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Making Kanuchi
Roland Hotel Opens
Rodeo Success
Cherokee National Treasure Edith
Knight shares how to make the
traditional dish. CULTURE, 18
The nine-story hotel tower has
120 rooms, many of which are
king and queen rooms. NEWS, 2
2 Cherokees bring home prize
money and awards from the allIndian competition. PEOPLE, 17
January 2016 • cherokeephoenix.org
CHEROKEE
PR SRT STD
US POSTAGE
PAID
PERMIT NO 49
STIGLER, OK 74462
STIGLER PRINTING
187 Years of Cherokee Journalism
PHOENIX
CN to mail combo hunting, fishing licenses
Included will be
letters explaining the
combination certificates,
which are Cherokee
Nation- and state-issued.
BY WILL CHAVEZ
Interim Executive Editor
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – A three-year
hunting and fishing compact between the
Cherokee Nation and state governments is
set to begin in January as the tribe prepares to
mail nearly 100,000 combination hunting and
fishing licenses.
The licenses were expected to be mailed to
CN citizens in late December, and as the tribe
gathers more correct addresses for its citizens,
more licenses were expected to be sent out
after the first of the year, CN Attorney General
Todd Hembree said.
“With the hunting and fishing, the
implementation is going very well. We will
be issuing approximately 95,000 licenses,”
Hembree said.
Included in the mailing would be a letter
explaining the combination hunting and
fishing license, which is CN- and state-issued.
“The chief wanted to get this done by the
first of the year, and we’re getting the vast
majority of it done,” Hembree said.
CN citizens who do not receive a hunting
and fishing license in the first mailing can
contact the Cherokee Nation Tax Commission
to provide a current mailing address or get
more information about signing up to receive
a hunting and fishing license.
“The more we can get the word out to get
that completed, that’s all the better,” he said.
CN officials anticipated they would
be sending out the licenses in two waves
of approximately 75,000, Hembree said.
However, he said the figure is actually closer
to 95,000 for the first wave.
In May, Principal Chief Bill John Baker and
Gov. Mary Fallin signed a compact to provide
the licenses to CN citizens. The compact
allows CN citizens to hunt and fish in all 77
Oklahoma counties. Baker said he was proud
the CN was the first tribe to compact with the
state in proper recognition of the tribe’s longheld treaty rights to hunt and fish.
Hembree said the compact does not waiver
the tribe’s sovereignty but solidifies already
established hunting and fishing rights given to
the CN by treaty, and is a “win-win” for the
Nation and the state.
He added that the compact is also an
alternative to fighting for hunting and fishing
rights in court, which would cost hundreds of
thousands dollars, if not millions of dollars.
The compact states the CN will purchase
and issue a minimum of 150,000 compact
licenses for its tribal citizens living in
Oklahoma between the ages of 16 and 65 at a
cost of $2 a piece, which would equal $300,000
annually.
Along with the combination hunting and
fishing license, one free deer tag and one
free turkey tag will go to each CN citizen, as
outlined in the compact.
Hembree said the tribe’s hunting and fishing
laws already mirror the state’s laws, so that was
not a big issue during the negotiations.
Chavez named
Cherokee
Phoenix’s
interim editor
“COMMITMENT TO EDUCATION”
Senior Reporter Will
Chavez replaces former
Executive Editor Bryan
Pollard, who tendered his
resignation Dec. 4.
BY BRITTNEY BENNETT
Intern
Female Seminary, the oldest institution
of higher learning for women west of the
Mississippi River. It is also among the oldest
buildings on any Oklahoma college campus
and was added to the National Register of
Historic Places in 1973.
“The generosity of the Cherokee people and
their commitment to higher education have
come together in an unprecedented way,”
NSU President Steve Turner said. “Seminary
Hall has been and will continue to be a
symbol of courage, hope and determination.
Principal Chief Baker’s leadership continues
to have a tremendous impact, not only on
NSU, but on the entire state.”
To date, the $4 million contribution is the
largest single donation to NSU’s five-year
fundraising campaign, which seeks to bring
in $20.925 million to go towards
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Cherokee
Phoenix Editorial Board named Senior
Reporter Will Chavez as interim executive
editor effective immediately during its Dec. 8
meeting via conference call.
“I appreciate the
board’s confidence in
me,” Chavez said. “I just
want to emphasize that
we have a good staff
and a good newspaper.
I hope to improve a few
things and make it an
even better product for
our citizens.”
Will Chavez
Chavez earned a
mass communications degree in 1993 from
Northeastern State University with minors in
marketing and psychology. He has worked in
the newspaper and public relations field for
more than 20 years. He
has performed public
relations work for the
Cherokee Nation and
had been a reporter and
a photographer for the
Cherokee Phoenix for
more than two decades.
Chavez will serve
indefinitely
until
the Editorial Board Bryan Pollard
recommends
to
Principal Chief Bill John
Baker a permanent executive editor. Board
Chairman Luke Barteaux said a search would
begin in January.
“I believe Mr. Chavez will be able to
accomplish his duties as interim executive
editor while the Editorial Board conducts a
search for a permanent executive editor that
will meet all of the requirements as set out in
the Independent Press Amendment Act of
2009, including that they must be a citizen of
See SEMINARY, 2
See EDITOR, 2
Principal Chief Bill John Baker, left, and Northeastern State University President Steve Turner hold a copy of the original blue prints
of Seminary Hall located on the NSU campus in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The copy contains written notes and was gifted to Baker and
the CN by NSU. JAMI MURPHY/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
CN, CNB donate $4M to
NSU’s Seminary Hall
The donation will be
spread out during the
course of four years.
BY LENZY KREHBIEL-BURTON
Special Correspondent
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – Cherokee Nation
Businesses is making a multi-million
dollar gift towards the modernization and
maintenance of a Cherokee landmark.
On Dec. 2, officials with the Cherokee
Nation and CNB announced a $4 million
contribution to NSU’s “Preserve our Past,
ENSUre Our Future” fundraising campaign.
The donation, which comes out of CNB
Cultural Tourism department’s budget, will
be spread out over the course of four years.
It is earmarked for the renovation and
restoration of Seminary Hall, which houses
classrooms, faculty and administration
affiliated with NSU’s College of Liberal Arts
and serves about 1,700 students annually.
Along with replacing and repairing
electrical wiring, floor joists, window sashes
and the building’s air systems, some of the
funds will also go to establishing a Cherokee
museum in the facility.
NSU Vice President of University Relations
Ben Hardcastle said the university hopes to
start working on the project within the next
three to five years.
“Our compacts and partnerships…have
put us in a position to be able to say yes to a
project like this so that in seven generations,
our descendants can continue to see our
tribe’s commitment to education,” Principal
Chief Bill John Baker said.
Prior to statehood in 1907, the 126-year-old
building was the second site of the Cherokee
State TOTA honors sisters who survived Trail of Tears
The descendants of Arminda and
Irene England, along with Oklahoma
Trail of Tears Association, recognize
the two Cherokee women.
BY WILL CHAVEZ
BY WILL CHAVEZ
VINITA, Okla. – Until recently, the Schrimsher Cemetery,
about 6 miles northwest of Vinita, was forgotten and overgrown
with trees and grass. Today it has a new fence surrounding and
protecting it from cattle, and the trees and tall grass have been
cut away.
On Nov. 14, the descendants of Arminda and Irene England,
who are buried in the cemetery, gathered there with Oklahoma
Trail of Tears Association members to honor the two Cherokee
women. As children they traveled the Trail of Tears to Indian
Territory with the Richard Taylor detachment.
The detachment left near Ross’s Landing on the Tennessee
River on Sept. 20, 1838, with 1,029 people and arrived near
what is now Westville on March 24, 1839. It had 55 deaths and
See TOTA, 3
Wesley Harris, of Heber Springs, Arkansas, reads the
biography of his great-great-grandmother, Arminda
England, during a Nov. 14 ceremony at the Schrimsher
Cemetery northwest of Vinita, Oklahoma. England traveled
and survived the Trail of Tears with her parents when she
was 7. WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
ᏙᏧᏓᏝᎥᎢ, ᎣᎦᎳᎰᎹ. – ᎾᏞᎬᏭ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩᏃ Ꮎ
Schrimsher ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗᎢ, ᎢᎸᏂᏢᏃ 6 ᎢᏳᏟᎶᏓ ᎤᏴᏢᎢ
ᎤᏕᎵᎬᎢ ᏙᏧᏓᏝᎥᎢ ᎠᏂᎩᏓ, ᎥᎿᎾᏃ ᎤᏅᎨᏫᏒᎢ ᎠᎴ ᎤᏜᏴᏒᎢ
ᎨᏒᎢ ᏕᏡᎬᎢ ᎠᎴ ᎦᏒᎸᏒᎢ. ᎪᎯᏃ ᎢᎦ ᎢᏤᎢ ᎠᏐᏯ ᎠᎴ ᏩᎦ
ᎥᏝ ᏱᎬᏂᏴᎭ, ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏕᏡᎬᏃ ᏚᏃᏅᎢ ᎤᏜᏴᏒᏃ ᎦᏒᎸᎯ
ᎤᏂᎦᎵᏒᎢ.
ᎾᎯᏳᏃ ᏅᏓᏕᏆ.14 ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ Ꮎ Arminda ᎠᎴ
Irene England ᏂᏓᏳᎾᏓᎴᏅᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᏥᏕᎦᏂᏌᎲ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗ, ᎤᎾᏓᏟᏌᎲᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᏁᎸᎢ ᎣᎦᎳᎰᎹ Trail
of Tears Association ᎠᏁᎳ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏓᏂᎸᏉᏗᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎠᏂᏔᎵ ᎠᏂᎨᏯ. ᏗᏂᏲᏟᏃ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᎠᏁᎸᏃ ᏥᏗᎨᏥᎢᎸᏍᏔᏅᎢ
ᏴᏫᏯᏍᏛᎢ ᏍᎦᏚᎩ ᎤᏂᎷᏤᎢ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ Richard Taylor
ᏓᏘᏁᎲᎢ.
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᎾᏓᏡᎬᎢ ᎤᎾᏂᎩᏒᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᎾᎥᎢ ᎫᏫᏍᎫᏫ
ᏧᏂᏐᎯᏍᏗᎢ ᏔᏂᏏᎢ ᎡᏉᏂ ᎤᏪᏴᎢ ᎾᎯᏳᎢ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᏚᎵᏍᏗ.
20, 1838, ᎾᏍᎩ 1,029 ᎢᏳᏂᏨᎢ ᏴᏫ ᎠᏁᎸᎢ ᎠᎴ ᎤᏂᎷᏨᎢ
ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᎾᎯᏳᎢ ᎠᏅᏱ 24, 1839 ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᎪᎯᏴᎢ ᏥᎩ ᎢᎪᏗᎢ
ᎠᏃᏎᎰᎢ. 55 ᎢᏯᏂᎢ ᏚᏂᏲᎱᏒᎢ ᎠᎴ 15 ᎢᏯᏂᎢ ᏚᎾᏕᏅᎢ
ᎾᎯᏳᎢ ᏗᏁᎬᎢ.
Arminda England ᏂᏓᏳᏓᎴᏅᎢ Wesley Harris, ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
Heber Springs, ᏚᏯᏓᏛᎢ, ᎡᎯ ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎯᎸᏍᎩ
ᎾᏕᏘ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᎤᎪᎲᎢ ᏣᎳᎩ ᏧᎴᎯᏌᏅᎢ ᏗᎦᎴᏴᏔᏅᎢ ᎪᏪᎵ
ᎪᏪᎸᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎢᎪᏪᎸᏃ ᏕᎦᏂᏌᎲᎢ ᎬᏂᎨᏒᎢ ᏂᏓᏅᏁᎲᎢ
See TOTA, 3
2
CHEROKEE PHOENIX • January 2016
News • dgZEksf
Ewf #>hAmh • uZkt/ 2016
EDITOR
from front page
A hotel clerk works at the front desk of the new hotel at the Cherokee Hotel-Casino Roland on Dec. 10. The ninestory hotel tower has 120 rooms, many of them king and queen rooms. WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
CNE opens new hotel at Roland casino
The nine-story hotel
tower has 120 rooms,
many of which are king
and queen rooms.
BY WILL CHAVEZ
ROLAND, Okla. – Cherokee Nation
Businesses’ newest hotel-casino in
eastern Sequoyah County towers above
the surrounding community and lights
up the sky like a beacon in the night. A
ribbon-cutting ceremony was held for
the hotel portion of the 170,000-squarefoot gaming destination on Dec. 10 with
CNB staff, Cherokee Nation leaders, as
well as city and state leaders.
The nine-story hotel tower has 120
rooms, many of which are king- and
queen-sized. CNB officials said they
expect the hotel-casino to attract people
across the state line from Arkansas,
especially people in Fort Smith that has
a population of nearly 88,000.
Chad McReynolds, Cherokee HotelCasino Roland general manager, said
the casino and hotel has “something for
everybody.”
“We had a hotel that was sufficient,
but this is taking everything a step up,
and it’s much more of a luxury, resortstyle hotel,” he said. “Guests want to
come here and want to spend their
entire weekend here. They’ll come in
and dine in the buffet, which is really
taking off. They might enjoy the live
entertainment we have on Friday and
Saturday nights, and they’ll also enjoy
the games we have over the weekend.
They really don’t have to leave the
property for anything unless they
choose to.”
McReynolds said the old casino
and hotel could not meet the demand
customers had for Las Vegas-style
amenities, which is why the CNB board
of directors allocated funding for the
new hotel and casino. The facilities are
situated 4 miles from Fort Smith and
next to Interstate-40 and State Hwy 64.
“It has an atmosphere that when
you walk in the door you realize you’re
in an entertainment destination and
you’re going to have a good time,”
McReynolds said.
Roland was the site of the tribe’s first
gaming facility, a bingo hall that opened
25 years ago.
Principal Chief Bill John Baker said
the tribe’s newest destination is a “far
cry” from the bingo hall, which was set
up in a former sewing factory next to
where the $80 million hotel and casino
now sit.
The bingo hall eventually turned
into a casino but lagged behind the
tribe’s other casinos in amenities
and attractions for customers. It was
recently torn down to make room for
more parking.
“There is no doubt in my mind, no
matter where
SCAN
we go, we are
CODE
the biggest and
TO SEE
the best and
VIDEO
the top of the
market,” Baker
said before cutting the ribbon.
He added that the hotel’s rooms and
suites are “what first class really looks
like.”
He also thanked the casino and
hotel’s employees and said their hard
work contributes to the funding used
to build health clinics and homes for
Cherokee people.
He also thanked the Tribal Council
and CNB board for their efforts to fund
and get the casino and hotel built.
Dist. 5 Tribal Councilor David
Thornton said the new facility is
bringing a better quality of life for the
Cherokee people working at the casino
and hotel.
The updated casino added 100 jobs
to the 320 jobs that were available at
the previous 50,000-square-foot casino.
Cherokee leaders broke ground for the
new casino and hotel in April 2014.
The casino has 850 electronic games,
nine table games and four poker tables.
There are also two dining options, a
grab-and-go café and a Las Vegas-style
buffet with 350 seats.
“You’re welcome here. Rent a room,
play a game, and have fun,” CNB CEO
Shawn Slaton said during the ribboncutting the ceremony.
Tribes file brief supporting Mississippi Choctaws
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
WASHINGTON – On Dec. 7,
arguments were heard for a U.S.
Supreme Court case involving a
Mississippi Choctaw minor who was
sexually assaulted while working at a
Dollar General store.
Cherokee Nation Attorney General
Todd Hembree, who filed an amicus
brief along with other tribes, said after
the hearing that arguments went well.
“We expect it to be a 5-4 decision
and it will likely come down to Justice
(Anthony) Kennedy,” Hembree said.
“There is a need for all Indian tribes to
make sure their court systems are well
set up and provide ample due process
for those being prosecuted.”
He added that the Cherokee Nation’s
court system is well set up, but come
January or February he hopes to further
develop the tribe’s civil code. “It can
always be improved,” he said.
The Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee
(Creek), Seminole and Cherokee
nations of Oklahoma filed an amicus
brief supporting the Mississippi Band
of Choctaw Indians’ case.
The civil suit was filed in the
Mississippi tribe’s court by the family
of the minor. It alleges that the Dollar
General’s store manager sexually
assaulted the boy several times during
work hours. The tribes’ amicus brief
states each tribe exercises jurisdictions
within Oklahoma’s boundaries.
“Each tribe’s constitution establishes
a system of independent courts that, in
accordance with applicable tribal and
federal law, resolves disputes arising in
tribal territory involving members and
nonmembers. The question presented
in this case concerns the scope of those
courts’ jurisdiction. Amici thus have an
interest in the Court’s resolution of that
question,” the brief states.
Cherokee Nation Assistant Attorney
General John C. Young said the
Supreme Court would address whether
tribal courts have jurisdiction over civil
tort claims against non-Indians who
enter into consensual relationships with
the tribe and whose conduct causes
harm to Indian children on tribal land.
“Because tribal courts generally lack
criminal jurisdiction over non-Indians,
the ability to assert civil jurisdiction
over non-Indians represents the sole
means for the tribe to protect tribal
citizens from harm caused by non-
Indians on tribal land,” Young said.
“The issue is of the utmost importance
to the Cherokee Nation, as it touches
upon the tribe’s sovereign right to
govern and protect tribal citizens on
tribal lands.”
He said matters should be resolved
exclusively before the tribal court as
they are completely inappropriate
for the state courts, which generally
lack jurisdiction over tribal lands and
have limited knowledge or interest in
vindicating tribal law.
The ability to prosecute nonNative people within tribal court is an
“incredibly important tool to have to
protect our people,” Young said.
According to a National Indigenous
Women’s Resource Center release,
supporters rallied on Dec. 7 at the
Supreme Court building.
“Dollar General’s attempt to avoid
any accountability for the alleged
conduct of its supervisor through
this case could have far-reaching and
devastating consequences for the
ability of Indian tribes to protect their
Native women and children,” said Lucy
Simpson, NIWRC executive director.
Hembree estimated that a decision
could be made in two to four months.
the Cherokee Nation and that they will adhere to the standards
of accepted ethics of journalism as defined by the Society of
Professional Journalists and endorsed by the Native American
Journalists Association,” Barteaux said. Chavez indicated he
would apply when the job officially opens.
“I plan to apply when the job opens, and hopefully I can
continue as editor and continue the work that we’re going to
get started on this week,” he said. “The managers and I have
already met and we’re looking at improving a few things and
making a few changes to benefit the staff and the newspaper.”
Vice Chairwoman Kendra McGeady made the motion
to appoint Chavez and board member Maxie Thompson
seconded.
“Will Chavez has been with the Cherokee Phoenix for I
think 18 years and he has institutional and personal knowledge
of all the issues pertaining to management of the Phoenix,”
said McGeady. “I believe that his presence in the position will
minimize the disruption of the day-to-day operations and
ensure a smooth transition.”
Barteaux echoed McGeady in the decision to appoint
Chavez as interim executive editor.
“Mr. Chavez has over 20 years of experience in the
newspaper and public relations field, and he is the senior
reporter for Cherokee Phoenix,” he said. “I believe he has the
pulse of the Cherokee Nation and will be able to successfully
lead the Cherokee Phoenix during this time of transition.”
Chavez replaces former Executive Editor Bryan Pollard,
who submitted his resignation Dec. 4.
The resignation comes after McGeady made the motion to
“remove Bryan Pollard as editor for cause” during the board’s
Nov. 20 meeting. Board members declined to comment on
the specific allegations made against Pollard, citing it as a
personnel issue.
