Chapter 2: The Search Begins

With the house finally completed, Jason and Maria sat at the breakfast table; over a cup of coffee, they began to strategize how they were going to complete their primary task.

“I think we should do both sides of the family tree at the same time,” Jason said.

“I agree; I can start with my step mother and work backwards, while you start with your father and do the same.”

“At some point the lines will cross, and that will be our goal.”

“We should start with my step mother. I’ll call her later and set up a meeting for us to gather whatever information she has about her parents. I think your side of the family will be the low hanging fruit of this search. You obviously came from money, which usually means a prominent family, more publicity and public access. With my side, we’ll have to hope that the tribe has birth records on everyone who was born on the reservation.”

As they traveled across the Valley of the Sun south of Phoenix, Jason looked out the passenger side window, noting the expanding subdivisions scattered throughout the barren desert landscape and wondered how much time would pass before the desert reclaimed the Valley as its own. After nearly an hour of driving, Maria turned off the highway just past a large casino and hotel complex.

“We’re now on tribal lands, just a couple of minutes more.” Jason was surprised by the number of homes that lined the road, but was even more surprised when she paused before making a turn and pointed to the large buildings in the distance. “There’s the new community school, behind it is the community health center, and over there is the Boys and Girls Club and over there is the Baptist Church. “ The look on Jason’s face must have revealed his astonishment.

“Don’t be surprised at the amount of new construction. What did you expect, a bunch of teepees and a couple of run down trailers? It took a couple of generations for us to understand what we were actually sitting on and how to exploit it; but once we figured it out, we put capitalism to good use. The tribe leased land to builders who built casinos, hotels, and shopping centers, which they sold to others, who assume the risk of running the businesses. Many of us work right here on the Reservation, and when the leases run out, we get back the land, the buildings, and the businesses. In the meantime, the cash flow from those leases helps us to build the community buildings and infrastructure we need in order to keep the tribe intact.”

They had a pleasant dinner with her stepmother. Maria had introduced Jason as her boyfriend and he had won her over as he began to speak to her in her native language. After dinner, she brought out a family scrapbook, which gave them a starting point for their quest. Jason was delighted at seeing the pictures of the three children as they grew up, especially the red head who did not quite seem to fit in with the rest of the family but never seemed to be aware of it.