evalina Belle, Doris Garfield and teacher Val Hinkey.
Her classes have been put on the back burner for awhile. In 2007 she started as an Instructional aide at her old alma mater - her daughter Teryn was a senior that year, and "surprise" - she and Sonny welcomed their son, Shandon.
Two years later, right after Rayelle graduated their third daughter, Cree, was born on July 27, 2010! Darla, who has attended church all of her life, loves her children, two MHS graduates and two pre-schoolers, with the unconditional love her Bible teaches her, and thanks God for trusting her with the gift of four precious children.
Working for a while with Amerita Mayer in the ESL program, she tells about one student she worked with who could not speak a word of English.
Recently, she was with Rayelle, a student at UNR, at a Reno mall when she felt someone pat her arm and turned to see a young man wearing a big grin. In fluent English the student asked her if she recognized him, and shared that he was now a student at Truckee Meadows Community College.
He then thanked her for her patience while helping him learn to speak the language of his adopted country. What a reward! Darla says that all of her students make her feel motherly and she prays for their success in life. Now helping with A-Plus she tries to encourage and teach the kids to be responsible and accountable.
Darla holds no anger at the dad who, she said, wasn't there for her and is proud for the duty he served in Vietnam. Her maternal granddad was also in the army and she has a great respect for our county's military.
She is, however, most thankful for the mom with a big heart and feels she never went without, even when the family expanded to include Shawn (MHS 1992) Janey, (MHS 1996), Sherwin, (MHS 1997), and Raelyn (MHS 1998).
With Sonny and Taryn both working at the Turquoise Ridge mine, and while Rayelle's at college, Darla is often the sole parent of Shandon and Cree. She and Sonny work around their days apart and give each other a lot of support. Sonny likes his work and has found an outlet for his boxing passion by starting a boxing club in Elko, and he is currently training some fighters for the Buckskin Gloves Tournament that will be held in Fort Hall, Idaho, in April.
Darla plans to keep chipping away at a degree in education, and recently challenged Rayelle, who has about the same number of credits, to see who can get their degree first! She loves having the opportunity to work with the kids at school and her one time coach, Cindy, has become a good friend that will tell you, "Running into Darla at school always creates a bright spot in the day!"
Darla reminds the kids, "Everything in your life is a learning experience. Stay focused, stay on task, be productive and be accountable. Work hard and be proud of your accomplishments! Never give up! Believe it or not, I remember what it is like to be in your shoes!"
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