Pollard was placed on paid administrative leave on Dec. 7
until his term was officially completed on Dec. 31, a move that
the CN Attorney General’s Office called a “routine practice” in
cases concerning resignation in upper-level management.
Pollard had worked for the Phoenix since 2003. During his
tenure as executive editor, he implemented new products such
as the website cherokeephoenix.org, a mobile app, a weekly
electronic newsletter, a weekly radio show, online videos and
the adoption of social media pages.
“I appreciate the opportunity the Cherokee Phoenix has
provided for me to serve my fellow Cherokees by providing
them with a top-notch news outlet,” he said. “We’ve
accomplished much in my time as executive editor, and I leave
the Phoenix with a strong foundation for continued success.
I’m happy to say that I will continue to serve Indian Country
in my new role, and I’ll be announcing that soon.”
In other news, the Editorial Board again tabled a motion
regarding the Cherokee Advocate, a proposed publication that
would focus on a single topic such as education, arts, culture,
health or travel each quarter.
The board also set its next meeting for 10 a.m. on Jan. 5. To
listen to the conference call, dial 1-866-210-1669 and enter the
code 4331082.
SEMINARY
from front page
improvements in four areas: opportunities for students,
strengthening the faculty, new and revitalized facilities and
enhancements in athletics.
Just the third capitol campaign in NSU’s history, the
“Preserve Our Past, ENSUre Our Future” drive has brought in
$12.95 million in its first year, including CNB’s contribution.
By comparison, NSU’s previous capitol campaign had a total
goal of $8 million.
On Nov. 20, Principal Chief Baker was announced as one of
the campaign’s three co-chairs, along with fellow NSU alumni
Dr. Denise Roddy, an optometrist originally from Gore; and
Gregg Wadley, the co-founder of the Oklahoma City Chapter
of the American Indian Chamber of Commerce.
Jeff Dunn, chairman of the Regional University System of
Oklahoma, speaks about the $4 million donation made to
Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, by
the Cherokee Nation. JAMI MURPHY/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
2016 Ewf #>hAmh • uZkt/
TOTA
from front page
15 births during the journey.
Arminda England descendant Wesley
Harris, of Heber Sparings, Arkansas, said he
saw a Cherokee Phoenix article several years
ago about a grave marking by the Oklahoma
TOTA and inquired about getting his greatgreat-grandmother’s grave marked.
He said he’s worked with Oklahoma TOTA
President Curtis Rohr to get the grave marked.
He sent Rohr his genealogy to show how he
was related to Arminda, and the association’s
genealogist, David Hampton, researched
Harris’ genealogy to verify the connection.
“Arminda was 7 years old during the Trail
of Tears, and they (her family) settled on
Honey Creek near Grove,” Harris said. “It’s
very humbling to realize what they had to go
through – as a 7-year-old girl in the winter
time having to go that far. It they hadn’t done
it we wouldn’t be here today, and it’s part of my
history, and I’m very proud of it. I’ve always
been proud of it ever since I was a little fella
and my parents would tell us stories about it.”
He said the event allowed the two sisters’
descendants to meet at a luncheon before the
ceremony. Harris said he met his cousin Carol
Wright, of Tulsa, for the first time that day.
Wright
is
the
great-great-greatgranddaughter of Irene England, who traveled
the Trail of Tears at age 10.
Wright said she felt “honored” to be a part
of the ceremony to honor her grandmother.
Wright credits her husband Phil for providing
her with her genealogy and letting her know
of her relations.
“I find it very interesting to find that
these people are important enough to be
remembered for what they’ve done because
when we went to Schrimsher Cemetery it was
this (waist) high in grass. So, it’s nice to know
this has made a difference and the cemetery’s
being taken care of now,” she said.
Harris said the owner of the land where the
cemetery sits, and his family, removed fallen
trees and saplings and mowed the grass. A
wrought iron fence was also placed around
the cemetery to keep out cattle.
Troy Wayne Poteete, executive director of
the National Trail of Tears Association and
CN Supreme Court chief justice, said every
time the TOTA marks the grave of a Trial of
Tears survivor it’s an opportunity for it to tell
the larger Cherokee story, which includes the
story of the two sisters.
“It’s a story of survival, of resilience,
of tenacity. That’s what we celebrate. We
celebrate that they overcame, that they rebuilt
the Cherokee Nation and they handed it off
to the next generation – a distinct political
entity, a distinct cultural entity, a Cherokee
Nation that could hold its own and retain its
identity,” Poteete said. “That’s why we do this.
TOTA
from front page
ᎭᏢᎢᏴ ᎤᎾᏣᏪᏐᎸᏍᏛᎢ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᎣᎦᎳᎰᎹ
TOTA ᎾᏍᎩ ᎬᏩᏂᏍᏕᎵᎠ ᎠᎴ ᎤᎦᏛᏓᏁᎸᎢ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎥᏍᎩ ᏱᎬᏩᏅᏁᏗ ᏱᎩ ᏦᎢ ᏳᎵᏏ
ᎦᏂᏌᎲᎢ.
ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏌᏊ ᏚᏂᎸᏫᏍᏓᏁᎸᎢ
ᎣᎦᎳᎰᎹ TOTA ᏄᎬᏫᏳᏒᎢ Curtis Rohr
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎬᏂᎨᏒᎢ ᎢᏳᏅᏁᏗᎢ ᎠᏤᎵᏍᏛᎢ.
Rohr ᏃᏫᏓᏥᏅᏁᎴᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎬᏂᎨᏒᎢ
ᏂᎬᏁᎯ ᎪᎱᏍᏗᏃ ᎤᏮᏂ ᎨᏒᎢ Arminda,
ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᏂᎦᏛᏂᏙᎯ ᎤᎾᏓᏡᎬᎢ, David
Hampton, ᏃᎤᎦᏛᏂᏙᎸᎢ Harris’ ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎤᏬᎯᏳᏙᏗ ᏙᎯᏳᎯᏯᎢ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᎤᏮᎾ ᏱᎩ.
“Arminda 7 ᎢᏳᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᎨᏒᎢ ᎾᎯᏳᎢ
ᏥᏗᎨᎦᏂᎩᏍᏔᏅᎢ, ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ (ᏏᏓᏁᎸᎢ
ᎤᎾᏙᏢᏒ) ᏧᏁᏅᏒᎢ ᎤᏃ,ᏅᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ Honey
Creek ᏧᏍᏕᏄᎲᎢ ᎾᎥᎢ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ Harris.
“ᎤᏲᎢᏳ ᎠᏓᏅᏓᏗᏍᏗ ᏯᏓᏅᏖᏝ ᏄᏍᏛᎢ
ᎤᏂᎦᏛᎴᏒᎢ- ᎾᏍᎩ 7 ᎢᏳᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᎠᎨᏳᏣ
ᎥᏍᎩ ᏱᎾ ᎤᏂᎩᏍᏗ ᎪᎳᏃ ᎨᏒᎢ. ᎢᏳᏃ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏱᏄᎾᏛᏁᎸᎾ ᏱᎩ ᎥᏝ ᏱᎬᏁᏙᎠ ᎠᎭᏂ
ᎪᎯᏴᏥᎩ, ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏂᎤᏍᏗ ᎬᎧᏃᎮᏗ
ᎤᏪᏘ ᏦᎦᏓᎴᏅᎢ, ᎠᎴ ᎤᎵᏍᎨᏓ ᎠᎩᏰᎸᏐᎢ.
ᏥᏧᏣᏃ ᏂᏗᎬᏓᎴᏂᏍᎩ ᎤᎵᏍᎨᏓ ᎾᎩᏰᎸᏐᎢ
ᎠᎴ ᏗᎩᎬᏴᎵᎨᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᏂᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ.”
ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ
ᎯᎠ
ᏥᏂᎦᎵᏍᏗᎭ
ᎠᎵᏍᎪᏟᏗᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᏂᏔᎵ ᎠᎾᏓᎸᎢ’
ᏂᏓᏳᎾᏓᎴᏅᎢ
ᎾᏍᎩ
ᏧᎾᏠᎯᏍᏗᎢ
ᏧᎾᎵᏍᏓᏰᏗᎢ ᎠᏏ ᏄᎾᎴᏅᏓ ᏓᎾᏠᏍᎬᎢ.
Harris ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ Carol Wright ᎪᎱᏍᏗ
ᎤᏮᏂ ᎤᏩᏛᎲᎢ Tulsa ᎡᎯ ᎩᎳ ᎢᎬᏱᏱᎢ
ᏓᎾᏓᎪᏩᏘᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᎯᏳᎢ ᎢᎪᎯ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ.
Wright Z Irene England ᏦᎢ ᏳᎵᏏ,
ᎾᏍᎩ Ꮓ 10 ᎢᏳᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᎤᏪᎵᏕᎢ
ᏥᏗᎨᎦᏂᎩᏍᏔᏅᎢ.
Wright Ꮓ ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ “ᎠᎵᎮᎵᎬᎢ”
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎬᏪᎳᏗᏍᏗ ᏥᎩ ᎠᏂᎸᏉᏗᏍᎬᎢ
ᎤᎵᏏ. Wright Z ᎠᎵᎮᎵᏤᎰᎢ ᎠᏂᏁᎵ Phil
ᎤᏛᏅᏍᏓᏁᎸᎢ ᎧᏃᎮᏢᏍᎩ ᏧᏓᎴᏅᎲᎢ ᎠᎴ
ᎤᏃᎯᏎᎲᎢ ᎦᎪ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᏧᏮᎾ.
“ᏙᏳᎢ ᎤᏍᏆᏂᎦᏘ ᏥᏰᎸᏍᎪᎢ ᎯᎠ
ᎠᏂᏏᏴᏫᎭ ᏄᎾᎵᏍᎨᏗᏴᎢ ᎨᎦᏅᏛᎢ ᏄᏍᏛᎢ
ᏄᎾᏛᏁᎸᎢ ᏂᏗᎦᎵᏍᏙᏗᎭ ᏦᎨᏅᏒᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
Schrimsher ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ (waist)
ᏂᎦᏛᎢ ᎦᏄᎸᏒᎢ. ᎾᏍᎩᏅ, ᎣᏌᏂᏳᏃ ᏄᏓᎴᎢ
ᏥᏄᎵᏍᏔᎾ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗ ᎤᎾᎦᏎᏍᏛᎢ
ᎾᏊ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ.
Harris Z ᎠᏥᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᏤᎵᎪᎯ ᏥᎩ
ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᏥᏧᏙᏢᎭ ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗ, ᎠᎴ ᎠᏂᏏᏓᏁᎸᎢ,
ᏚᏂᎲᏒᎢ ᏧᎴᏴᏒᎢ ᏕᏡᎬᎢ ᎠᎴ ᏧᏓᎨᎢ ᏕᏡᎬᎢ
ᎠᎴ ᎦᏄᎸᎢ ᎤᏂᎦᎵᏒᎢ. ᏔᎷᎩᏍᎩ ᎤᏐᏯᎸᎢ
ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗ ᎤᏂᏴᎯᏍᏗᎢ ᏂᎨᏒᎾ ᏩᎦ.
Troy Wayne Poteete, ᏄᎬᏫᏳᏌᏕᎩ
ᎠᏍᎦᏰᎬᏍᏗ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᎢᎬᎾᏕᎾ Trail of Tears
Association ᎠᎴ CN ᎤᏔᎾ ᏧᎾᏓᎯᎵᏓᏍᏗ
ᏄᎬᏫᏳᏌᏕᎩ
ᎦᎧᎿᏩᏛᏍᏗ
ᏗᏃᏢᏍᎩ,
ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᏂᎪᎯᎸᎢ Ꮎ TOTA ᎬᏂᎨᏒᎢ
ᏱᏄᏅᏁᎳ ᏥᏛᎨᏥᎢᎸᏍᏔᏅᎢ ᎤᏪᎳᏛ
ᎦᏂᏌᎲᎢ ᎾᏊᏃ ᎠᎵᏍᏚᎢᏍᎪᎢ ᏗᎬᎧᏃᎮᏗ
ᎨᏒ ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ, ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᎤᎾᏠᏯᏍᏓ ᎯᎢᎾ
ᎠᏂᏔᎵ ᎠᎾᏓᎸᎢ.
“ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᎧᏃᎮᏗ
ᎨᏒ
ᎤᏂᎦᏛᎴᏒᎢ,
ᏚᎾᎴᏂᏌᏅᎢ,
ᎬᏩᎵᏨᎢ
ᎦᏁᏟᏴᏍᏗ.
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏥᎩ ᎢᏗᎸᏉᏗᎭ. ᎢᏗᎸᏉᏗᎭ ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎤᏂᏛᎴᏏᏙᎸᎢ, ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᏃᏢᎯᏌᏅᎢ
ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏥᏚᏂᏁᎳ ᎣᏂ
ᎠᏁᎯᎤᎾᏓᎴᎿᎢ
ᎠᏰᎵ
ᎤᎾᏙᏢᏒᎢ
ᎤᎾᏤᏟᏓ,
ᎤᏓᎴᎿᎢ
ᎢᏳᎾᏛᏁᎵᏓᏍᏗ
ᎤᎾᏤᏟᏓ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ ᎤᏩᏌ
ᎦᏙᎩ
ᎠᎴ
ᏂᎬᏩᏍᏙᎢ
ᎠᎪᏟᏍᏗᎢ,”
ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ Poteete. “ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏂᎤᏰᏟᏗ
ᎯᎠ ᏥᏃᏣᏛᏁᎰᎢ. ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏗᎦᎵᏍᏙᏗ
ᏦᏤᎭ ᎪᎯᏴᎢ ᏥᎩ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᎣᎦᏅᏓᏗᏍᏗᎢ
News • dgZEksf
That why we are here today, to commemorate
their tenacity, their resilience, their sheer will
to carry on as a people.”
Irene was born in 1828 in the old CN,
probably on the Tusquittee Creek in what is
now Clay County, North Carolina, where her
family ran a mill. Her father was a white man
named David England and her mother was a
half-blood Cherokee named Susannah Fields.
Arminda was born three years later on Nov.
25, 1831.
During the removal, David England
supplied a horse team for the detachment.
Following the Trail, the family settled on
Honey Creek. Later it moved to the Big Cabin
Creek area north of what is now Vinita.
In 1847, Arminda married William
England, son of Susannah Ward and William
England, and they had one daughter, Mary
Jane. After their separation, Arminda married
Isaac Schrimsher and they were the parents
of four daughters: Alta Berilla Meek, Arabella
Southerland, Saphronia Susan Mayne Rogers
Nolen and Ruth Ann Tyler. After the start
of the Civil War, Cherokees supporting the
Union killed Isaac.
“A group of Cherokees who were
sympathetic to the north came down and
killed her husband and his slave, beat her with
his scalp for marrying a white man, took all
the cattle and horses, and left her there with
the bodies of her dead husband and slave. She
had to walk 20 miles to where her father lived,
and he came back and buried the husband and
the slave,” Harris said. “After that she married
Elias Jenkins (in 1867), who is my line and
where I’m from.”
The Jenkins farmed on Big Cabin Creek
and had two children: Ida Josephine Harris
and Henry Washington Jenkins. Arminda
Jenkins died, probably at her home near
Vinita, on Dec. 27, 1879, and was buried in
the Schrimsher Cemetery.
About 1853, Irene married Edward Lee
Schrimsher. After the Civil War the family
farmed north of present-day Vinita in the
Cooweescoowee District. Irene and Edward
were the parents of four children who lived to
adulthood: William Schrimsher, Eliza Ann
Williamson, Laura Kelly and Margaret Ann
Tanner. In addition they had five children
who died in childhood. Irene died probably at
her home north of Vinita, on Oct. 9, 1882, and
was buried in the Schrimsher Cemetery.
Bronze TOTA plaques were placed on
the women’s graves that read: “In honor of
one who endured the forced removal of the
Cherokees in 1838-39. The Trail of Tears
Association Oklahoma Chapter.” The plaques
also include the TOTA and CN seals.
“It was such an honor to have the Cherokee
Nation and the Trail Of Tears Association
recognize two ordinary citizens who endured
the forced march. My relatives and I feel this
project is important because it keeps alive in
people’s minds our history and how so many
suffered,” Harris said.
ᎦᏁᏟᏴᏍᏗ ᏂᎨᏒᎾ, ᏚᎾᎴᎯᏌᏅᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩ
ᏄᎾᏟᎬᎬᎢ ᏂᎬᏂᎯᏒᏊ.”
Irene Ꮓ 1828 ᎤᏕᏅᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᎤᏪᏘ
ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ, Tusquittee Creek ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᎪᎯᏴ ᏥᎩ Clay County ,
North Carolina, ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᎠᏂᏏᏓᏁᎸᎢ ᏎᎷ
ᎤᏂᏍᏙᏍᏗ ᎤᏃᏢᏒᎢ. ᎤᏙᏓᏃ ᎠᏴᏩᏁᎦ
ᎨᏒᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ David England ᏚᏙᎥᎢ ᎠᎴ
ᎤᏥᎢ ᎤᎬᎭᏟ-ᎠᏣᎳᎩ ᎨᏒᎢ Susannah
Fields ᏚᏙᎥᎢ. Arminda Z ᏦᎢ ᎢᏧᏕᏘᏴᏓ
ᎣᏂ ᎤᏕᏅᎢ ᏚᏂᏃᏗ. 25, ᎧᎸᎢ 1831.
ᎾᎯᏳᏃ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᏥᏗᎨᏥᎢᎸᏍᏗᎲᎢ, David
England Z ᏐᏈᎵ ᏚᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏅᎢ ᎤᏂᏣᏘ
ᏥᎨᎦᏬᎣᏗᏍᎬᎢ. ᎾᏍᎩ ᏗᎨᏥᎢᎸᏍᏔᏅᎢ,
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏏᏓᏁᎸᎢ Honey Creek ᎤᏂᎷᏨᎢ.
ᎤᏩᎬᏗᏗᏒᏃ ᎤᎾᏛᏅᏒᎢ Big Cabion
Creek ᏭᏂᎷᏨᎢ ᎤᏴᏢᎢ ᏗᏜ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᏙᏧᏓᏝᎥᎢ ᎪᏎᏗ ᎪᎯᏴ ᏥᎩ.
ᎾᎯᏳᏃ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ 1847, Arminda ᎠᎴ
William England ᏕᎨᎦᏨᏍᏔᏅᎢ, Susanna
Ward ᎠᎴ William England ᎤᏁᏥ ᎨᏒᎢ,
ᎠᎴ ᏅᎩ ᎾᏂᎥᎢ ᎠᏂᎨᏳᏣ: Alta Berilla
Meek, Arabella Southerland, Saphronia
Susan Mayne Rogers Nolen ᎠᎴ Ruth
Ann Tyler. ᎾᎯᏳᏃ ᎤᏴᏢᎢ ᎠᎴ ᎤᎦᎾᏩ
ᏓᎿᏩ ᏣᎾᏟᎲᎢ, ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ ᎤᏂᎫᏍᏓᎢ
ᎤᏴᏢᎢ ᎤᏂᏞᎢ Isaac.
“ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩᏃ ᎤᎾᏓᏡᎬᎢ ᏚᎾᎵᎬᏓᏁᎸᎢ
ᎤᏴᏢᎢ ᎤᏂᎷᏨᎢ ᎠᎴ ᎤᏂᏞᎢ ᎤᏰᎯ
ᎠᎴ ᎠᏥᏅᏏᏓᏍᏗ, ᎤᏍᎫᏓᏁᎦᎸᏅᏃ ᎬᏗ
ᎠᏥᎸᏅᏍᏙᏔᏁᎢ ᎠᎨᏯ ᏂᏗᎦᎵᏍᏙᏗᎭ
ᎠᏴᏩᏁᎦ ᎤᏯᏅᎲᎢ ᎢᏳᏰᏟᏗ, ᏂᎦᏓᏃ ᏩᎦ
ᎠᎴ ᏐᏈᎵ ᏚᏘᎾᏫᏛᎲᎢ, ᎠᎴ ᎠᏥᏃᎯᏴᎢ
ᎠᎨᏯ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᏧᏂᏲᎱᏒᎢ ᏄᎾᏛᏅᎢ ᎤᏰᎯ
ᎠᎴ ᎠᏥᏅᏏᏓᏍᏗ. 20 ᎢᏳᏟᎶᏓ ᎢᏳᏓᏅᎯᏓ
ᎤᏂᎩᏎᎢ ᎤᏙᏓᏃ ᏤᎲᎢ ᏭᎷᏤᎢ, ᎠᎴ ᎤᏙᏓ
ᏭᎷᏤᎢ ᏫᏚᏂᏌᏁᎢ ᎠᎨᏯ ᎤᏰᎯ ᎠᎴ
ᎤᏅᏏᏓᏍᏗ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ Harris. “ᎣᏂᏃ
ᎢᏴᏱ Elisa Jenkins ᏙᎨᎦᏨᏍᏔᏅᎢ
(ᎾᎯᏳᎢ 1867 ᏥᎨᏒᎢ), ᎾᏍᎩ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
ᏅᏓᏆᏓᎴᏅᎢ.”
ᎾᏍᎩᏍᎩᏂ ᎠᏂ Jenkins ᏗᏂᎶᎩᏍᎩ
ᎥᎨᏒᎩ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ Big Cabin Creek ᎠᎴ ᎠᏂᏔᎵ
ᏚᎾᏓᏘᎿᎥᎢ: Ida Josephine Harris ᎠᎴ
Henry Washington Jenkins. Arminda
Jenkins Ꮓ ᎤᏲᎱᏒᎢ, ᏧᏪᏅᏒᎢ ᏙᏧᏓᏝᎥᎢ,
ᎾᎥᎢ ᎾᎯᏳᎢ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᎥᏍᎩᏱ. 27,1879, ᎠᎴ
Schrimsher ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗᎢ ᎤᏂᏂᏌᏅᎢ.
ᎾᎥᏃ
1853,
Irene
Edward
Lee
Schrimsher
ᏕᎨᎦᏨᏍᏔᏅᎢ.
ᎤᏴᏢᏃ
ᎠᎴ ᎤᎦᏅᏮᎢ ᎤᎾᏟᎶᎿ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏏᏓᏁᎸᎢ
ᏓᏂᎶᎩᏍᎬᎢ ᎤᏴᏢᎢ ᏗᏜ ᎠᏂᎩᏓ ᏙᏧᏓᏝᎥᎢ
ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᎫᏫᏍᎫᏫ ᏍᎦᏚᎩ. Irene ᎠᎴ Edward
ᎤᎾᏓᎬᏴᎵᎨ ᎨᏒᎢ ᏅᎩᏃ ᏚᎾᏓᏘᎿᎥᎢ
ᏧᎾᏔᎾ
ᏳᎾᎵᏍᏛᏅᎢ:
William
Schrimsher, Eliza Ann Williason, Laura
Kelly ᎠᎴ Margret Tanner. ᎯᏍᎩᏃ
ᎢᏯᏂᎢ ᏚᎾᏓᏘᎿᎥᎢ ᏚᏂᏲᎱᏌ. Irene Ꮓ
ᎤᏲᎱᏒᎢ ᏧᏪᏅᏒᎢ ᎤᏴᏢᎢ ᏗᏜ ᎠᏂᎩᏓ
ᏙᏧᏓᏝᎥᎢ, ᎾᎯᏳᎢ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ, ᏅᏓᏕᏆ.9,1882,
ᎠᎴ Schrimsher ᏧᎾᏓᏂᏐᏗ ᎤᏂᏂᏌᏅᎢ.
ᎥᏣᏱ TOTA ᏧᏃᏪᎳᏅᎢ ᏂᏚᏅᏁᎸᎢ
ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
ᎠᏂᏔᎵ
ᎠᏂᎨᏯ
ᏕᎨᏥᏂᏌᎲᎢ:
“ᏓᎾᏅᏓᏗᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏥᏗᎨᏥᎢᎸᏍᏔᏅᎢ
ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ ᎤᏂᎦᏛᎴᏒᎢ ᎾᎯᏳᎢ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ
1838-1839. ᎾᏍᎩ Ꮎ Trail of Tears
Association Oklahoma Chapter.”
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏧᏃᏪᎳᏅᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏓᏠᏯᏍᏓ
Ꮎ TOTA ᎠᎴ ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ ᎤᏂᎲᎢ
ᎨᎪᎵᏍᏙᏗ. “ᎢᏙᏳᏃ ᎣᏌᏂᏳ ᎨᏒᎢ ᏣᎳᎩᎯ
ᎠᏰᎵ ᎠᎴ the Trail of Tears Association
ᎬᏂᎨᏒᎢ ᎢᏧᏅᏁᏗᎢ ᎠᏂᏔᎵ ᎤᏓᏤᏟᏓ
ᎠᏁᎳ ᏥᏗᎨᏥᎢᎸᏍᏔᏅᎢ. ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᏗᏋᎾ
ᎠᎴ ᏄᏍᏛᎢ ᎠᏆᏓᏅᏛᎢ ᎤᎵᏍᎨᏗᏳᏃ ᎯᎠ
ᏥᎾᏅᏛᏁᎰᎢ ᏂᏗᎦᎵᏍᏙᏗ ᏣᏁᎰᏭ ᏂᎬᏫᏍᏙᎢ
ᏱᏓᏓᏅᏖᏝ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏂᏧᎵᏍᏔᏅᏍᏔᏅᎢ
ᎠᎴ ᏯᏂ ᎤᏂᎩᏟᏲᏨᎢ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ Harris.
January 2016 • CHEROKEE PHOENIX
3
Cherokee Nation Tribal Youth Councilors introduce themselves to the Tribal Council
during the Dec. 14 meeting in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. JAMI MURPHY/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
Council approves wildland,
fire management pact
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Tribal
Council on Dec. 14 approved a cooperative
agreement with the U.S. Department of
Interior and Bureau of Indian Affairs’
Eastern Oklahoma Region for wildland and
fire management.
“Basically the (wildland and fire)
resolution allows us to continue to receive
funding from the BIA and we work with
them in protecting our tribal lands,” Willard
Mounce, CN Tribal Employment Rights
Office administration officer, said.
Mounce said as of Dec. 14 the tribe’s
Wildland and Fire Management program
did not have a firefighter over it, but that the
position was expected to open. He said to
be eligible for the position one has to pass
an endurance test and meet specific BIA
requirements.
Until the position is filled, he said the
BIA would provide a firefighter during the
increased fire season. The agreement is
approved annually, Mounce said, and funds
$65,000 to the tribe.
Tribal Councilors also approved a
bill allowing the CN to become a Native
American Fish and Wildlife Society member.
The NAFWS has been in existence since
1983. It assists tribes with establishing fish
and wildlife programs, supporting funding
for tribal fish and wildlife programs and
educating and training Native fish and
wildlife biologists, managers, technicians
and conservation officers.
However, to benefit from the group’s
services, the CN must first be a member.
“Be it resolved by the Cherokee Nation,
that this Council hereby wishes to become
a member of the Native American Fish and
Wildlife Society and to participate in the
services provided by the organization and
its staff; and be it further resolved; that this
Resolution of Support be submitted to the
NAFWS; and be it further resolved; that the
Cherokee Nation supports the efforts of the
NAFWS to secure funding to maintain the
organization and the services that will be
provided directly to tribal fish and wildlife
programs,” the legislation states.
Both resolutions passed unanimously.
The Tribal Council also unanimously
passed Janie Dibble’s nomination to the
Comprehensive Care Agency or PACE
board.
Also, legislators approved the reappointments Carrie Philpott and Farrell
Prater to the Registration Committee, Amon
Baker to the Sequoyah High School board
of education and Nathan Barnard to the
Appeals Board.
Councilors also unanimously approved
CN citizen Chris Carter to the Cherokee
Nation Businesses board of directors.
He resigned from the Cherokee Nation
Tax Commission effective Dec. 14, upon
confirmation to the CNB board.
“I am very pleased with the opportunity
to share insights from my many years as a
businessman for the benefit of all the citizens
of the Cherokee Nation,” Carter, a business
owner from Vinita, said.
4
News • dgZEksf
Local, state leaders discuss proposed transmission line
The Energy Department
will announce a decision in
January on whether it will
support the 700-plus-mile
wind energy line.
BY WILL CHAVEZ
SALLISAW, Okla. – Concerned citizens,
Sequoyah County leaders and representatives
of Congressman Markwayne Mullin and
U.S. Sen. James Lankford met Dec. 2 at the
Sequoyah County Courthouse to discuss a
proposed wind-energy transmission line that
would cross the entire county from west to
east if approved by the Department of Energy
next month.
It’s thought the DOE would announce
its decision mid-January on whether it will
support the 700-plus-mile high-voltage
line’s construction that would start in the
Oklahoma panhandle and traverse through
Arkansas and part of Tennessee.
State Sen. Mark Allen, said he and state Rep.
John Bennett oppose the Plains & Eastern
Clean Line going through the county they
both represent.
“It’s a huge negative impact to the state
of Oklahoma. It’s about a $40 million dollar
negative impact on tax credits. They’re (Clean
Line Energy) coming through here saying
they’re going to give money to the schools on
ad valorem taxes (property taxes), but that
depreciates out to zero in 20 years, and this
line will be here, if they build it, in perpetuity,”
Allen said. “It’s not going to be anything
positive for the state. The state won’t get
anything out of it.”
Clean Line Energy Executive Vice President
Mario Hurtado said the line would provide
significant benefits to Oklahoma.
“The project will result in a direct private
investment of over $1 billion in Oklahoma
and will enable private investments of over
$7 billion in renewable energy projects in the
Oklahoma Panhandle region,” he said. “The
project will be responsible for bringing more
than 4,000 megawatts of new clean energy
projects that otherwise would not be built due
to a lack of energy infrastructure to deliver
those resources to market. These investments
will create substantial jobs and income in
Oklahoma. The project will create thousands
of construction jobs, hundreds of operations
and maintenance jobs, and support over a
hundred manufacturing jobs in Oklahoma.”
He said Clean Line is working directly with
Oklahoma companies to source products
and services from Oklahoma businesses. For
example, Clean Line has an agreement with
Pelco Structural in Claremore for the supply
of steel monopole transmission towers. Pelco
employs more than 100 at its facility.
Quoting the DOE’s Final Environmental
Impact Statement for the transmission line,
Hurtado said, in the first year of operation
Clean Line would pay an estimated $13
million in ad valorem taxes to Oklahoma
counties where the electric transmission
project is located.
Sequoyah County landowner Daron Harrison, right, speaks to state Sen. Mark Allen,
foreground, Jeff Underwood, northeast Oklahoma field representative for U.S. Sen.
James Lankford, center, and other area leaders about his concerns regarding a proposed
transmission power line that would cross his property in Akins. A meeting was held Dec. 2
at the county courthouse to discuss the transmission line. WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
“In Sequoyah County, that payment
would be over $1 million in the first year of
operation,” he said. “Ad valorem payments
would continue to be made each year for as
long as the line is in service and would serve
local schools, fire departments, and other
community services. Electricity transmission
infrastructure is a long-lived asset, providing
service for well over 20 years.”
Allen said Cleans Line’s proposed project
would definitely not benefit the Sequoyah
County landowners who stand to lose land to
provide access to the line that would transport
electricity generated by wind turbines in
western Oklahoma for use in the southeastern
region of the country. If built, the line would
have lattice structure towers 120 to 200 feet
tall and would require 150 to 200 foot wide
easements from landowners along the route.
Hurtado said Clean Line anticipates making
over $35 million in payments to Oklahoma
landowners for easements, upfront structure
payments and other compensation.
Allen said he has spoken to Dist. 6 Tribal
Councilor Bryan Warner, who told him the
Cherokee Nation would oppose the line
because it would be built near the marked
Trail of Tears route in Sequoyah County, cross
the Arkansas riverbed that the CN owns along
with the Choctaw and Chickasaw nations and
because the transmission line “infringes on
property rights” in Sequoyah County. Warner
could not attend the Dec. 2 meeting because
of a prior obligation.
County landowner Daron Harrison said the
line would run a few hundred feet from his
home and would disrupt his cattle business.
He said he’s talked to his neighbors within 3
miles north and south of his property, who
told him they have had no contact with Clean
Line representatives and had no idea until
recently the line would cross their property.
At a DOE meeting in Muskogee in
February, Hurtado claimed a scoping period
in 2012 and 2013 for the transmission line
project was widely publicized. The National
Environmental Policy Act calls for public
scoping periods for major projects to ensure
that the environmental consequences of major
federal decisions are known and available
to the public before decisions are made and
actions are undertaken.
Harrison said he first received some
notice in his mail on Dec. 12, 2014, after the
Environmental Impact Study for the project
was released, and he was informed that his
property could be affected by the project.
Jerry Harry, of the Arkansas Citizens
Against Clean Line Energy, also attended
the meeting and claimed Clean Line has no
customers in the southeastern United States
or the East Coast for its wind energy, and
people in the 11 Arkansas counties where the
proposed line would cross oppose the line
being built.
Hurtado said discussions are ongoing with
municipal utilities, cooperatives and investorowned utilities in Arkansas and other states
that are evaluating the purchase of low-cost
wind across the Plains and Eastern project.
“For example, the Tennessee Valley
Authority has indicated its strong interest in
contracting for wind energy from the project
and has supported the continued development
of the project. The East Texas Electric
Cooperatives have signed an agreement giving
them the option of purchasing a portion of the
project and utilizing transmission capacity to
receive wind energy from western Oklahoma,”
he said.
Harry said two limited liability companies,
Golden Bridge and Downwind, have been
established to help Arkansas landowners fight
for their rights against Clean Line. Also, 10 of
the 11 counties passed resolutions against the
transmission line, Harry said, and the county
judges passed resolutions opposing the line’s
construction.
“We intend to fight it. Most of the major
(Arkansas) cities have passed resolutions
against it,” he said.
In November, the Arkansas congressional
delegation asked the DOE to slow down the
line’s review process.
The DOE issued the final environmental
impact statement or EIS for the transmission
line on Nov. 4, noting its preferred path
through Oklahoma and Arkansas and the
preferred locations for conversion stations.
The delegation and Oklahoma’s attorney
general have opposed giving the power of
eminent domain in land negotiations to Clean
Line Energy.
Hurtado said Clean Line’s focus is on
voluntary acquisition of easements from
landowners. However, he said the subject of
eminent domain for the line continues to be
brought up by landowners because linear lines
or projects like railroad lines need to have the
ability to be completed.
“If you can’t find a landowner or you can’t
clear title or you can’t buy a parcel and you
can’t go around it, that’s what condemnation
is for – for projects that have been found to be
in the public interest,” he said.
On Dec. 2, Arkansas’ two Republican
senators said they would place a hold on a
confirmation vote for a DOE nominee because
of concerns over the proposed line.
U.S. Sens. John Boozman and Tom
Cotton said they would place a hold on the
confirmation vote for Victoria Wassmer,
who is President Barack Obama’s nominee
for the department’s undersecretary for
management and performance. A Senate
committee advanced Wassmer’s nomination
in November.
Boozman and Cotton said they haven’t
received sufficient responses from the Energy
Department regarding their concerns about
the project.
“People don’t want anything jammed just
down their throat. They wanted to be treated
fairly and talked to civil. Explain the situation;
don’t force it on us,” Betty Ford, caseworker/
field representative for Mullin, said.
Harry said if the line were built it would
be hard for future generations to reclaim
the land. Also, Arkansas is looking at losing
thousands of acres of timberland if it is built.
“Once it’s done you can’t take it back. You
can’t reclaim something like that. You can
reclaim a coal mine, but it’s never the same as
it was before, and we’ve got to leave a legacy to
our children,” Harry said. “The Five Civilized
Tribes are keys, and those tribes have got to
understand in order to have a legacy, for this
country to have a heritage...we need to worry
about what is happening to Mother Earth.”
Election Commission to dispose of ballot boxes used by AES
Commissioners will send the
Automated Election Services’ boxes
to the Cherokee Nation’s warehouse.
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Cherokee Nation Election
Commission on Dec. 8 voted to dispose of old ballot boxes
owned and used by the tribe’s previous election services
provider.
EC officials said Automated Election Services, based in New
Mexico, owns the unused boxes or they were included in the
services that AES provided the tribe’s Election Services Office
for more than four years.
Election Services Director Connie Parnell said AES
President/CEO Terry Rainey has been notified of the boxes.
“He was notified twice that they were here for him to come
pick them up and no response. There are about 10 of them.”
The boxes, although in good condition, are neither big
enough nor consistent with the system the EC currently uses,
officials said.
The EC used AES for the tribe’s 2011 election. The principal
chief race that year ended up in court with the tribe’s Supreme
Court eventually ordering a new race because no winner could
be determined with mathematic certainty. With the Carter
Center watching the second election, Bill John Baker, then a
Tribal Councilor, won the race over former Principal Chief
Chad Smith and was sworn into office on Oct. 19.
Since then, the CN and the EC parted ways with AES. The
EC ran the tribe’s 2015 election.
The commissioners voted to surplus the ballot boxes to the
CN Warehouse located on the Tribal Complex.
Commissioners also discussed the purchase of an office time
clock. “The reason we’re asking for a new time clock is because
there were some discrepancies with (EC Administrator) Keeli’s
(Duncan) time, and I had gotten some information from the
payroll department that had shown that. I think she had lost
like 35 hours of leave that shouldn’t have and we couldn’t go
back and fix that for her,” Commissioner Teresa Hart said.
Commissioner Shawna Calico
added that the clock would serve
as a backup to what is submitted to
payroll.
“To be able to keep better track of
that,” she said. “Plus, it would help
me as the person that signs the timesheets to know what I’m
looking for when I review and approve those.”
The clock can also double as a timed stamp for when
documents are filed with the EC either through voter
registration or during election time.
Commissioners Martha Calico, Hart and Shawna Calico
approved the motion with one abstention by Carolyn Allen.
Commissioners also congratulated Shawna Calico for her
Nov. 2 reappointment to the commission by Principal Chief Bill
John Baker. Her term will expire Oct. 1, 2019. The commission
is still one member short of being full. Former Chairman Bill
Horton resigned earlier this year after the election cycle.
The commission also voted to establish the 2016 meeting
schedule, making each EC regular meeting at 4 p.m. on the
second Tuesday of each month.
SCAN
CODE
TO SEE
VIDEO
OPINION • Zlsz
5
Talking Circles
Wanting stomp dance knowledge
January 2016
Volume 40, No. 1
The Cherokee Phoenix is published
monthly by the Cherokee Nation, PO Box
948, Tahlequah, OK 74465.
