Founder Recalls Early Days of Indian Guides

Like a lot of fathers, all Bob Mercer really wanted was a little more quality time with his son. But the way he went about getting it produced some extraordinary results.

The family program Mercer helped start at the Mid-Valley YMCA--the first Indian Guides program in the Los Angeles area--recently celebrated its 51st anniversary. Using much the same formula as it did in the early days, Indian Guides involves mainly outdoor and craft activities designed to foster closer bonds between parents and children. Mothers and daughters are now included.

As remarkable as Mercer’s long-standing ties to the Indian Guides is that through the program, his son, Dave, began an association with the YMCA that has seen him become its executive director in the United States.

“One of the greatest satisfactions I’ve ever had was that his start with the YMCA was with Indian Guides,” the 82-year-old Van Nuys resident said.

On a recent weeknight, a few dozen parents and children gathered at the Y for the powwow and recruitment night held by the Yang-Na Nation, the “tribe” serving the mid-Valley area. Kids, some wearing headdresses and war paint, banged drums and sang along with adults teaching Native American songs.

Though encouraged by the turnout, Bob Mercer expressed some wistfulness about the program, which competes for families’ attention with myriad modern attractions. In this fast-paced era, the need for Indian Guides is stronger than ever, Mercer says. But participation is on the decline.

“The heyday was in the middle ‘60s,” Mercer said. “It’s smaller now, but it’s still a good program.

“But then, people just don’t want to get into things like they once did. Rotaries are smaller than they used to be. Churches are smaller.”