Legacy of warmth: Chizh for Cheii firewood mission grows
Special to the Times | Donovan Quintero
Logs sit stacked at the Church Rock Chapter grounds on Jan. 18, 2026, as volunteers with Chizh for Cheii prepare firewood for distribution to elders, families and veterans.
By Donovan Quintero
Special to the Times
CHURCH ROCK, N.M. – The high-pitched whine of chainsaws and the thud of split pine echoed across the Church Rock Chapter grounds Sunday as volunteers worked in steady rotation, turning long logs into stove-ready firewood.
By late afternoon, sawdust coated boots and jackets, and pickup trucks sat heavy with loads bound for elders, families and veterans living across the Navajo Nation.
At the center of the effort were Chizh for Cheii founder Loren Anthony and his wife, Shoshonia Anthony, both running chainsaws as part of a carefully coordinated operation. Adults and youth moved between cutting, splitting, stacking and loading, a system built on safety, communication and shared responsibility.
“When I first started Chizh For Cheii, it was just a way for me to stay sober, stay away from everybody,” Anthony said. “Giving loads to elders in need was a pathway. It gave me purpose and direction.”
What began as a personal act of recovery has grown into a far-reaching mutual-aid network. Anthony said Chizh for Cheii delivered roughly 10,000 loads of firewood last year alone, along with coal, blankets, sleeping bags, gloves, beanies and food boxes when available.
“This isn’t just hauling wood,” Anthony said. “We’re carrying emotions and distributing them in a positive way. A lot of people are forgotten, elders, men, women, kids. When people come out here and do the work, they realize their life means something.”
To read the full article, please see the Jan. 22, 2026, edition of the Navajo Times.
Get instant access to this story by purchasing one of our many e-edition subscriptions HERE at our Navajo Times Store.
Highway 264,
I-40, WB @ Winslow