Application to mail at Periodicals postage rates is pending at Tahlequah, OK
74464.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to
Cherokee Phoenix, PO Box 948, Tahlequah, OK 74465
Will Chavez
will-chavez@cherokee.org
918-207-3961
Travis Snell
Assistant Editor
travis-snell@cherokee.org
918-453-5358
Mark Dreadfulwater
Multimedia Editor
mark-dreadfulwater@cherokee.org
918-453-5087
Dena Tucker
Administrative Officer
dena-tucker@cherokee.org
918-453-5324
Jami Murphy
Reporter
jami-murphy@cherokee.org
918-453-5560
Tesina Jackson
Reporter
tesina-jackson@cherokee.org
918-453-5000 ext. 6139
Stacie Guthrie
Reporter
stacie-guthrie@cherokee.org
918-453-5000 ext. 5903
My name is John “Randy” Hair, and I’ve been an inmate here in
California for the past nine years. I am a native of Cherokee County,
Oklahoma, born in Tahlequah and raised in the Hulbert-Lost City area.
During my time of incarceration I have been staying up on my
Cherokee culture, language and history. I grew up in a Cherokeespeaking home; both my parents were full-blood Cherokee and spoke
our language fluently.
My father, the late Sam H. Hair, was an Indian doctor in Cherokee
medicine and remedies. He was also an interpreter and language
educator for the Cherokee Nation during the 1970s. I write all this in
regards to your August 2015 issue on Page 12. “Flint Rock Ceremonial
Grounds Carry on Tradition.” As a youngster I attended the stomp
dance ceremonies in Marble City, only a few times that I remember.
Preserving, strengthening ICWA is a
priority for Cherokee Nation
By Bill john baker
Principal Chief
As Indian people,
we have always known
what is best for our
children. It is in our
children’s best interests
for them to remain
in the homes of their parents or families
and to remain connected to their tribes.
The federal Indian Child Welfare Act was
passed in 1978 to “protect the best interests
of Indian children and to promote the
stability and security of Indian tribes and
families.”
ICWA has three main goals: 1) to keep
Indian children safe in their own homes;
2) if they cannot safely remain in their
own homes, to be with a family or tribal
member; and 3) to allow the children’s tribe
to participate in state court cases when
children have been removed from their
homes.
For 37 years, we have used ICWA in state
courts to keep our children safe. It is one of
the legal tools we use to ensure our families
remain intact and our tribal governments
remain strong.
Recently, here in Oklahoma, an adoption
attorney and outspoken critic of ICWA was
Media Specialist
roger-graham@cherokee.org
918-207-3969
Samantha Cochran
Advertising Representative
samantha-cochran@cherokee.org
918-207-3825
Joy Rollice
Secretary
joy-rollice@cherokee.org
918-453-5269
Justin Smith
Brittney Bennett
Intern
brittney-bennett@cherokee.org
918-453-5000 ext. 7258
Editorial Board
Luke Barteaux
Lauren Jones
Kendra McGeady
Robert Thompson III
Maxie Thompson
Cherokee Phoenix
P.O. Box 948
Tahlequah, OK 74465
(918) 453-5269
FAX: (918) 207-0049
1-800-256-0671
www.cherokeephoenix.org
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Copyright 2016: The entire contents of the Cherokee Phoenix are fully protected by copyright unless
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Editor’s Note: The Cherokee Phoenix is not distributed free of charge to
Cherokee Nation citizens anymore. Subscriptions cost $10 for a year, $18
for two years and $26 for three years. However, the tribe’s administration
offers citizens free one-year subscriptions under a Citizens Access To
Transparency program. For more information, call 918-453-5000 and
ask about the CATT program.
CHIEF’S PERSPECTIVE
Roger Graham
Distribution Specialist
justin-smith@cherokee.org
918-207-4975
I would love to learn more about our stomp dance ceremonies. I
wonder if possible you could pass my contact information to Mr. Bird
Wolfe in hopes he could teach me about our traditional ceremonies.
I would be grateful.
Also, does the Cherokee Phoenix deliver its paper to enrolled tribal
citizens free of charge? If so I would be interested.
John “Randy” Hair
Chowchilla, California
Subscribe
Today!
Within the United
States:
$10 – 1 year
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International:
$24 – 1 year
Contact
Justin Smith
918-207-4975
justin-smith@cherokee.org
arrested on 25 felony counts, including
child trafficking, resulting from private
adoption cases. It’s sad, but not surprising,
to hear that those who make a living
offering Indian children up for adoption
would stoop to coercive tactics to take
children from their families and tribes.
The
multibillion-dollar
adoption
industry and adoption attorneys argue
ICWA does not consider the best interests
of Indian children and that ICWA due
diligence makes cases last too long. They
argue that the historic wrongs that led to
the passage of ICWA have been corrected
and the law is no longer needed. However,
the real reason they object is much simpler:
when ICWA is followed, children remain
in their own homes or in the homes of
family members, which in turn leads to less
money collected by for-profit agencies and
attorneys.
In 1978, ICWA was designed to stop
illegal practices, which unfortunately still
remain prevalent in the adoption industry
today. ICWA protects the child, the birth
parents, the adoptive parents and the child’s
tribe. For example, if parents are placing a
child for adoption, they have to do so in
court before a judge so he or she can make
sure they understand the importance and
finality of the choice they are making.
ICWA also requires proper notice to
parents and tribes. These requirements
ensure all adoptions are fair and in a child’s
best interest. Only those trying to force,
rush or illegally procure adoptions would
be opposed to such minimum safeguards.
There are national groups composed
of child welfare professionals who
overwhelmingly praise ICWA. Casey
Family Programs, the Child Welfare League
of America and several other national child
welfare organizations, in response to the
Goldwater Institute’s attack on ICWA,
stated: “ICWA applies the gold standard
for child welfare decisions for all children,
and unraveling its protections could cause
significant harm for Indian children.”
These child-centered organizations
that deal with both private adoptions and
state foster care cases all agree that “ICWA
embodies the best practices in child
welfare.”
This is something that we have known
for years. Indian people and tribal
governments know what is best for their
own children and will continue to protect
and defend ICWA from those who see our
children as a resource to increase their
bottom line.
bill-baker@cherokee.org
918-453-5618
6
News • dgZEksf
Hoskin touts hunting, fishing
compact at Dist. 10 meeting
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
Members of the Birdtail and Christie family meet with Cherokee Nation Businesses CEO
Shawn Slaton, right, in 2014 at the site where the Cherokee Casino South Coffeyville was
built. CNB leased land from the family to place the casino in South Coffeyville.
WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
Cherokee families benefit
from CNE land leases
GROVE, Okla. – If Cherokee Nation
Entertainment opens a second Delaware
County casino, a Cherokee family could be
getting a larger monthly rent check from CNE.
According to paperwork filed with the
Delaware County Clerk’s Office, eight
descendants of Esther Flute acquired a 2.7acre property near Grove in August 2014
after the family’s restricted allotment land in
Sequoyah County was taken via constructive
condemnation for Marble City Public Schools.
As per federal statute, if restricted Indian
land is taken via condemnation proceedings
for the public benefit, the money received for
the property may be reinvested in another
tract as chosen by the allotee with the approval
of the Secretary of the Interior.
Prior to the Birdtail and Christie family
gaining the land, the tract was part of a larger
24-acre parcel purchased by Cherokee Nation
Businesses in August 2013, records show. CNE
operates under the CNB corporate umbrella.
In late 2014, CNE posted an RFP on www.
cherokeebids.com, seeking architectural
firms for services associated with a new
21,500-square-foot casino in Grove. Plans
for a potential 10th Cherokee Casino have
been discussed at CNB board meetings this
year, although no construction timeline or
projected cost have been disclosed. CNE
already operates the Cherokee Casino & Hotel
West Siloam Springs in the southern part of
Delaware County.
At the CNB board of directors November
meeting, CNE Chief Operating Officer
Mark Fulton said the tribe’s lease for the
Grove property was four to six weeks away
from Bureau of Indian Affairs approval. A
representative for CNB confirmed that the
lease’s status had not changed as of Dec. 15. As
of Dec. 16, no BIA approval was listed in the
Federal Register.
In 2013, the same eight Flute descendants
signed a 10-year lease with CNB to allow a
casino on the family’s restricted land in South
Coffeyville. Under the terms of that lease, the
family received a $100,000 one-time signing
bonus, plus $30,000 in rent each month and
$1 for every carton sold at the property’s
smoke shop.
The South Coffeyville lease includes an
option for one 10-year renewal, which comes
with a $200,000 bonus.
According to Nowata County records, CNE
bought nearly 40 acres for approximately
$100,000 in South Coffeyville in 2012. CNE
then deeded part of the land to members of
the Birdtail and Christie family. The BIA then
put that land into restricted status. CNE leased
the land from for its South Coffeyville casino.
Members of the Birdtail and Christie family
did not respond to requests for comment as of
publication.
In December 2009, CNE entered into a 10year lease with the Shawnee family in order
to open Cherokee Casino’s Ramona facility.
The lease, which pays the family at least
$325,000 in annual fees, runs through 2020,
with two additional 10-year renewal options.
As per CNB’s 2012 audit, a $600,000 advance
payment to the Shawnee family is being
amortized over the life of the lease.
Under the terms of both the Ramona and
South Coffeyville leases, any improvements
made on those restricted lands, such as water
and sewer lines, automatically become the
property of the landowners once the lease
expires.
With the Ramona lease’s initial term
scheduled to expire the same year as the tribe’s
gaming compact with the state, the agreement
includes a provision that the lease will
automatically be terminated if the compact is
not renewed.
The terms of the pending Grove lease were
not available, but according to the deed filed
with the Delaware County Clerk’s Office, any
improvements made on the property are taxexempt.
Carter resigns from CNTC,
appointed to CNB board
BY STACIE GUTHRIE
Reporter
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – During the
Dec. 9 Cherokee Nation Tax Commission
meeting, Commissioner Christopher Carter
announced that he would be resigning from
the CNTC to take a position on the Cherokee
Nation Businesses board of directors, if
approved to it by the Tribal Council.
Carter resigned from the CNTC on Dec.
14, the day the Tribal Council approved him
to the CNB board for a three-year term.
At the CNTC meeting, Carter said he
enjoyed his time serving the commission.
“I just wanted to tell you that I have some
very good friends here, and I got a lot of good
experience. The staff and everything, I don’t
have anything but great things to say about
you, and I’m very glad to serve by you guys,”
he said. “I learned a lot that I didn’t know
about the actual tax basics and the taxes of the
Cherokee Nation.”
Carter said it has been his “honor” to serve,
and CNTC Administrator Sharon Swepston
said she appreciated his service.
“Anytime I need to call you guys you are
always available, and I so greatly appreciate
that, to be able to call you if nothing else just
to get your opinion on something,” Swepston
said. “I appreciate you being willing to serve
and help us.”
Swepston also said Carter had “done a great
job” on the commission.
“Mr. Carter is a local businessman in Vinita,
and he was willing to come in and serve on
the Tax Commission,” she said. “He has been
fair and honest, and he’s always been willing
to listen. I couldn’t have asked for anyone else
to be a better commissioner. He has done a
great job on the commission, and we hate to
see him go, but we do understand. He’ll be
missed.”
Carter joined the CNTC in 2013. A CN
citizen, he owns Shout & Sack, a convenience
store and eatery in Vinita.
Also, Swepston said the CNTC had seen
an approximate 23 percent increase in
motor vehicle revenue for fiscal year 2015
when compared to FY 2014. She added that
cigarette and tobacco taxes decreased by
approximately 19 percent but that retail sales
had increased by approximately 3 percent. She
also said the alcohol revenue had increased by
approximately 6 percent.
Swepston also said motor vehicle revenue
saw an increase of approximately 13 percent in
the month-to-month revenue comparison of
October 2014 to October 2015. Retail sales also
saw an increase of approximately 17 percent
in the month-to-month comparison, and
alcohol tax saw an increase of approximately
5 percent in the comparison.
“That’s all good news,” Swepston said.
Service in Oklahoma for soldier killed in IS fight
MULDROW, Okla. (AP) – The first
American soldier to die in combat against the
Islamic State group in Iraq was remembered
Nov. 24 during a service as a man who was
passionate about his wife, children, church
and making others happy.
The service was held at Trinity United
Methodist Church in Muldrow for U.S. Army
Master Sgt. Joshua Wheeler, 39, a Cherokee
Nation citizen who lived in nearby Roland
and graduated Muldrow High School in 1994
before joining the Army a year later.
“I was so mad at him when he went to the
service, but I want to take it back because good
Lord, look what he’s done,” Zach Wheeler, his
brother, said during the service. “He’s one of
the best soldiers in the world.”
Joshua Wheeler joined the Army as an
infantryman in 1995 and completed his
initial training at Fort Benning in Georgia. He
had been assigned to the U.S. Army Special
Operations Command in Fort Bragg, North
Carolina, since 2004.
He was killed Oct. 22 when he and dozens of
U.S. special operations troops and Iraqi forces
raided a compound near the city of Kirkuk,
freeing approximately 70 Iraqi prisoners from
captivity.
JAY, Okla. – On Nov. 24, at Dist. 10 Tribal
Councilor Harley Buzzard’s community
meeting, Cherokee Nation Secretary of
State Chuck Hoskin Jr. told citizens at the
Jay Community Center that CN officials are
excited to implement the new hunting and
fishing compact with the state.
“It will be a win, win for the state and the
tribe, bringing in new federal dollars for
habitat management only possible through
a partnership,” Hoskin Jr. said. “Best of all, it
allows (Cherokee) citizens to exercise their
hunting and fishing rights statewide with a
license at no cost to out citizens.”
Principal Chief Bill John Baker and
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin signed the
agreement May 29. Under the compact, the
CN adopts the “minimum requirements”
of federal wildlife management laws, and
“official requirements” for hunting and
fishing, as established by the Oklahoma
Wildlife Conservation Commission and
the OWC Code. For example, the Nation
observes state bag limits and catch-andrelease requirements.
The Nation will assume responsibility for
issuing “compact licenses,” valid on tribal
and state lands, and pays the state $2 for each
license. The Nation must issue a minimum
of 150,000 licenses a year to Cherokees
between ages 16 and 65. All Oklahoma
Cherokees within the age bracket receive the
license, even if they don’t hunt or fish. They
will not be charged, and the licenses include
tags for one deer and one turkey.
Cherokees who do not hunt or fish can
use the licenses to access wilderness areas,
such as the J.T. Nickel Family Nature and
Wildlife Preserve, at no cost.
CN citizens can visit http://bit.ly/1gxxotZ
to fill out a hunting and fishing license
application. The tribe is expected to issue the
licenses on Jan 1.
Nearly 150 people attended the Dist. 10
meeting to learn more about what else the
Nation has to offer its citizens.
Buzzard said he gave an overview of
tribal programs such housing, health,
rehab, dental, water and sanitation and the
Cherokee Nation Foundation. He also gave
information regarding the tribe’s Human
Services, Education Services, Career
Services and Food Distributions.
Citizens also had opportunities to receive
flu vaccines as well.
“We had a few questions from the citizens
in regards to hunting, fishing, housing, and
water and sanitation.
I discussed the benefits that are available to
our veterans such as our center in Tahlequah
and the tax benefits offered to them at our
retail locations,” Buzzard added. “Gave a
brief overview of the status of the new health
clinic (in Jay) and stated that it would be
after the first of the year before opening, also
spoke about youth services, housing, and
educational opportunities.”
Many issues the citizens face in his district
deal with health care such as scheduling
and same-day appointments as well as
contract health, housing repairs and photo
identification cards.
“I also discussed the importance of
gardening and introduced Mark Dunham
who oversees our garden, which provides
fresh vegetables to our clients at our food
distribution center,” Buzzard said. “Pear,
apple, peach and cherry trees have been
planted, which will eventually complement
the vegetables.”
The next meeting for citizens of Dist. 10
will be sometime after the New Year. For
citizens in Buzzard’s district needing to
speak to him, they can call 918-525-2109 or
918-253-8665.
During the Dist. 10 meeting held Nov. 24 in Jay, Oklahoma, the two oldest citizens,
Ralph Feathers, middle, and Mary Butler, right, are recognized by Tribal Councilor
Harley Buzzard and given Cherokee Nation blankets. COURTESY
News • dgZEksf
7
Vinita-area Cherokee people’s needs being met
A Nov. 17 community
meeting allows Cherokee
Nation citizens to meet
their leaders and share
their concerns.
BY WILL CHAVEZ
VINITA, Okla. – It’s easier for tribal leaders
today to keep in contact with constituents via
phone calls, social media and emails, but for
Dist. 11 Tribal Councilor Victoria Vazquez
nothing is better than seeing them in person.
Dist. 11 encompasses Craig County and
parts of Mayes and Nowata counties, and
Vazquez said she tries to hold meetings to
let constituents to meet with her, other tribal
leaders and representatives from Cherokee
Nation programs and departments that are
based in Tahlequah about 70 miles south.
“It puts a more personal spin of what my job
really is because I talk to individuals at those
meetings, and they hear me talk things they
don’t see on Facebook,” she said.
The meetings help her hear concerns from
constituents. She then takes those concerns
to the Tribal Council and other tribal
representatives who may be able to address
them.
“So many times after a community meeting
I will go home with five or six issues that a
citizen has told me about at the meeting and
then the next day I call or email people in
those (CN) departments,” Vazquez said.
During a Nov. 17 meeting at the tribe’s
Vinita Health Center, staff from Cherokee
Nation Businesses; Election Commission staff,
who helped people register to vote; Education
Services; Marshal Service; Tax Commission,
who provided information about the new
hunting and fishing license program; Health
Services, who gave free flu shots; Human
Services; Child Support Services; Dental
Services; and Housing Authority of the
Cherokee Nation assisted CN citizens.
She said citizens also appreciated seeing
their leaders. Principal Chief Bill John Baker,
Deputy Chief S. Joe Crittenden, Secretary of
State Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Chief of Staff Chuck
Hoskin Sr. all attended. The Hoskins are from
Vinita and both served as Tribal Councilors
and worked to bring more attention to the
needs of people in the Vinita area.
Hoskin Sr., who served three four-year
terms on the council from 1995 to 2007, said
he has “witnessed tremendous growth” in the
area since his childhood. He said “to be quite
honest” during all the years of him growing up
in Vinita until he got on the council in 1995,
if you asked anyone in the Vinita area if there
were CN services available “the answer would
Cherokee Nation Chief of Staff and former Tribal Councilor for Craig County Chuck Hoskin Sr. speaks to people attending a Nov. 17
community meeting at the Vinita Health Center. Standing with Hoskin is Dist. 11 Tribal Councilor Victoria Vazquez, right, who now
represents Vinita on the Tribal Council. WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
be no.”
“The only type of services we had was
our housing addition out there, Buffington
Heights, but as far as service, there wasn’t
any,” he said. “Obviously, as you can tell this
evening, there’s a lot of Cherokee up here, and
I knew that, and the people that live up here,
we knew that. So, that was the message, when
I was first elected, that people told me to take
to Tahlequah, and that’s exactly what I did.”
Hoskin Sr. said he was glad to serve with
a council that believed tribal services were
for everyone no matter where they lived in
the CN. “I’m proud to say we started the first
Cherokee health care in Vinita in 1996 when
we got the mobile clinic up here. It came to
Vinita one day a week, and the people showed
up. I used those (clinic) numbers to prove
Cherokees were here. We just needed to
provide services.”
He said Principal Chief Bill John Baker, who
served on the Tribal Council with him, also
We have a very caring and giving administration, and I’m
just thankful to be a part of that and because of that I’m
able to share much more... Tribal Councilor Victoria Vazquez
A band plays during the Nov. 30 community meeting in Webbers Falls, Oklahoma. Dist. 5
Tribal Councilor David Thornton hosted the meeting for his constituents.
