During the 23rd Annual ND Indian Child Welfare and Wellness conference hosted by the Native American Training Institute, Judicial Referee Dan Gast was honored with receiving this year’s runner up ICWA Champion Award. The ND ICWA Champion Award is intended to honor those who go above and beyond when serving Native American children and families. The Indian Child Welfare Act requires additional attention be paid to the services provided to Native American families. The extra protections afforded to Native American children and families require compassion and diligence. Understanding the foundation of the law and applying as intended are essential for Tribal family health and safety. All families deserve empathy, caring attitudes and attentive work. Tribal communities, unfortunately, do not have the resources to serve all their Tribal members in the way Tribal Nations wish they could, so empathic and diligent service to Tribal families is greatly appreciated. The Native American Training Institute on behalf of the four North Dakota Tribes honors individuals who provide superior service to Native American children and families who have entered the child welfare system. Below is the nomination letter received by NATI outlining the dedication to best practices in child welfare and ICWA law.
“I would like to share with the committee why my nominee is deserving of this award. I have witnessed acts of empathy, generosity, leniency, strong advocacy, upholding the Law and the Spirit of the Indian Child Welfare Act, along with observing Judicial Referee Daniel Gast ensuring all agencies involved are providing cultural and meaningful services needed to lead to positive change for the long-term to the families. During one of my cases, I was about to give my qualified expert witness testimony when one of the parents showed up late for the Termination of Parental Right Status Conference court hearing. Judicial Referee Daniel Gast allowed the parent to join the court hearing, vacated the motions of placing both parents in default even though the other parent wasn’t present, and granted the request for the continuance of this court hearing to be scheduled for another day allowing for the parents to keep their parental rights and the opportunity for both parents to be present at the next scheduled court hearing. Judicial Referee Daniel Gast encouraged the parent present to keep completing services and for both parents to be on time and present at the next court hearing so they can keep their parental rights and to stay in touch with their lawyers so their voices can be heard at future court proceedings. I never witnessed such advocacy and compassion to allow and give every opportunity for reunification to occur; to preserve and protect families in child custody proceedings from a judicial referee before in my lifetime. It was a touching experience that I will never forget and gives me hope in the justice system again.”
At left, Judicial Referree Dan Gast at the North Dakota Indian Child Welfare and Wellness Conference.
