Fort defiance/chinle area (Flagstaff, Tsaile: motel, buy, school district) - Arizona (AZ) - City-Data Forum

summits53 · 03-28-2007, 10:48 AM

My wife is about to graduate from nursing school , and is considering working as a nurse on on of the reservations in the fort defiance/chinle area.My question is to anyone out there , I know she will be fine , but how will it be for me? Is there any decent work to be had there?how is the climate? Are whites well recieved?I am an outdoor enthusiast,what would my oppurtunities be like for recreation?how far would I have to commute to find a decent job.Is housing OK,or would we be best suited to living in government housing set aside for the employees of the hospital and clinic workers.I know it wont be like living on the front range here , but will it be completly miserable for me while she pursues this? any responses would be appreciated.

grisandole · 03-28-2007, 02:02 PM

Hi! My husband is a teacher on a rez,and we live here in teacher housing, so I feel qualified to answer, lol.

Jobs for you will be difficult to come by, unless you can do something at the hospital/clinic or for the school district or the BIA (those are the main employers on reservations). You can't buy a house, you'll be limited to the government housing which, IME is decent, but I'm sure that varies by location. We actually lived in IHS housing (what you'd be living in) until something opened up in the school district housing, and the housing was nice and well-maintained (better than the school district, lol!).

There is plenty of outdoor stuff to do, my husband has been up to that area and it is gorgeous.

We haven't encountered any problems with racisim, but we are on a different reservation. Honestly, I think much of that depends on attitude and how you adjust to a different culture.

Winters get cold up there, summers are hot

I hope this helps.

grisandole · 03-28-2007, 02:04 PM

If you really want to work, it might be better to find a reservation job that is commutable to an off-reservation town, like where we live

or areas of the Navajo that are closer to Flagstaff.

AksarbeN · 03-28-2007, 03:43 PM

I would strongly advise that you first visit the area before making any commitments. While my wife and I did visit the area about two years ago I can only speak from an outside opinion. The area of the national park is very nice to visit. The people who live there and helped us with our tour of the area and we stayed several nights at the motel were also very pleasant. We had a wonderful time when we visited. Would I find living there a problem? YES ~ I’m not accustomed to the way of life and the lack of social needs that are there. You can’t go shopping without driving long distances. Prices of goods are much higher because everything is trucked in and limited in quantities. It’s a long way from anyplace and can become very isolated for people who are not use to the life.

summits53 · 03-28-2007, 07:27 PM

Thank you to both of you for the info.I was aware that it was quite remote , and Im fine with that , but I either need to find work or find a university to attend in the area.And we were planning on a visit , as a matter of fact it is mandatory we visit at least 3 of the sites that are hiring before we are even allowed to make a commitment.Again thatks so much for the help , any other info would be greatly appreciated.

grisandole · 04-11-2007, 03:00 PM

Well, you'll have to do an online university, which is what I do

alligax43 · 08-05-2013, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by summits53

My wife is about to graduate from nursing school , and is considering working as a nurse on on of the reservations in the fort defiance/chinle area.My question is to anyone out there , I know she will be fine , but how will it be for me? Is there any decent work to be had there?how is the climate? Are whites well recieved?I am an outdoor enthusiast,what would my oppurtunities be like for recreation?how far would I have to commute to find a decent job.Is housing OK,or would we be best suited to living in government housing set aside for the employees of the hospital and clinic workers.I know it wont be like living on the front range here , but will it be completly miserable for me while she pursues this? any responses would be appreciated.

I know this is an old post. I was wondering if you (and wife) went to ft Defiance? If so what was it like? How is cell phone and internet signal? What about altitude? Is it common for outsiders to get altitude sickness? What was housing like? I am looking to do 16 wks of travel nursing there. Hope to hear from you

Wynternight · 08-06-2013, 12:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alligax43

I know this is an old post. I was wondering if you (and wife) went to ft Defiance? If so what was it like? How is cell phone and internet signal? What about altitude? Is it common for outsiders to get altitude sickness? What was housing like? I am looking to do 16 wks of travel nursing there. Hope to hear from you

I worked in Chinle, about an hour or so from Ft. Defiance. My ex worked there so I saw the hospital and the housing and did pass by there quite often in the six months I was in Chinle.

The hospital and housing are both beautiful and new. The area is nice, rural but close to Gallup for when you want all the amenities. I don't know about internet there but there are parts around Ft. Defiance where I would always lose cell service. Internet in Chinle is very, very slow but Ft. Defiance might be better. I know the plan is to wire the Navajo Nation for broadband in the next year or two.

Chinle is at 7000 feet and Tsaile 7400, Ft. Defiance is lower. I never had any issues with the altitude anywhere in the area, not there and not when I went to Colorado and hit 10000 ft.

I loved my time on the Nation, the people were wonderful, the area is beautiful and I would go back if I were to travel again and a position opened.

Big Pharma · 08-07-2013, 10:05 PM

I'm working at the Fort Defiance hospital now. The housing is great and there are lots of giant red rocks to gawk at or climb on. Having a blast. Let me know if you want any specifics.

nike M · 06-13-2014, 10:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Pharma

I'm working at the Fort Defiance hospital now. The housing is great and there are lots of giant red rocks to gawk at or climb on. Having a blast. Let me know if you want any specifics.

This post is old, but I want to ask do you know something about the school district around, esp, the high school?