JAMI MURPHY/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
Thornton holds his first Webbers
Falls community meeting
Tribal Councilor David
Thornton says constituents
want more information
regarding hunting and
fishing licenses.
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
WEBBERS FALLS, Okla. – Dist. 5 Tribal
Councilor David Thornton hosted his first
Webbers Falls community meeting on Nov. 30
bringing out about 200 people.
The event, which included dinner and
information on tribal services, also contained
information shared by Secretary of State
Chuck Hoskin Jr. and Principal Chief Bill
John Baker.
“I truly believe I have put together the
absolute best team in every area to propel this
Nation forward. We’ve put people in places
that have a heart for the Cherokee people
and the Cherokee Nation, and that is our true
success as this administration,” Baker said.
Thornton said this was the first time he’d
had a meeting in this area and he didn’t quite
know what to expect in Webbers Falls.
advocated for services for people in Vinita.
“As more services began to come up here,
more and more people began to come out and
take advantage of them and use them,” he said.
He said the town eventually received a
walk-in clinic and finally a 92,000-square-foot
health center in 2012, which was justified by
the number of people in the Vinita area who
needed and utilized CN services.
Leon Dick, 81, of Vinita, who is Shawnee
and Delaware and a CN citizen, said he comes
to the community meetings to “find out what’s
going on,” to fellowship and for “the eats.” He
also gets to see family and friends in one place,
he said.
He said he grew up in nearby White Oak
and takes part in the Shawnee stomp dances
there, reading the Shawnee prayer before the
dances.
He said he appreciates the Vinita Health
Center because he only has to drive 4 miles
to receive medical care and no longer has to
“I know that they’ve never had anything
like this over here. And you can see with the
turnout that we’ve got it’s wonderful. There’s
a lot of information here and going around,”
Thornton said.
He said most tribal departments were
represented, and each included information
from which Cherokee Nation citizens could
benefit.
“If these Cherokees want to ask them
a question all they got to do is go over to
the table and talk to them. Plus they have
forms that they hand out, just a little bit of
everything,” he said.
Thornton said he gets about two calls per
day on the new hunting and fishing compact.
It’s a big draw for his district, he added.
“They wanted to know if they had to be
here to get one and I told them no,” he said.
“Email me. Text me. Message me, and I’ll get
your name, address and phone number, and
I’ll have them send you an application.”
Thornton has served as Tribal Councilor
for about 16 years. He has two more years
left in his term. Thornton said he plans to
have another meeting in the spring and if any
citizen in his district needs information on his
assistance they should call 918-458-7991 or
email david-thornton.org.
drive to the Claremore Indian Hospital nearly
40 miles away or the tribe’s Nowata clinic
about 29 miles away.
“At Claremore you’ve got to wait all day and
sit around there all day. Here you get taken
right in,” he said.
Vazquez said Vinita has long been a center
for Cherokees who built their homes and
businesses there. Cherokee attorney Elias C.
Boudinot established the Craig County seat in
Vinita in 1871.
“It was a center for Cherokees. They built
the buildings and lived here, and we had
chiefs come from here, streets are named after
Cherokees,” she said.
More attention is being brought to that
history, she said, because the tribe now has
more money to give to the Eastern Trails
Museum in Vinita, which stores and displays
the area’s history, and to buy artifacts and art
to showcase the history of Vinita and Craig
County in the Vinita Health Center.
“We have a very caring and giving
administration, and I’m just thankful to be
a part of that and because of that I’m able to
share much more locally than I have been in
the past,” Vazquez said.
8
Community • nv 0nck
Pine Lodge Resort lights up Grand Lake area
BY WILL CHAVEZ
KETCHUM, Okla. – A hidden
gem near the Grand Lake of the
Cherokees is the Pine Lodge Resort.
Co-owned by Cherokee Nation
citizen June Box, it is lit up during
the holiday season with thousands
of Christmas lights for the resort’s
annual
“Winter
Wonderland
Christmas Light Tour.”
The 12th annual event boasts
nearly half a million lights and is
open for tours through Jan. 1. The
“old fashion” display features lighted
antique vehicles, a nativity scene and
a host of characters. Admission is
free and visitors may drive through
the light displays.
“They really enjoy it, the little
ones, so that’s who we do it for, for
the kids,” June said.
Her husband Art said a popular
piece in the light show is a blowup
RV with Santa Claus coming
out of it. The display includes a
clothesline with Santa’s underwear
hanging on it.
“The kids get a kick out of that.
We have a lot of different characters
the children will have a good time
looking at,” he said. “Every year we
add some new stuff to it, and now
I think we’re up to somewhere
around 460,000 lights in the whole
show. It’s a community thing for us.
It’s kind of a payback for us to the
community. A lot of times people
will donate lights to us, so it’s quite
a show, and it’s free. The kids will
really enjoy it.”
He said he and his wife are grateful
to have “a great staff ” that puts up
the lights and decorations. He said
the staff starts the project the third
week of October to be ready to turn
the lights on Thanksgiving night.
The lights stay on from 5 p.m. to 10
p.m. seven nights a week.
Pine Lodge Resort has 41 rental
units
that
include 10
SCAN
log cabins
CODE
TO SEE and three
large homes
VIDEO
The Pine Lodge Resort on the Grand Lake of the Cherokees near Ketchum, Oklahoma, is hosting its 12th annual “Winter Wonderland Christmas
Light Tour” through Jan. 1. The light display features nearly half a million lights, lighted antique vehicles, a nativity scene and a host of
characters. PHOTOS BY WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
near the water on Grand
Lake. June said all the
cabins have hot tubs and
fireplaces and can be rented
on a nightly or weekly basis.
“We’re next to a marina
so it’s (resort) very
popular for people who
come with their boats,”
June said. “We are open
year round so there are
always
honeymoons,
anniversaries or birthdays
someone is celebrating.”
Pine Lodge Resort is
located 2.5 miles east of
Ketchum off of Hwy 85.
Ten minutes away from
Art and June Box, owners of the Pine Lodge Resort
the lodge is golfing, a One of the more popular stops along the “Winter
on the Grand Lake of the Cherokees, stand next
swim beach, spas, hiking, Wonderland Christmas Light Tour” at the Pine Lodge Resort to the resort’s clubhouse on Dec. 10 in Ketchum,
wave runner rentals and in Ketchum, Oklahoma, is the blowup RV with Santa Claus.
Oklahoma.
the South Grand Lake
Regional Airport with
staff. The resort is also close to casual special occasions.
Lodge Resort website at www.
free shuttles to and from the airport and fine dining. Groups may reserve
For more information, call pinelodgeresort.com. You can also
provided by the Pine Lodge Resort the resort’s clubhouse for dinners or 918-782-1400 or visit the Pine find the resort on Facebook.
Inaugural ‘Will’s Country Christmas’ fun for all ages
BY STACIE GUTHRIE
Reporter
OOLOGAH, Okla. – The Will
Rogers Memorial Museum has
found a new way to give people a
look into the life of Rogers, or “The
Cherokee Kid,” by showing them
how his early life was spent with
family during the Christmas season.
The museum’s “Will’s Country
Christmas” took place Dec. 11 at
the Will Rogers Birthplace Ranch
in Oologah.
Bart Taylor, Will Rogers Memorial
Museum assistant curator of
education, said the event took place
to celebrate everything from Rogers
“being a little kid, to Christmas time
that Will Rogers held so dearly with
his family.”
“Those things were very big with
him and his family,” he said. “We
wanted to do something were we
take a little bit of 1890s and take a
little bit of this and that and add it
to this event.”
Those in attendance were able
to enjoy everything from hot
chocolate, beans and cornbread,
music from a brass trio and carolers
to ornament making, a lantern tour
of the house Rogers grew up in and
a hayride that consisted of “Cowboy
Christmas” scenes. Santa Claus and
Mrs. Claus were also at the ranch
taking photos with families.
Taylor said putting on the event
was a “team effort.”
“We couldn’t have done it without
all our volunteers. We call our
volunteers ‘ropers’ because of Will
Rogers. Our ropers are crucial to
having any sort of event like this.
We could not do it without them,”
he said. “Basically, Santa Claus is
Adam Hunter, right, and his wife Stephanie, along with children Vance, sitting, and Cade, standing, get
ready to take a photo with Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus and an elf at the “Will’s Country Christmas” on Dec. 11
at the Will Rogers Birthplace Ranch in Oologah, Oklahoma. STACIE GUTHRIE/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
a docent. The ladies making the
ornaments are docents. The gift
shop people are docents. The food
people are docents.”
The
“Cowboy
Christmas”
hayride let attendees visit three
scenes between a sheriff, his men
and outlaws. The hayride was
interactive, which gave families a
chance to interact with the “good”
and “bad” guys.
“We got the Tri-State Gun
(fighters and re-enactors) crew out
here. They’re a group of re-enactors
and they came out to pretty much
put on a little show,” said Taylor.
“When you’re on the hayride they’ll
be talking to you kind of like a
Branson (Missouri) show.”
During the ride, the outlaws
stopped those passing through and
asked for their money. Then, one of
the outlaws boarded the hayride and
those on the ride could either cover
for him or inform the authorities on
the next stop of the ride.
At the final stop, it showed the
outlaws and authorities coming
together for Christmas.
Taylor said he and his co-
workers wanted an event that was
inexpensive for families, so they
came up with the idea of “Will’s
Country Christmas.”
“We wanted to make something
out here because we think it could
be a cheaper option,” he said.
“This is kind of in the middle of a
lot of spots so we figured let’s have
something out here.”
He said this event also acts as an
educational tool.
“We want to show the working
ranch. You can come out here
and be around cattle. You can be
around longhorn cattle, which
Clem and Will Rogers raised here,”
he said. “That’s part of the legacy we
preserve, animals here for people to
come look at, to touch, to feed.”
Taylor said eventually they would
like to make the contents on the
ranch period direct.
“We’re trying to get to a perioddirect form of education,” he said.
“Things inside the house right now
aren’t period direct, and we want to
get to that level so when you come in
you’re doing the actual lantern tours
and you’re seeing things that Will
would have seen when he walked
into his house in the early morning.”
Stephanie Hunter, who attended
with her family, volunteered at the
event. She works at the Will Rogers
Memorial Museum and wanted to
bring her family to the event.
“I’m doing the volunteering and
doing the caroling up there, so we’re
taking a little break and my family
came out here to support Will
Rogers and the events,” she said.
Her husband Adam said he and
their sons Vance Hunter, 4, and
Cade Hunter, 2, visited the vendors,
went on the lantern tour and met
Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus.
“They liked it. They like all
the old stuff. It’s very different to
them,” he said.
Taylor said he thinks the event
came together “pretty well.”
“It might not be heavily attended,
but I think we’ve started with a great
foundation for years to come. That
way people can get in here. We can
get blacksmiths and make this into
a big, you know, possibly weeklong
event,” he said. “You’re experiencing
education, history and Christmas all
in the same event.”
Community • nv 0nck
Community Meetings
Jan. 4
Belfonte, 6:30 p.m.
Sallie Sevenstar 918-427-4237
Eucha Indian Fellowship
Eucha Community Building, 8 p.m.
Marble City Community Organization
MCCO Building, 7 p.m.
Lost City Community Organization, 6 p.m.
Native American Association of Ketchum
280 East Gregory, Ketchum, 6:30 p.m.
Jan. 5
Tulsa Cherokee Community Organization
6 p.m., George Hoos 918-402-4667
tulsacherokees@gmail.com
Muldrow Cherokee Community Organization
MCCO Building, 6 p.m.
Pat Swaim 918-427-5440
Vian Peace Center, 604 W. Schley, 5:30 p.m.
Jan. 7
Greasy Fellowship Community Organization
Greasy Community Building, 7 p.m.
Washington County Cherokee Association
300 E. Angus Ave., Dewey, 7 p.m.
Ann Sheldon 918-333-5632
Jan. 9
Mt. Hood Cherokee Satellite Community
Wilshire United Methodist Church
3917 NE Shaver St., Portland, Oregon
10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Jan. 10
Rogers County Cherokee Association, 2 p.m.
Beverly Cowan beverlycowan@sbcglobal.net
Jan. 11
Marble City Pantry, 7 p.m.
Clifton Pettit 918-775-5975
Brent Community Association
461914 Hwy. 141, Gans, 6 p.m.
918-774-0655, brentcomm@live.com
Jan. 12
No-We-Ta Cherokee Community
Cherokee Nation Nutrition Site
6:30 p.m., Carol Sonenberg 918-273-5536
Victory Cherokee Organization
1025 N. 12th St. Collinsville, 7 p.m.
Ed Phillips 918-371-6688
victorycherokee@att.net
Jan. 14
Lyons Switch, 7 p.m.
Karen Fourkiller 918-696-2354
Native American Fellowship Inc.
215 Oklahoma St., South Coffeyville
6:00 p.m., Bill Davis 913-563-9329
Okay Senior Citizens, Inc.
Okay Senior Building, 3701 E. 75th Street
7 p.m.
Adair County Resource Center
110 S. 2nd St., Stilwell, 6:30 p.m.
Stilwell Public Library Friends Society
5 N. 6th St., Stilwell, 5 p.m.
Jan. 18
Neighborhood Association of Chewey
Chewy Community Building, 7 p.m.
Jan. 19
Central Oklahoma Cherokee Alliance
Oklahoma City, BancFirst Community Room
4500 W. Memorial Road, 6 p.m.
Franklin Muskrat Jr. 405-842-6417
Oak Hill/Piney, 7 p.m.
Dude Feather 918-235-2811
Rocky Mountain Cherokee Community
Organization, 7 p.m.
Vicki McLemore 918-696-4965
Fairfield Community Organization, Inc.
6:30 p.m., Jeff Simpson 918-605-0839
Jan. 25
Christie, 7 p.m., Shelia Rector 918-778-3423
Jan. 26
Fairfield, 7 p.m., Jeff Simpson 918-696-7959
Dry Creek, 7 p.m.
Shawna Ballou 918-457-5023
Jan. 28
Tri-County (W.E.B.) Association
J.R.’s Country Auction, 6 p.m.
Orchard Road Community Outreach(Stilwell)
Turning Point Office, 6 p.m.
Community Calendar
Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays
Marble City Nutrition Center
711 N. Main
Marble City, Okla. 918-775-2158
The Marble City Nutrition Center serves
hot meals at the Marble City Community
Center at 11:30 a.m.
First Friday of every month
Concho Community Building
Concho, Okla. 405-422-7622
Tahlequah, Okla. 918-456-7787
Monthly meetings are at 6 p.m.
Second Tuesday of each month
Cherokee Artists Association at 202 E. 5th
Street, Tahlequah, Okla. 918-458-0008
www.cherokeeartistsassociation.org
The CAA meets at 6 p.m. the second
Tuesday of each month.
Every Friday of each month
Will Rogers Memorial Museum
Claremore, Okla. 918-341-0719
Dance at Tahlequah Senior Citizens Center
230 E. 1st St. in Tahlequah, Okla.
For seniors 50 and over, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Admission is $2.50, includes pot luck
dinner
Fourth Thursday of each month
Every Tuesday of each month
American Indian Chamber of Commerce
of Oklahoma – Eastern Chapter monthly
luncheon at Bacone College
Muskogee, Okla. 918-230-3759
The lunch begins at 11:30 a.m. at Benjamin
Wacoche Hall. Please RSVP one week
ahead of time.
Second Saturday of each month
Cherokee Basket Weavers Association at
the Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Dance at Hat Box Dance Hall
540 S. 4th St. in Muskogee, Okla.
For seniors 50 and over, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Admission is $2.50, includes pot luck
dinner
Year Round
To have an event or meeting listed, fax
information to 918-458-6136 attention:
Community Calendar. The deadline for
submissions is the 10th of each month.
In Memoriam
James P. Foster
Stilwell, OK
Born 11/2/1956 – Death 8/23/2015
Worked for Schwan’s/welder
9
10
Services • nnrpH
CN Angel Project provides Christmas gifts
BY STACIE GUTHRIE
Reporter
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – On Nov.
24, the Cherokee Nation kicked
off the season of giving with its
2015 Angel Project event to help
provide Christmas gifts to Cherokee
children in need.
To begin the giving, CPR, a Tribal
Employment Rights Office-certified
and Cherokee-owned roofing
business, donated 250 bicycles to the
help fill the wants of children who
were a part of the Angle Project.
“Giving back is something my
mother raised me to do and my
employees love helping give back
also,” CPR President Robert Brown
said. “I remember one year when
my mother was unable to buy me
a Christmas gift and she received
help from a local store owner, who
helped her in providing me that one
toy under the Christmas tree.”
Rachel Fore, CN Indian Child
Welfare administrative operations
manager, said the donation of bikes
would cover a “large amount” of
what children are requesting for
their respective Christmas gifts.
“That’s a fabulous donation that
we haven’t ever had before, so it
kind of changed the way we had to
do things on the application side,”
she said. “We pretty swiftly decided
that we would just pull all the angels
that have requested bikes and then
we would utilize the funds that we
receive to fill in the needs for those
children.”
Fore said she became emotional
when she saw all 250 bike on various
trailers parked outside the W.W.
Keeler Tribal Complex.
“I teared up because as you take
application after application there
are so many needs out there and
very little wants really from our
Cherokee children that are on the
Angel Project, and so to see that
someone would identify a very, very
big want that a lot of kids wouldn’t
even dream to ask for, that’s really
impactful, and it’s a great way that
Cherokees are helping Cherokees,”
she said.
Fore said there were nearly 2,000
children who are a part of the
project. She added that she expects
to see around 100 emergency
applicants in the coming weeks.
“As we get closer people will say,
‘I didn’t know that I was going to
have this expense’ or ‘my husband
lost his job last week.’ So we will take
in those children and provide for
them as well,” she said. “Last year, we
provided for 2,016 children so we are
going to maintain open and available
to operate up to that this year.”
Fore said in some cases not all
children on the tree are picked, but
she said with the help of donated
funds they will not go without.
People surround the Cherokee Nation Angel Project Tree on Nov. 24 at the W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex in
Tahlequah, Oklahoma. There are nearly 2,000 Cherokee children in the tribe’s 14-county jurisdiction who
are apart of the project this year. STACIE GUTHRIE/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
“Typically, it is the case that we
have to shop for anywhere from
200 to 400 that aren’t selected off
of a tree,” she said. “We utilize our
donated funds to do that. We focus
on their needs first then at least get
them one want for the year.”
Fore said this is her first year to
fully be immersed in the CN Angel
Project, and that is has been a
“humbling” experience.
“You think, ‘what is it going to
be like to take these applications?’
and then you look into the eyes of
these mothers and fathers that just
want to be able to provide for their
kids at Christmas,” she said. “I
didn’t probably realize that it would
impact me so much.”
She said is also impacts her family
and how they partake in Christmas.
“It also impacts me in my own
personal life because I look at my
kids and think I probably over
buy for Christmas most years for
my own children,” she said. “So,
given a little perspective through
the Angel Project we’re looking at
that differently in our own family
this year. What we can maybe pare
back on and provide to those that
wouldn’t receive half of what I might
buy for my own kids.”
The Angel Project is available to
CN citizens living within the tribe’s
14-county jurisdiction, meet income
guidelines and have children who
are between 0 to 16 years old.
Fore said all donations need to be
returned unwrapped to Cherokee
First inside the Tribal Complex by
Dec. 9. “You can come adopt an
angel right up until then,” she said.
