Gone joins Bear Paw Battlefield

Sarah Gone joined the Bear Paw Battlefield Park staff in September, 2015. No stranger to the park, the Fort Belknap woman worked with the National Park Service each summer while a college student, from 2008-2012. Now she’s back and trying to determine a new direction, having completed law school at the University of Montana last spring. She is preparing to sit for the bar exam this coming February.

Gone graduated from Harlem High School in 2007. She went on to complete two bachelor’s degrees, at U of M, one in sociology, with an emphasis in criminology and inequality and social justice. Her second undergraduate degree was in anthropology with a concentration in forensic science. Upon completion of law school she said, “The Park Service reached out to me to come work for them. It seemed like a nice break from the rigors of law school and I accepted. My idea was to work into some sort of legal position in the Park Service or the Bureau of Indian Affairs. My goal has always been to practice law.”

She explained she is currently not an employee of the Park Service but is an intern with the Student Conservation Association (SCA). Interns are not paid a salary but receive a stipend for housing and living expenses. The SCA partners with the Park Service to “build the next generation of conservation leaders and inspire lifelong stewardship of the environment…by engaging young people in hands–on service to the land.” Gone explained the internship runs for eight weeks and can be renewed.

Gone said she enjoys working with the Park Service but admitted her real passion is the law. While in law school she took additional credits to receive a certification in American Indian Law. She added, “The University of Montana has one of the best developed Indian Law programs in the country. The additional credits helped me get a better understanding of Indian law and prepare me the issues I’ll see in tribal court. Indian law is where I see my career leading.”

She said she would eventually like to return to Fort Belknap and work in the tribal court system. Gone explained that each native tribe has its own legal code that is used to guide tribal court activities.

Sarah Gone is very well connected to the Fort Belknap Indian Community. During an internship with Island Mountain Development Group, a local economic development group at Fort Belknap, she helped write a business plan for what eventually became Discover Fort Belknap Tourism, an organization that promotes tourism opportunities on the Fort Belknap Reservation. Her father, Ray Gone, is the Director of the tourism organization she helped define as a student.

Gone says she is at a bit of a crossroads, looking to prepare for the upcoming bar exam and serving at Bear Paw Battlefield as an intern. And, as she puts it, “Taking a break from the law.”

Likely Sarah Gone will discern her career path and follow it with enthusiasm and solid preparation.