The road through adolescence to adulthood isn’t always easy, nor does it always move in a straight line. Often, our journeys take a variety of seemingly unconnected twists and turns, only to turn out exactly as they should.
Meet Tyler Sice. Born and raised in the Pueblo of Zuni, Tyler attended middle and high school in nearby Ramah, New Mexico, graduating in 2014.
“I was thinking about college, but money was the biggest issue,” Tyler remembers. “At the time, my mom worked at UNM (University of New Mexico), but I wanted to do something else.
“I wasn’t outgoing then, like I am now,” he continues with a smile. “I needed to do something to center myself.”
Inspired by his grandfather, who served in the U.S. Navy, Tyler decided to join the Army National Guard. He served for eight years, with the last two as a reservist; he left military service in April 2022.
“It really turned my life around,” he says. “I learned discipline and how to manage adult responsibilities. That’s ingrained in my head now. The military gave me the structure I needed, and I was strict about it. I did everything to a T.”
In 2018, one of Tyler’s friends told him they should join ZYEP’s youth basketball league as community coaches. Tyler realized he could take on this role during his free time from the National Guard, so he agreed — and suddenly became a head coach with his own team of 7- to 9-year-olds.
“It was hilarious,” he recalls, laughing. “I was a military specialist, but I couldn’t talk to kids the same way. They were running all over. We had a lot of good laughs, and we all learned new skills.
“I loved it,” he adds. “I loved seeing the kids’ eyes light up, seeing their smiles, hearing their laughs. Introducing kids to a sport and helping them learn gave me such a sense of accomplishment.”
Tyler decided to continue serving as a basketball coach during subsequent seasons. He only missed spring 2020, when the start of the Covid pandemic suspended the league, and spring 2022, when was attending school full time.
“I was doing vocational training through MyComputerCareer,” he explains. “It was their Information Technology Security and Administration Program. I have three certifications in information technology, because working in the IT realm was my original dream.”
The dream shifted for a couple of unexpected reasons. For starters, Tyler realized he enjoys being creative, and on the network side, IT doesn’t leave much room for creativity. So he made the jump into software development.
“I learned that there’s not that much interaction with Native symbolism in the app world,” he says. “I like to draw, and I discovered ways to be creative with the technology. In the last couple of years, I’ve been learning to build simple platforms using online resources.”
Next, Tyler made the decision to join the ZYEP staff. He originally signed up for the seasonal Agriculture Support Team, but with encouragement from Operations Manager Josh Kudrna, he took a full-time position as the youth project’s physical activity coordinator.
“Joining ZYEP was such a good opportunity for connecting with my traditional roots,” he says. “Cultural teachings really helped ground me when I was in the military.”
To take on the full-time position, Tyler knew he had to stop coaching. He simply wouldn’t have time, as he now was responsible for facilitating all of ZYEP’s physical activities.
“ZYEP is an important part of our community,” he says. “Kids need something to do. They need opportunities to interact with each other outside the school environment, and engage with community members as well. They need a safe place where they can have fun.”
When Tyler isn’t busy with his work or post-secondary educational pursuits, he says he enjoys traditional activities like archery (especially now, with the start of Daylight Saving Time) and weaving.
“I learned weaving from Elroy and Kandis (Natachu Jr. and Quam, ZYEP’s arts coordinator and assistant arts coordinator),” he says. “During Summer Camp, they needed help, so I said, ‘Sure! Teach me how!’ It’s one of my favorite pastimes now.”
As far as software development is concerned, Tyler says he would like to finish his formal education. He is looking at three schools with online programs, because his work at ZYEP remains important to him.
“ZYEP is the foundation of how I look at life now,” he says. “After the military, I wasn’t very healthy in body or mind. I never knew that first basketball season here at ZYEP would be a turning point in my life.”
As it turns out, when we create healthy, healing spaces for kids, we soon discover that they are healthy and healing for us, too.