According to a CN press release,
tax-free monetary donations to help
buy gifts can be made to the CN at
http://bit.ly/1OxObLR. For more
information, call Fore at 918-4586919.
ᏓᎵᏆ, ᎣᎦᎳᎰᎹ. – ᎾᎯᏳᏃ
ᏅᏓᏕᏆ. 24, ᎾᏍᎩ ᏣᎳᎩᎯ
ᎠᏰᎵ
ᎤᎾᎴᏅᎲᎩ
ᎯᎠ
ᏓᏓᏁᏟᏴᏍᎬᎢ 2015 ᏗᎧᎿᏩᏗᏙᎯ
ᎠᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗ ᎤᎾᎵᏍᏕᎸᎯᏓᏍᏗᎢ
ᏓᏂᏍᏓᏲᎯᎲᎢ ᏗᏓᏁᏗ ᏧᏂᏁᏗᎢ
ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ
ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎤᏂᏂᎬᎬᎢ.
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᎤᎾᎴᏅᎯᏓᏍᏗᎢ
ᏧᏂᏁᏗᎢ,
CPR,
ᎠᏂᏍᏓᏢᎢ
ᏧᏂᎸᏫᏍᏓᏁᎯ
ᏧᏂᏍᏓᏩᏛᏍᏗ
– ᎠᎵᏍᎪᏟᏗᏍᎩ ᎠᎴ ᏣᎳᎩᎤᏅᏏ ᎤᎾᏤᎵᎢ ᏗᏂᎵᏦᏛᏍᎩ
ᏧᏂᎸᏫᏍᏓᏁᎯ, ᏚᎾᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏅᎢ
250 ᏱᎦᎢ ᎳᎵ ᏗᎦᏆᏘ ᏗᎩᎸᏙᏗ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏓᏂᏍᏕᎵᏍᎬᎢ ᏗᏂᏲᏟ ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎨᎪᏪᎸᎢ
ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
ᏗᎧᎿᏩᏗᏙᎯ
ᎤᎾᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗᎢ.
“ ᎪᎱᏍᏗᏃ ᎠᏓᏁᏗ ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎠᎩᏥᏃ
ᎠᏇᏲᏅᎢ
ᎢᏯᏛᏁᏗᎢ
ᎠᎴ ᏗᎦᏥᎾᏝᎢ ᎠᏂᏉᏗᎭ,” CPR
ᏄᎬᏫᏳᏒᎢ
Robert
Brown
ᎢᏳᏪᏓ.
“ᎡᏘᏴᏃ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ ᏫᎦᏅᏓᏗᎠ ᎠᎩᏥ
ᎤᏄᎸᏅᎢ ᎨᏒᎢ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᎠᎩᏁᏗᎢ,
ᎠᎴ
ᎠᏓᎾᏅᎢ
ᏧᎸᏫᏍᏓᏁᎯ
ᎠᏆᏍᏕᎸᎲᎢ
ᏌᏊ
ᏗᏁᏟᏙᏗ
ᎠᎩᏁᎸᎢ.
ᎯᎠᏃ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏗᏂᏲᏟ ᎠᎴ ᎤᎾᏓᎬᏴᎵᎨᎢ
ᏛᏍᏕᎵᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏰᎵᎢ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ
ᎬᏩᏂᎩᏍᏗ
ᏓᏂᏍᏓᏲᎯᎲᎢ
ᏑᎾᎴᎢ.”
Rachel Fore, ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ
CN program helps citizens
get back on feet
BY TESINA JACKSON
Reporter
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – To help Cherokee
Nation citizens recently released from prison
get back on their feet, the Career Services’
Coming Home Re-entry program assists those
individuals re-enter society.
It helps those who have been released from
prison within the past six months with immediate
needs such as food, clothing, finding a place to
live, if needed, and finding employment.
“What we do is when they get out they come
to our office. We’re able to assist them with
$250 for clothes immediately so they can find a
job or we can help them find a job,” Daryl Legg,
Coming Home Re-entry director, said.
The program started in 2013 with a $20,000
charitable donation for homeless incarcerated
Cherokees. Since then the Tribal Council has
resubmitted that budget to help the program
continue. The program’s budget has even
increased to more than $93,000, Legg said.
“It’s the immediate needs. These folks
don’t have a driver’s license. They don’t have
anything but maybe a $45 check when they
leave,” he said. “Then they have probation fees.
They have fines they have to start paying. They
have possible attorney fees they have to start
paying, so whatever we can do to help balance
out the playing field and to give them a fair
shake, that’s what we try to do.”
Legg said the first three years, the program
helped 95 Cherokees who were released from
prison and 85 have succeeded in not returning
to prison.
“We believe in Career Services that a man or
a woman need to be working because it does
a lot for your social development, your selfesteem,” he said. “An idle mind is the devil’s
playground. If people aren’t doing anything to
keep themselves occupied they’re going to find
something to do, whether it’s right or wrong.
They’re going to find something to do so we try
to keep them busy.”
Legg said the main focus is to stabilize those
who need help. After they’re stabilized they
can take advantage of other Career Services
programs such as GED classes, building trades,
day training program and vocational training
and rehabilitation.
“I’m probably one of the very first products
of the re-entry program because I was in prison
three times myself, and after I got out the third
time in 2001 I went back to college. Vocational
rehabilitation assisted me with going to school.
Vocational rehabilitation recruited me to come
to work here at the Cherokee Nation, and three
years later, here I am,” Legg said. “I was over
the vocational programs, and now I’m over
economic development and re-entry. We’re
blessed that we belong to a tribe that forgives.
Everybody has the ability to change.”
Legg said while in prison people have to
go through several programs to be job-ready
when they leave.
CN citizen Shelley Watson became a certified
office administrative assistant while in prison,
which has helped her with her current job in
the tribe’s day training program.
Watson said the program helped her get
clothes, a job interview, food, a driver’s license,
a Social Security card and a place to live.
“It’s just a really good place to get into
especially getting out of prison because I was
homeless,” she said. “I didn’t have anywhere to
go, I didn’t have family to help me or anything,
and I was not willing to go back to prison.”
Watson, who was recently released from
prison for assault and battery by abuse, said the
program has made her feel like she is important,
something she hadn’t felt in a long time.
“The Cherokee Nation, through this
reintegration program, has helped me
tremendously,” she said. “I couldn’t even say
thank you enough for the help that they have
given me. I was very troubled and on drugs
so bad that I couldn’t even tell you which
way I was going. I am a violent offender and
a felon and they still helped me. To have an
organization help you when you get out, it just
made me feel like I was a million bucks, that I
was a somebody instead of a nobody because
when you first get out that’s how you feel.
They just made me feel like I was the best I
could be, and I haven’t felt like that in a long time.”
The Coming Home Re-entry program also
accepts gently used furniture, clothes and other
household items and appliances. These items go
to CN citizens participating in the program.
For more information, call Mary Dunlap at
918-453-5386 or Daryl Legg at 918-207-3832.
ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯ
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ
Ꮧ Ꮒ Ꮝ Ꮥ Ꮅ Ꮝ Ꭹ
Ꮔ Ꭼ Ꮻ Ᏻ Ꮢ Ꭲ
Ꮒ Ꮪ Ꮝ Ꮧ Ꮧ Ꮢ Ꭲ
Ꮔ Ꭼ Ꮻ Ᏻ Ꮜ Ꮥ Ꭹ ,
SCAN
ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ
ᎾᏍᎩ
CODE
ᏔᎵ ᏗᎦᏆᏘ ᏗᎩᎸᏙᏗ
TO SEE
Ꮷ Ꮎ ᎵᏍ Ꭺ Ꮯ ᏔᏅᎢ
ᎤᏂᎪᏗ ᏗᎬᏩᏂᎩᏍᏗ
VIDEO
“
ᎤᏓᏍᏈᏍᏙᏒᎢ”
ᎨᏎᏍᏗ ᏄᏍᏛᎢ ᎠᏂᏔᏲᎯᎲᎢ
ᏓᏂᏍᏓᏲᎯᎲᎢ.
“ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᎤᎸᏈᏍᏗ
ᎤᎾᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏅᎢ
ᎥᏝ
ᎢᎸᎯᏳ
ᎥᏍᎩᏳᎵᏍᏓᏂᏙᎸᎢ ᏱᎩ, ᎾᏍᎩᏃᏅ
ᎤᏓᏁᏟᏴᏒᎢ ᏄᏍᏛᎢ ᎢᏯᏛᏁᏗᎢ
ᏗᎧᎵᏏᏐᏗᎢ ᏗᎪᏪᎵ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ.
“ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᎩᎳᏫᏴᎢ ᏙᎫᎪᏔᏅᎢ
ᎾᏍᎩ Ꮎ ᏗᎧᎿᏩᏗᏙᎯ ᎠᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏧᏂᏔᏲᏢᎢ ᏔᎵ ᏗᎦᏆᏘ
ᏗᎩᎸᏙᏗ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏗᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏅᎢ
ᏥᎩ ᏱᏓᏅᏗ ᎥᏍᎩᎾᏅ ᏗᏂᏲᏟ
ᏧᏂᏔᏲᏢᎢ ᏱᏓᏂᎲᏏ.”
Fore Z ᎢᏳᏪᏓ ᏂᎦᏛᏃ 250 ᏔᎵ
ᏗᎦᏆᏗ ᏗᎩᎸᏙᏗ ᏚᎪᎭ ᎤᎵᎮᎵᏨᎢ
ᏚᏂᏠᏛᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᏙᏱᏗᏢᎢ W.W.
Keeler Tribal Complex.
“ᏓᏆᏠᏍᏔᏅᎢ
ᏂᏗᎦᎵᏍᏙᏗ
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᏱᏗᏣᏁᏏ
ᏗᎧᎵᏏᏐᏗ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᎾᏓᏍᏈᏍᏙᏒᎢ ᎠᏁᎭ
ᎤᏂᏂᎬᎬᎢ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᎠᎴ ᎠᎦᏲᏝ
ᎤᏂᏂᎬᎦ
ᏗᎦᏤᎵᎢ
ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏕᎪᏪᎸᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
ᏗᎧᎿᏩᏗᏙᎯ ᎠᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗ, ᎠᎴ
ᎬᎪᏩᏛᏗ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎩᎶ ᎬᏬᏟᏍᏗ
ᏙᎯᏳᎯᏯ ᎤᏚᏟᏛᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᏂᎪᏗ
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏗᎬᏩᏂᏘᏲᏍᏗ,
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏙᏳᎢ ᏗᎦᏙᎵᏍᏗ, ᎠᎴ
ᎢᎦᎨᏃ ᎣᏍᏓ ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ
ᏓᎾᎵᏍᏕᎵᏍᎬᎢ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ.
Fore Ꮓ ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ 2,000 ᎾᎥᎢ
ᏄᏂᏨᎢ ᏗᏂᏲᏟ ᎠᏂ ᎠᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗ
ᎠᏁᎳ. ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢᏃ ᏓᎬᏖᏃᎲᎢ
ᏧᎪᏩᏛᏗᎢ ᏢᏃ 100 ᎢᏳᏂᏨᎢ
ᎤᎾᏚᏟᏗ ᏳᎾᏛᏂ ᏧᏂᎧᎵᏏᏌᏅᎢ
ᎯᎠ ᏥᏛᏟᏱᎳ.
“ᎾᎥᏂᎨᏍᏗᏃ
ᎠᏟᎠᎵᏎᏍᏗ
ᎠᏂᏏᏴᏫ ᏂᏛᏂᏪᏏ, ᎥᏝ ᏱᏥᎦᏔᎮᎢ
ᎥᏍᎩ ᏱᎦᎢ ᏧᎵᎬᏩᎶᏗᎢ ᎠᎴᏱᎩ
ᎣᏍᏗᏁᎳ
ᏧᎸᏫᏍᏓᏁᏗᎢ
ᎤᏲᎱᏎᎸᎢ
ᏥᏛᏟᎠᎵᏒᎢ.
ᎠᎴᎾᏍᏊ
ᎥᏍᎩᎾᎾ
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ
ᏱᏙᏥᏯᎾ ᎠᎴ ᏱᏙᏥᏍᏕᎳ,”
ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ. “ᎡᏘᏴᏃ ᏥᎨᏒᎢ, 2,016
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ
ᏙᏥᏍᏕᎸᎲᎢ
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᏂᎬᏩᏍᏕᏍᏗ ᎠᎴ ᎠᏛᏅᎢᏍᏕᏍᏗ
ᏦᎩᎸᏫᏍᏓᏁᏗᎢ ᎯᎠ ᏧᏕᏘᏴᏌᏘ.”
Fore Z ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᏳᏓᎵᎭᎢ
ᎥᏝ ᏂᎦᏓ ᏗᏂᏲᏟ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎨᎪᏪᎸᎢ
ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᎢᏡᎬᎢ ᏱᎨᎦᏑᏰᏐᎢ, ᎠᏎᏃ
ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᎾᎵᏍᏕᎸᏗ
ᏥᏂᎦᎵᏍᏓ ᎥᏝᏃ ᏳᏂᏂᎬᎨᏍᏗ.
“ᏳᏓᎵᎭᏃ,
ᎣᏣᏓᎾᎾᏁᏍᎪᎢ 200 ᎠᎴ 400
ᏦᏥᏍᏕᎸᎡᏗᎢ
ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
ᎢᏡᎬᎢ ᎨᎪᏪᎸᎢ ᎨᎦᏑᏰᏓ ᏂᎨᏒᎾ
ᏱᎩ, “ᎤᎾᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏅᏃ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᎣᏨᏗᏍᎪᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏦᏥᏍᏕᎸᎡᏗᎢ.
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎣᏣᎦᏎᏍᏗᏍᎪᎢ ᎢᏳᏍᏗ
ᎤᏂᏂᎬᎬᎢ
ᎢᎬᏱᏱᎢ
ᎡᎵᏊᏃ
ᏌᏊᏊ
ᎢᏳᏍᏗ
ᎤᏂᏔᏲᏢᎢ
ᎠᏂᎩᎰᎢ ᎯᎠ ᏧᏕᏘᏴᏌᏗ.”
Fore Z ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᎯᎠᏃ
ᏧᏕᏘᏴᏌᏗ
ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎢᏃᏱᏱᎢ
ᎤᎵᏍᏕᎸᏗ ᏂᎦᎵᏍᏗᏍᎬᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ
ᏣᎳᎩᎯ
ᎠᏰᎵ
ᏗᎸᎿᏩᏗᏙᎯ
ᎠᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗ,
ᎠᎴ
ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎣᏍᏓ
“ᎠᎩᏰᎸᏅᎢ”
ᏄᏍᏛᎢ
ᎠᏆᏕᎶᎰᏒᏅᎢ.
“ᏁᎵᏍᎬᏃ, ᎦᏙᏍᎩᏂ ᏄᏍᏕᏍᏗ
ᏗᎦᏁᏍᏗᎢ ᎯᎠ ᏗᎧᎵᏏᏐᏗ?’ ᎠᎴ
ᏗᎪᏩᏛᏗ ᎤᎾᏓᏥᎢ ᎠᎴ ᎤᎾᏓᏙᏓ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏧᎾᏚᎵᎠ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᏰᎵᎢ
ᏗᎬᏩᏂᏁᏗ
ᏗᏂᏲᏟ
ᏚᏂᎧᎲᎢ
ᏓᏂᏍᏓᏲᎯᎲᎢ,”
ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ.
“ᎠᏴᏃ ᎥᏝ ᏱᎨᎵᏍᎨᎢ ᎥᏍᎩ ᏱᎦ
ᏂᏓᏥᏰᎸᏂᏒᎢ.”
ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ ᎠᎴᎾᏍᎩᏊ ᎤᏠᏱ
ᏄᏁᎵᏒᎢ ᎠᏂᏏᏓᏁᎸᎢ ᏄᏍᏛᎢ
ᎾᏅᏛᏁᎲᎢ ᏓᏂᏍᏓᏲᎯᎲᎢ.
“ᎾᏍᎩᏂᏃᏅ
ᎤᏠᏱ
ᎾᏊᎵᏍᏓᏁᎰᎢ
ᎠᏋᏌ
ᎨᎥᎢ
ᏂᏗᎦᎵᏍᏙᏗᎭ
ᎢᎦᏥᎦᏙᏍᏗᎰᎢ
ᎠᏆᏌ ᏓᏆᏓᏘᎿᎥᎢ ᎠᎴ ᏱᎾᏇᎵᏏ
ᏍᏈᏯ
ᎢᎦᏥᏁᎰᎢ
ᎠᏋᏌ
ᏓᏆᏓᏘᎿᎥᎢ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ. “ᏍᏗᏃ
ᎬᏕᎶᎰᎯᏍᏗ
ᏛᎧᏂᏍᎬᎢ
ᏗᎧᎿᏩᏗᏙᎯ ᎠᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗ ᎠᏯᏃ
ᏄᏓᎴᎢ ᎣᏥᎪᏩᏛᏗ ᎣᏥᏏᏓᏁᎸᎢ
ᏃᎦᏛᏅ ᎯᎠ ᏧᏕᏘᏴᏌᏗ. ᎡᎵᏊᏃ
ᎾᏊ ᎥᏝ ᎥᏍᎩ ᏱᎦ ᏱᏂᎦᎬᏛᎦ ᎠᎴ
ᏱᏂᎦᏥᏛᏂᏏ ᎾᏍᎩ Ꮎ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ
ᎬᏩᏂᎩᏍᏗ ᎠᏰᏟᏴ ᎠᏋᏏ ᏓᏆᏓᏘᎿᎥᎢ
ᎤᏂᎩᏍᏗ ᏱᎦᏥᎥᏏ.”
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
Ꮎ
ᎦᎧᎿᏩᏗᏙᎯ
ᎠᏓᏁᎳᏁᏗ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᏛᏅᎢᏍᏓ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏣᎳᎩᎯ ᎠᏰᎵ ᎠᏁᎳ 14ᏍᎦᏚᎩ ᎢᎬᎾᏕᎾ ᎠᏁᎯ ᎤᏅᏙᏗ,
ᏱᎦᏃ ᎠᏃᏢᏍᎬᎢ ᏚᏂᎸᏫᏍᏓᏁᎲᎢ
ᎬᏂᎨᏒᎢ ᎢᏳᏅᏁᏗ ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᏊ
0 ᎠᎴᏱᎩ 16 ᎢᏧᎾᏕᏘᏴᏓ ᏗᏂᏲᏟ
ᏱᏚᏂᎧᎭ.
Fore Z ᎢᎧᏃᎮᏍᎬᎢ ᏂᎦᏓᏃ
ᎤᎾᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏅᎢ
ᏗᎦᏇᏅᏓ
ᏂᎨᏒᎾ ᏧᏂᏲᎯᏍᏗ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ ᏣᎳᎩᎯ
ᎢᎬᏱᏱᎢ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ Tribal Complex
ᎤᏓᎷᎸᏊ ᎥᏍᎩᏱ. 9. “ᎤᏓᎷᎸᏃ
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏴᎯᏁᎦ ᎠᏏᏴᏫ ᏚᏙᎥᎢ,’
ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ.
CN ᎬᏂᎨᏒᎢ ᎢᏳᏅᏁᎸᎢ, taxfree monetary ᎠᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏅᎢ
ᎠᎵᏍᏕᎵᏍᎩ ᏗᏓᏁᏗ ᏗᏩᎯᏍᏗᎢ
ᏱᏣᎵᏍᎪᏟᏔᏂ ᎥᎿᎾᏂ CN at
http://bit.ly/10xobLR.
ᎤᎪᏗᏃ
ᎠᏕᎶᎰᎯᏍᏗᎢ ᏲᏚᎵᎠ,ᏩᏟᏃᎮᏗᏃ
Fore 918-458-6919.
Seed bank to open Feb. 1
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
Nation’s seed bank, which houses heirloom
crop and native plant seeds, will open to
Cherokee Nation citizens on February 1.
Seed bank officials said that 2015 was
a difficult growing season, but the tribe’s
Heirloom Garden and Native Plant Site seed
bank has been restocked and would offer a
large inventory of seeds to tribal citizens.
“The seed bank program allows us
to preserve seeds that are unique and
important to the Cherokee people. These
seeds are otherwise considered rare and are
hard to find. The seed bank allows Cherokee
families to grow healthy foods with no
genetic modification as our ancestors have
done for centuries,” Feather Smith Trevino,
CN cultural biologist, said.
The seeds available in the bank are rare
cultivars and generally not commercially
available, officials said, and the plants
represent centuries of Cherokee cultural and
agricultural history.
The program offers heirloom crop and
native plant seeds.
To receive seeds, email a request to
seedbank@cherokee.org and include a photo
or scan of one’s CN citizenship (blue) card
with the request. Include proof of age for any
request for native tobacco because recipients
must be 18 or older. Also, include the mailing
address where the seeds are to be sent.
Seed recipients are limited to two varieties
with only one variety of corn and gourds due
to hybridization issues. Be sure to include
one or two alternates in case one’s first choice
is no longer available.
For questions email seedbank@cherokee.
org or call 918-453-5336.
Health • aBk 0sr
11
Chili cook-off promotes
breast cancer awareness
Sam Hider Health Center
employees host the second
annual event at the Jay
Community Center.
A screenshot of the Indian Health Service’s website that deals with summer externships.
IHS.GOV
IHS currently accepting
externship applications
BY TRAVIS SNELL
Assistant Editor
WASHINGTON – Applications for
the Indian Health Service’s 2016 summer
externships are now being accepted and will
be accepted until Jan. 15.
According to www.ihs.gov, the IHS offers
scholarship recipients, as well as other
health profession students, the opportunity
to participate in a hands-on instructive
experience that will complement the
knowledge and skills developed in school.
“This experience will help to enhance preprofessional training, while also familiarizing
yourself with Native communities that are of
interest to you when you begin your health
professions career,” the website states.
Externs are employed for 30 to 120
workdays per calendar year during nonacademic periods, the site states. It also
states that externs receive a salary based on
experience and years of academic training
that is comparable to industry standards.
“IHS will waive your salary if the
externship fulfills a required academic field
placement or an internship, in which case
it will instead pay all required tuition, fees
and regular monthly stipend for scholarship
students only,” the site states.
For travel, externs must a Request for Extern
Travel Reimbursement (IHS-856-18) form to
request reimbursement for one round trip to
the externship site before travel is planned.
“IHS authorizes travel reimbursement
based on federal regulations for travel and
transportation allowances,” the website states.
“If a travel advance is required, contact your
Area Scholarship Coordinator and the IHS
Area office, Service Unit or health clinic
where you are assigned. Do not, under any
circumstances, travel without authorized
travel orders.”
Externs are also responsible for finding
their own housing, according to the website.
“Your Area Scholarship Coordinator or
the local site can provide that information
to you. You are eligible to receive a minimal
allowance for transportation of goods, but
IHS must provide advanced authorization on
your travel orders,” the website states. “Please
stay in touch with your Area Scholarship
Coordinator and Extern Coordinator to verify
all of your arrangements before traveling to
the externship site.”
To apply, applicants must be United
States citizens, enrolled in an eligible health
profession degree program and in good
academic standing with a 2.0 grade point
average or above.
According to the website, funding for the
IHS Extern Program is limited and selections
are based on the needs of the Indian health
program. The priority listing of those eligible
for the program are:
• Health professions scholarship recipients,
• Health professions students (nonrecipients) who are American Indian or
Alaska Native,
• Non-American Indian/Alaska Native health
professions students (non-recipients), and
• Preparatory or pre-graduate scholarship
recipients.
An applicant for a summer 2016 externship
must provide a current transcript and an OF306 at the time of application to be referred
to a hiring official. They must also submit the
application at
h t t p s : / / w w w. u s a j o b s . g o v / G e t J o b /
ViewDetails/420539600.
For more information, visit http://www.ihs.
gov/scholarship/ihsexternprogram/
fresh ground beef.
“It’s not store-bought beef. It’s butcher
shop ground beef,” she said. “The ground
beef, I think, was what did it.”
Strader said it was also important for her
to promote breast cancer awareness because
of two family members being diagnosed
with the disease.
BY STACIE GUTHRIE
“I have an aunt who has had breast cancer
Reporter
and a cousin who has had breast cancer. My
JAY, Okla. – Competitors and those wanting family, the females are fanatical about getting
to enjoy hot bowls of chili attended the mammograms,” she said. “I think anyway
second annual Chili Cook-off recently at the people can learn about breast cancer and
Jay Community Center, in which Cherokee women’s health issues, the better they are.”
Strader said women should get
Nation Sam Hider Health Center employees
mammograms at a younger age because her
raised money for breast cancer awareness.
Janell Brixy, Women’s Health Cancer case cousin learned of her breast cancer in her
manager, said the clinic hosts the cook- early 40s.
“I think they kind of changed when you
off in October because it is Breast Cancer
should get your first mammogram, and
Awareness Month.
“October is Breast Cancer Awareness I really think women should be younger
Month, and typically Oklahoma weather it’s because my cousin was in her early 40s
when she was first
nice and cool and fally
diagnosed with breast
(fall-like). And what’s
cancer and had bilateral
better in the fall than
We do this chili
breast removed by the
a good bowl of chili?”
cook-off to help raise time she was in her late
Brixy said.
40s,” she said. “My aunt
It cost $10 to register
funds to purchase
was older. She was in
a competition chili and
educational material her 60s. If it wasn’t for a
$6 got you a bowl of
mammogram they would
chili, crackers, dessert
for women in the
not have known that
and drink. Those funds
community regarding they had breast cancer.
were to be used to buy
Mammograms
have
educational
material
breast cancer.
saved two of my family
about breast cancer.
– Janell Brixy, members lives.”
“We do this chili cookoff to help raise funds to
Sam Hider Health Center On Oct. 20, the
American
Cancer
purchase educational
Women’s Health Cancer Society issued guidelines
material for women
case manager r e c o m m e n d i n g
in the community
women receive yearly
regarding breast cancer,”
Brixy said. “We’re trying to get more people mammograms at 45 and until they turn
in through the clinic get educated so that 55. From there, it suggests women receive
hopefully we can help as many women as we a mammogram every other year as long as
their physicians deem them healthy. The
possibly can.”
Brixy said it is important to spread breast previous guidelines recommended women
cancer awareness “because breast cancer is begin yearly mammograms starting at 40.
According to the ACS, the new guidelines
the third-leading cause of (cancer) death in
are for women considered average risk for
Native American women.”
“If we can get them educated, get them breast cancer. Women considered to be hightested, get the mammograms done and save risk for breast cancer either because of family
lives, that’s our whole goal,” she said. “We’re history, a breast condition or another reason
a matriarchal society. We’ve got to take care need to begin screening at a younger age
of our women, our mothers, our daughters, and screened more often. The ACS suggests
our children. That’s why it’s so important to women speak with their medical providers to
see what are the best routes to take.
get women in.”
As for the chili cook-off, Brixy said SHHC
Susie Strader and Tressa Scroggins said
they participated in the cook-off not only public health nursing supervisor Vicki
for the cause but because in 2014 their chili Madha won first place and licensed practical
placed first. Strader said the key is using nurse Lana Husong took second.
CN nurses administer
influenza vaccines
The vaccines this year will
protect against two strands
of Type A flu viruses and
one strand of the Type B
flu virus.
Chili Cook-Off participant Tressa Scroggins stirs her and her friend Susie Strader’s
chili at the second annual Chili Cook-Off at the Community Center in Jay, Oklahoma.
Cherokee Nation Sam Hider Health Center employees hosted the event recently to
raise money for breast cancer awareness. STACIE GUTHRIE/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
BY BRITTNEY BENNETT
Intern
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – Cherokee
Nation nurses administered free influenza
vaccinations to CN citizens and employees
recently inside the Tribal Council Chambers
at the W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex.
Patricia Hawk, CN Public Health Nurse
administrator, said the event reflected a
mission of “prevention,” and that the vaccines
this year will protect against two strands of
Type A flu viruses and one strand of the Type
B flu virus.
“The vaccine introduces the dead virus
into your body and it starts building up the
antibodies and everything else that your
body can pull together so that when the live
one comes on board it’s already armored and
ready to go,” Hawk said.
According to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, symptoms of the flu
start one to four days after the virus enters the
body and include cough, sore throat, fever,
headaches, fatigue, muscle or body aches and
a runny or stuffy nose.
The CDC cautions that adults and children
with the flu can infect others one day before
symptoms develop and up to five to seven
days after becoming sick.
“Please, please get your flu shot,” Hawk said.
“It’s so very important. It’s going to keep not
only you but everyone else around you healthy
because you’re not going to spread it to them.”
CN citizen Beverly Lawellin said she got
vaccinated not only to protect herself from
getting the flu, but to protect others.
“I started taking care of my ex-husband
who is a cancer patient, and it was necessary
that I take a flu shot (while) taking care of
him when he was doing his chemotherapy
and radiation,” she said. “I didn’t need to
A Cherokee Nation nurse administers an
influenza vaccination at the Tribal Council
Chambers inside the W.W. Keeler Tribal
Complex in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. The
vaccinations were available to CN citizens
and employees at no cost.
BRITTNEY BENNETT/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
bring anything home to him with his immune
system being so low, and now I’m kind of
afraid to quit taking (the flu vaccine) because
I might get the flu.”
Lawellin encouraged those who are scared of
the flu but uneasy about getting vaccinated to
have the same mentality of looking out for others.
“You could still be a carrier and give it to
somebody else,” she said. “It could be an
elderly person that doesn’t need the flu. You
don’t know what’s wrong with the people
passing you. You don’t know what they’re
going through and their health issues. It’s an
overall good thing for everybody.”
Officials said they had 360 vaccines to
administer. CN nurses were also set to
administer flu shots at Claremore Indian
Hospital and W.W. Hastings Hospital
in Tahlequah. Officials said among the
Claremore, Tribal Complex and Hastings
sites, they could administer about 3,000
vaccinations.
An adult consent form or a pediatric
consent form must be filled out prior to
receiving the vaccine.
For more information, call Hawk at 918453-5000, ext. 5844 or Debbie Hood at 918453-5000, ext. 5841.
For more information on this year’s flu
strains and vaccines, visit http://www.cdc.gov/
flu/about/season/flu-season-2015-2016.htm.
CHEROKEEPHOENIX.ORG
12
Education • #n[]Qsd
McAlister teaching vocal class at Bacone College
Cherokee Nation
citizen Barbara
McAlister has an
eight-week class
in Muskogee,
Oklahoma.
BY STACIE GUTHRIE
Reporter
MUSKOGEE, Okla. – Bacone
College’s Vocal Class, which began
this semester, provides students with
a chance to strengthen their singing
skills and hone their abilities under
the tutelage of adjunct professor and
Cherokee Nation citizen Barbara
McAlister.
“I originally wanted to teach oneon-one voice. Then it turned out
that it would be a voice class,” she
said. “This is the first semester of the
voice class, and I have three people.
I think they’re doing very well and
I’m enjoying it.”
McAlister, a mezzo soprano
opera star, said she hopes to teach
her students to sing songs in various
languages, and eventually help them
develop “the voice.”
“I hope to teach a song in German,
French, Italian, the Cherokee
(language) and just familiarize
each student with the technique of
singing. Even if somebody can’t sing
very well, you can still develop the
voice to a point that they will enjoy
preforming in choirs,” she said.
McAlister said the class is just the
beginning of learning about the voice.
“You’re just scratching the surface
in a voice class like this. To sing
well can require years of study,” she
said. “It’s really a lifelong study, any
instrument is, and the voice is a
instrument.”
Bacone College adjunct professor and Cherokee Nation citizen Barbara McAlister helps Thomas Carment
improve his singing voice during the college’s newly added vocal class. The vocal class is an eight-week
class that began Oct. 26 at the Muskogee, Oklahoma, college. STACIE GUTHRIE/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
This is the first semester of the voice class, and
I have three people. I think they’re doing very
well and I’m enjoying it.
– Barbara McAlister, Cherokee Nation citizen
McAlister said in years past,
Bacone was “famous” for it’s musical
programs and that she wanted to
restore that aspect.
“We want to develop more music.
Bacone was very famous for its
music in years past. They have now,
praise and worship choir. They have
gospel choir already,” she said. “In
the old days, the (19)30s, 40s, 50s,
they had a choir that was even on the
Ed Sullivan Show. The choir toured
the United States, and I would love
to see that happen again.”
McAlister said she believes most
people enjoy singing, so it’s great to
help them be able to sing well.
“I think most people enjoy
singing, don’t they? When I go
to church on Sunday morning
everyone gets up and sings,” she
said. “If you really get involved then
it’s just an incredible study. It’s a
great discipline. I think the fact is
that most people love to sing, and
if they do it well it’s even more fun.”
Sophomore Alani Sherer, of
Horton, Kansas, said she decided to
enroll in McAlister’s class because she
has always been interested in music.
“I met Barbara when I worked at a
church here in town and took some
lessons from her last spring and
found out that she was teaching this
class here, so I decided to enroll,”
she said.
Sherer said while growing up she
was always apart of a choir, so she
had an easy time taking to the class.
She added that it’s a little different
than being apart of a choir “because
there’s not as many people.”
She said so far she has enjoyed
going to the class and would
recommend it to others interested
in learning more about their voices.
“I would say it’s a lot of fun,”
Sherer said. “Barbara really is good
at encouraging and just helping you
when you’re struggling.”
Thomas Carment, of Muskogee,
said he enrolled
because he wanted to
sing better so he could
join his church choir.
“I have some issues
SCAN
with singing, and
CODE
Barbara McAlister’s
TO SEE
an excellent teacher,
VIDEO
and she can get me
further down the road than I could
stumbling on my own,” he said.
Carment said after attending four
of the eight classes he is becoming
aware of what he should do while
singing.
“She (McAlister) says I’m doing
better,” he said. “I picked up a couple
of good clues like projecting. My
voice does better when I push the air
through my vocal chords than when
I don’t. We’ve reviewed octaves and
we do voice lessons, voice exercises
and I think that’s terrific. It’s just
exactly what I needed. I needed some
coaching, and I’ll probably continue
to need coaching for a long time.”
The vocal class started on Oct. 26
and is projected to conclude on Dec.
14. The class is held every week on
Monday from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. in
the Lucy Peters Room on campus.
To take the class, students must
enroll at Bacone College.
I have some issues
with singing, and
Barbara McAlister’s an
excellent teacher, and
she can get me further
down the road than
I could stumbling on
my own.
– Thomas Carment,
Vocal student
Legal magazine names
Leeds ‘Leader in Diversity’
Cherokee Nation citizen
Stacy Leeds is one of 20
professors chosen who
have gone beyond the
norm to further diversity
efforts in legal education.
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The National
Jurist, a magazine dedicated to being the voice
of legal education, recently named Cherokee
Nation citizen Stacey Leeds, the University of
Arkansas School of Law dean, as a Leader in
Diversity.
Leeds, who also chairs the Cherokee Nation
Gaming Commission, said everything she’s
accomplished she attributes to a great family
and strong community support network.
“I come from a long line of good people
that worked very, very hard but were often not
the beneficiaries of opportunities, particularly
educational opportunities,” Leeds stated in
an email. “They had to quit school (or not
pursue higher education) for economic and/
or social reasons that had nothing to do with
their drive or their intellect. I have been so
very fortunate to have the opportunities that
they did not. That reality is the source of
profoundly powerful motivation.”
Leeds said Cherokees are naturally
grounded people and humor is one attribute
that they use to reach out to one another to
keep each other grounded.
“That’s a trait that will allow many of our
youth to be good leaders in any setting – they
need to know that they don’t need to change
themselves in order to succeed in any setting,”
she added. “They can lead in a Cherokee way
– and be leaders that people can relate to on a
very deeply personal level. There’s a cultural
reason our recent elected leaders are known
to us as Wilma, Joe, Chad and Bill John, rather
than principal chiefs Mankiller, Byrd, Smith
and Baker. It’s not disrespectful. It’s a subtle
message to our kids that they can be whatever
they want to be if they are willing to work hard
– job titles are one thing, people are much
more interesting.”
In the magazine’s fall issue there were
20 professors chosen from nearly 100
nominations who have gone beyond the norm
to further diversity efforts in legal education,
according to an Arkansas University release.
Leeds said her suggestions on diversity
include starting early in talking to students
about their futures and to never underestimate
the impact one can make on another.
“Pipeline
programs
that
target
undergraduate and high school students are
great – but if I had the resources, we’d target
junior high. Planting seeds early is critical,”
she said. “Never underestimate the impact
you may have on someone – positive and
negative. Even unintended negative messages
can cripple someone’s spirit. Understand how
powerful words can be if you are a teacher,
coach, family member or community member.
In contrast, a isolated positive speech can be
transformative at the right time.”
She added that she is always mindful of the
students the university recruits.
“I am likely the only lawyer, law professor
or dean they have ever met, but I am them and
they are me,” Leeds said.
According to the university’s release, the
magazine is among the nation’s leading news
sources in legal education. ‘The National
Jurist’ reaches an estimated 100,000 law
students, and ‘preLaw’ is read by more than
45,000 prospective law students. Professors
and law school administrators receive both
publications.
Charles Robinson, vice chancellor for
diversity and community and interim vice
provost for student affairs, said the university
is “fortunate to have her as part of the
Razorback family.”
According to the release, Leeds’ profile
states she is the nation’s only American Indian
dean of a law school and one of a handful of
American Indian law professors.
I come from a long line of good people
that worked very, very hard but were often
not the beneficiaries of opportunities,
particularly educational opportunities.
– Stacy Leeds,
An Oklahoma State University representative speaks with students about what
opportunities and programs are available to them when preparing for college during
the Cherokee Nation’s Education Services College and Career Night on Dec. 3 in
Tahlequah, Oklahoma. TESINA JACKSON/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
Education Services hosts
College and Career Night
BY TESINA JACKSON
Reporter
Nation’s Education Services hosted a College
and Career Night on Dec. 3 in which more
than 200 students spoke with representatives
from several colleges while also learning
about services available and scholarship
opportunities the tribe offers.
“It was the first Education Services event to
try to bring in all of our scholarship recipients
to get a better working relationship with all of
the institutions and also bringing in students
who are interested in going to school,” Dr. Neil
Morton, Education Services advisor, said.
Several presentations were also given
regarding opportunities available such as the
Gates Millennium Scholarship, how to apply
for Free Application for Federal Student Aid,
Cherokee Nation Foundation scholarships
and services, Indian Capital Technology
Center programs, CN Career Services and
CN College Housing programs.
Morton said the event was to provide
students with more of an awareness of
available sources and to emphasize that they
shouldn’t depend on only one source.
For CN citizen and Oolagah High School
senior Madyson Driver having more than
one source and seeing what scholarships are
available is what prompted her to attend.
“To also get different advice on what to do
and what applications to fill out,” she said.
Driver said she plans to attend
Northeastern Stat University to study speech
pathology to become a pediatric speech
therapist. She said she decided on that career
while participating in the tribe’s Career
Services
summer
SCAN
day work program at
CODE
the Summit Physical
TO SEE
Therapy offices in
VIDEO
Claremore.
Representatives from NSU, University of
Arkansas, University of Oklahoma, Rogers
State University, University of Central
Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University,
Connors State College, Bacone College
and Carl Albert State College were also in
attendance for students to speak with.
Jay Falkner, Carl Albert State College
associate vice president of enrollment
management, said one reason his college
attended the event was because of the great
partnership that has developed over a long
time working with Cherokee students.
Carl Albert State College’s main campus is
in Poteau, but has a Sallisaw branch, too.
“A lot of our Cherokee students attend
the Sallisaw campus, so we’re really excited
about upcoming opportunities to work with
the Cherokee Nation,” Falkner said.
Falkner said events such as the college
fair help students because now students
focus more on how they’re going to finance
their education and what employment
opportunities will be available after college.
“So it’s not so much about student life
anymore as it is about opportunities in
career advancement when they’re done, so a
lot of the questions now that we deal with
are related to financing your education and
career options,” he said.
For more information on available
scholarships and opportunities, call the
College Resource Center at 918-453-5465 or
email collegeresources@cherokee.org.
Education • #n[]Qsd
13
OSU student says Cherokee traditions propel her
BY JACY BRADFORD
Oklahoma State University
STILLWATER, Okla. – Amber
Suena Anderson’s full name means
“golden beyond tomorrow,” and
the Cherokee Nation citizen takes
this meaning to heart.
“I’ve always felt like with my
name, I have a responsibility to take
care of those in the generations to
come,” Anderson said.
It is a philosophy she has refined
and solidified during her five years
as a biochemistry and molecular
biology student in Oklahoma State
University’s College of Agricultural
Sciences and Natural Resources.
The senior from Warr Acres
said two things have impacted
her the most as a student at OSU
– undergraduate research and
involvement with Native American
communities. She said the two of
these combined have transformed
her into the individual she is.
Anderson said she is thankful
to have found a way to weave her
culture into her passion for science.
It is a traditional Cherokee belief
to keep seven generations, both
ahead of you and behind you, in
mind for everything you do. She
said this belief has encouraged
her to serve as a mentor for other
Native American students at
OSU through roles such as Miss
American Indian OSU and Native
American Student Association
president.
Her platform as the 2012-13
Miss American Indian OSU was to
challenge more Native American
students to become involved in
research.
“I try to encourage Native
American students, especially in the
science, technology, engineering
and mathematics fields, to know
not only what their potential is,
but also the importance of them
becoming involved in research and
extracurricular activities that will
allow them to achieve things they
never imaged they could before,”
Anderson said.
Her interest in Native American
health sparked as a child because
her dad works in the public health
field. Anderson, however, said her
passion for research did not fully
develop until her arrival at OSU.
As a Freshman Research Scholar,
she was placed in Patricia Canaan’s
research lab, and after her first
semester, she was hooked.
Canaan, associate professor
of biochemistry and molecular
biology,
said
Anderson’s
enthusiasm is contagious.
“Amber is an excellent role
model and ambassador for Native
Americans and she has always
represented the OSU Department
of Biochemistry and Molecular
Biology well throughout her
multiple events and occasions,”
Canaan said. “We are excited to
see how she succeeds in her future
pursuits in public health.”
Numerous internships and
summer research programs landed
Anderson at places such as Harvard
Medical School in Boston and
Brookhaven National Laboratory
in New York.
But an experience closer to home
last summer at the Oklahoma City
Area Inter-Tribal Health Board
confirmed her career path.
“In this position, I was treated as
a young professional in the field as
opposed to an intern,” Anderson
said. “I had the opportunity to help
create a prescription drug abuse
fact sheet that was distributed
throughout the state, so in a sense,
I felt like I was making an impact
to many tribal communities and
generations.”
During
this
internship,
Anderson became involved in a
research project about perceptions
of Native Americans.
The study, sponsored by
the Oklahoma Area Tribal
Epidemiology Center and AARP,
included a Tribal Community
Survey to better understand the
beliefs of American Indians/
Alaska Natives living in Oklahoma.
Anderson said the assessment
provided information on the
challenges and priorities in life,
monthly expenses and consumerrelated issues.
“This research is unique because
although there has been a lot of
Native American research in the
past, there has hardly ever been
a focus on the perceptions of
Native Americans,” Anderson said.
“Stepping into the community and
being submerged in the culture
opened up great opportunities for
gathering usable information.”
The national conference is
a gathering of nearly 4,000
students and professionals, and
includes more than 1,000 poster
presentations. Anderson has
qualified to attend the conference
since 2012. Her final conference
as a student, however, will always
be the most memorable because
she received an outstanding poster
presentation award.
“This award is the highlight of
my research career because I have
poured so much of my heart into
my research,” Anderson said. “It
was very rewarding to earn an
award the last year I was able to
go and to represent my university
and academic college on a national
platform.”
She said her love for the topic felt
like more of a conversation with
the judges and participants instead
of a formal poster presentation.
“If you’re passionate about
something, it is very easy and fun
to talk about it,” Anderson said.
“You long to share your knowledge
with others.”
John Gustafson, biochemistry
and molecular biology department
head, said having diverse leaders
will be essential for the next
generation of students, and he is
confident Anderson will fulfill this
responsibility.
Cherokee Nation citizen Amber Suena Anderson says her passion
for science draws heavily on her Cherokee heritage. TODD JOHNSON/
OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY
I try to encourage Native American students,
especially in the science, technology,
engineering and mathematics fields, to know
not only what their potential is...
– Amber Suena Anderson,
Anderson presented this research
at the Society for the Advancement
of Chicanos and Native Americans
in Science National Conference in
Los Angeles this past summer.
SACNAS was founded more
than 40 years ago by career
academics and research scientists
committed to unifying their voice
and offering guidance to Hispanics,
Chicanos and Native Americans in
the STEM fields.
“The diversity in science
including women is very scarce, and
we must work toward decreasing
this lack,” he said. “How can we
continue enhancing additional
students that represent diversity if
we do not have these people as role
models? This is what makes Amber
so unique. She is that role model.”
Following graduation this May,
Anderson will attend North
Dakota State University to pursue
a master’s degree in public health
with an option in American
Indian public health. She hopes
to then continue her educational
journey to earn a doctorate, while
continuing to study infectious
diseases.
“With these degrees, I will
work to improve the health of
the Cherokee Nation and other
tribal members by focusing on
disease prevention and educational
programs,”
Anderson
said.
“Someday I hope to have my own
research lab focusing on just that.”
14
Money • a[w
CNE’s Grove
casino awaiting
BIA lease approval
CATOOSA, Okla. – Plans are moving forward slowly to
open a second Cherokee Casino in Delaware County, Cherokee
Nation Entertainment officials said.
Speaking at the Nov. 20 Cherokee Nation Businesses board
of directors meeting, CNE Chief Operating Officer Mark
Fulton said the lease agreement with the Bureau of Indian
Affairs for a proposed casino in Grove could be reached within
the next four to six weeks.
BIA officials did not respond to calls to independently verify
the approval timeline. Also, as of Nov. 25, no BIA approval was
shown on the Federal Register’s website, www.federalregister.
gov.
In late 2014, CNE posted an request for proposal on www.
cherokeebids.com, seeking architectural firms for services
associated with a new 21,500-square-foot casino in Grove.
The Grand Lake community already has one casino in the
area, as the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe operates a hotel-casino just
northeast of Grove along State Highway 10.
Fulton’s announcement comes as work wraps up on CNE’s
expansion project in Roland.
As of Nov. 20, the first six floors of the property’s hotel are
open. Work on the seventh floor is complete, save for one key
addition.
“We don’t have any drapes yet for those rooms,” Fulton said.
“And, well, there are some folks who just don’t need to be seen
like that.”
The hotel’s eighth and ninth floors are scheduled to be
available to the public in mid-December, officials said. They
said construction on the facility’s parking garage is also slated
to finish by mid-December.
The funding for the projects is thanks in part due to CNB
experiencing multi-million dollar year-over-year growth.
Although end-of-the-fiscal year numbers were still missing
for a handful of departments, as of Nov. 20 the meeting, early
projections show CNB generated $930 million in top-line
revenue in FY 2015, up 7 percent from its projected goal.
Among the areas experiencing revenue growth in FY 2015
were CNB’s diversified holdings in technology and security
and defense contracting, with the latter more than doubling its
revenue from FY 2014.
That growth is continuing into FY 2016 as well, with the
diversified businesses on pace to secure $100 million in
contracts during the first quarter alone. By comparison, the
group landed $35 million worth of contracts during the first
quarter of FY 2015.
Among the contracts fueling that growth is a $15 million
multi-year contract with the Department of Homeland
Security. Starting Dec. 1, the group will be assessing physical
and cyber threats for embassies and other international federal
facilities.
“This is a high-end contract,” Steven Bilby, president of
CNB’s diversified businesses, said. “This is a new entry into a
new area for us.”
The number of jobs created by the new contract was not
readily available, although Bilby reiterated on Nov. 20 that
the program and its support staff would be based out of
northeastern Oklahoma.
CNHS to provide services
to Army National Guard
BY STAFF REPORTS
TULSA, Okla. – A Cherokee Nation Businesses entity was
recently awarded contracts spanning one to five years, totaling
more than $24 million, to provide medical and dental case
management services to the Army National Guard soldiers.
Cherokee Nation Healthcare Services’ case management
personnel work with doctors on bases providing clinical
tracking and oversight of all aspects of soldier medical, dental
and behavioral health challenges. CNHS employees compile
information and help with the referral process when needed.
In addition to managing soldier care, the company provides
insightful health statistics to commanders and to the Army
surgeon general in each state under contract.
The Army National Guard is receiving assistance from
CNHS in Alabama, California, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas,
New Hampshire, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, South
Carolina, South Dakota and Wyoming.
CNHS staff includes clinical social workers, registered
nurses and medical administrative clerks.
Since 2009, the company has been serving government
clients with medical supplies and a wide range of services,
including financial recovery, patient appointing, recruiting,
credentialing and placement of clinical, administrative and
housekeeping personnel for numerous federal agencies and
commercial clients.
Founder and owner of HarChem Water Services Doug Harvell describes a water-testing kit used by his staff to test
water for treatment. The 32-year-old company is located in Muldrow, Oklahoma.
HarChem Water Services works
to provide quality water
HarChem Water
Services works
with industries and
municipalities to test
and treat water.
BY WILL CHAVEZ
MULDROW, Okla. – For more than
30 years, HarChem Water Services has
treated water for area customers, as
well as customers in six states.
HarChem works with industries,
municipalities and the Cherokee
Nation to test and treat water. It’s
located in the Muldrow Industrial
Park in eastern Sequoyah County but
provides trainings for the Claremore
Indian Hospital and W.W. Hastings
Indian Hospital so that their respective
staffs can treat and maintain water in
the hospitals.
Doug Harvell, the CN citizen who
founded and owns HarChem, said the
32-year-old company has a contract to
treat and evaluate the treatment of the
closed water systems in all of the CN’s
health clinics.
“Once a quarter we go to each clinic.
If they need chemicals, we add it. If we
test it, that’s (done) a minimum of once
a quarter. If they’re having issues or
they’re losing chemicals, which would
indicate a loss of water, then we try to
help them find out where the loss is,”
he said. “We’ve been fortunate to have
the opportunity to treat most of those
installations.”
Harvell said water has to be treated
with chemicals because it will always
do one of two things: “eat up pipes” or
“lay down scale” on pipes. HarChem
sells scale inhibitors and corrosion
inhibitors and products to inhibit
biological growth that most water
systems face, he said.
“We’re kind of unique in that
typically water treatment companies
retain customers for three to five years.
We’ve got some we’ve been treating
since 1990. So we’re pretty fortunate to
retain business, and you do that with
good people,” he said.
Neel, Harvell & Associates in
Sallisaw is another corporation Harvell
owns. He reviews the engineering
projects planned in that office. Water
plants, wastewater plants, waterline
extensions, waste waterline extensions
and landfills for waste are designed for
municipalities and government entities
in the office.
“We’ve done several projects with
the tribe (Cherokee Nation) over in
the Peggs area and Oaks area. One was
a design for a waterline that ran out to
a rural water district when Oaks had
some emergency issues one or two
years ago,” Harvell said.
He said his son-in-law, Scott Neel,
oversees the engineering and planning
aspects of the company and deals a lot
with CN projects. The company recently
worked with the CN on engineering
projects in Marble City, Cherry Tree,
Hulbert and Vian.
Harvell said both corporations
are certified through the CN Tribal
Employment Rights Office, which
means they can submit bids for CN
projects that fall under their expertise.
“We’re licensed engineers in five
states – Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas,
Louisiana and Tennessee,” he said.
Harvell, who has a math degree from
Northeastern State University and a
chemical engineering degree from
the University of Arkansas, said it is
difficult to find engineering students
and he tries to encourage students to
study engineering.
“I emphasize to engineering students
to always be thinking in terms of how
you can start your own company.
Instead of looking for a job, look to
create yourself a job and you’ll create
jobs for other people,” he said. “When
I started out in this business I was just
going to try to pay my bills, and things
worked out really good for us in that
there’s about 14 people that make a
living out of our business.”
Harvell said he looks to hire other
Cherokees and Native people and is
proud to have Cherokee workers on his
staff.
“We do have an interest in Indians
and Cherokees that have technical
interests,” he said.
Harvell and his family have come
a long way from the time he used to
mix chemicals to treat water in the
back of his pickup truck to having two
companies with plans for a possible
expansion with the acquisition of a
Tennessee company.
“When I started this company in
1983, I started it here in Muldrow.
It’s pretty interesting we brought a
technical company back home with us
and proved you can make a living doing
what you read in your (engineering)
books. We’re pretty fortunate to have
grown,” he said.
Founder and owner of HarChem Water Services Doug Harvell stands in front
of a container used to blend chemicals to treat water at his business in the
Muldrow Industrial Park in eastern Sequoyah County.
PHOTOS BY WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
Money • a[w
15
CNGC approves
regulations to
ensure due process
BY TESINA JACKSON
Reporter
Principal Chief Bill John Baker speaks at the Cherokee Nation’s eighth annual Tribal Employee Rights Office Awards
banquet on Nov. 19 in Catoosa, Oklahoma. COURTESY
CN honors TERO-certified businesses
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
CATOOSA, Okla. – Cherokee Nation officials honored 10
Tribal Employment Rights Office-certified businesses at its
eighth annual TERO Awards banquet on Nov. 19 at the Hard
Rock Hotel & Casino.
According to CN Communications, hundreds of Native
business owners attended the banquet. One of those business
owners was Delbert Davis, who owns Davis Excavation. His
company received the Community Leadership Award.
“It’s a great honor to be recognized for just helping,” Davis,
who has owned his business for the past 16 years, said.
Other certified Indian-owned businesses that were
recognized were:
• Meeks Lithographing Company, of Tulsa, with the
Customer Service Award,
• James R. Childers Architect, of Fort Smith, Arkansas,
with the Consulting Firm of the Year, • Green Country Steel, of Salina, with the Construction
Company of the Year, • Danny’s Muffler & Tire, of Tahlequah, with the Retail
Business of the Year, • Harris Contractors, of Fort Gibson, with the Woman
Owned Business of the Year, • Ogden’s Heat & Air, of Stilwell, with the Small Business
of the Year,
• Ground Zero Construction, of Colcord, with the Large
Business of the Year,
• CPR, of Tulsa, with the Pioneer Award, and
• Strong Builders LLC, of Rose, with the Chief ’s Award.
James R. Childers Architect representative Breck Childers
said the tribe’s TERO program has helped his company and
others grow.
“TERO’s help has meant everything to our company. I
know there have been times when we might not have been
awarded the project without the Indian preference,” Childers
said. “We’ve been TERO-certified for about 18 years, and the
help from the TERO program has just helped our company
grow.”
In 2015, TERO vendors earned more than $71.1 million in
CN contracts, according to CN Communications.
“Through our TERO efforts, we are putting more
Cherokees and other tribal citizens to work every day, and
I am proud to say we are making progressive strides to do
even more in northeast Oklahoma,” Principal Chief Bill
John Baker said. “American Indian small businesses and
entrepreneurs are the engine of our local economies and one
of the Cherokee Nation’s greatest assets. Across the United
States, small businesses are responsible for 75 percent of the
net new jobs created, and that is true here locally as more and
more Indian-owned businesses are thriving and contributing
to our nation and state’s economies.”
The CN established its TERO in 1983. It negotiates for job
vacancies with contractors doing business with the tribe and
refers qualified Native American workers to fill vacancies,
CN Communications said. It added that TERO also
maintains a list of more than 800 Indian-owned businesses
and offers preference to the Indian-owned vendors who bid
on Cherokee Nation contracts.
For more information, visit www.cherokeetero.com.
CNGC approves licensing application revision
BY TESINA JACKSON
Reporter
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Cherokee Nation Gaming
Commission approved at its Nov. 12 meeting, a revised
licensing regulation clarifying the language vendor
applications regarding the release of documents and
information.
“This is the one where, based on some vendor opposition,
the (CN) Attorney General’s Office had indicated we should
take the release language out because we would be covered
under the general sovereign immunity clause of the tribe
anyway, so there’s no need to have them consent to that one
way or the other,” CNGC Chairwoman Stacy Leeds said.
In the applications, vendors authorize any and all
information requested by the CNGC “for the commission
to determine the vendor’s suitability to obtain and maintain
an individual license for employment and/or continued
employment in Indian gaming.”
Previously, applications stated “the releasor does herby
release, forgive and forever discharge Cherokee Nation, the
CNGC, its individual commissioners and the CNGC staff
from any and all claims or causes of action, damages, losses
and expenses.”
“Essentially what we’re looking at with this is a removal of
the release of all claims-type language,” Jamie Hummingbird,
CNGC director, said. “The releases that we had up to this point
were releases that we had obtained from NIGC (National
Indian Gaming Commission) back
in the late (19)90s, something that’s
used by the rest of the tribes.”
SCAN
CODE
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VIDEO
The CNGC has also implemented
online gaming applications for
key employees and primary
management officials that were to be launched in December
at the West Siloam Springs Cherokee Hotel & Casino.
“We’ve tested it out. Everything has been ran through,”
Hummingbird said. “We have the badge printer set up at each
of the major locations that we have staff, and we are ready to
proceed with that. We are excited about moving toward the
online applications. I think it will provide a much smoother,
much cleaner process for all of us to follow. It also will take
care of some of the concerns, I think, that was voiced by CNE
(Cherokee Nation Entertainment) in the past about their
activities involved with our licensing process.”
Commissioners also reviewed the process of an external
audit update being performed by Donald Williams from
BKD, CPA’s & Advisors out of Tulsa.
“The audit is just getting started and it’s my understanding
we’ll be here on a monthly basis to keep you (CNGC)
informed as we go through that process,” Williams said. “The
actual audit fieldwork started this week. We’ll be in the field
from now until January.”
Williams said they planned to have the audit’s draft reports
by Dec. 31.
CATOOSA, Okla. – At its Dec. 10 meeting, the Cherokee
Nation Gaming Commission approved two regulations to
ensure patrons are afforded due process in seeking resolutions
against Cherokee Nation gaming facilities.
The commission passed the promotional activity prize
claim rule to ensure that patrons are afforded due process in
seeking resolution to a dispute arising in connection with a
promotional activity offered by a Cherokee casino.
It stems from another dispute regulation the CNGC recently
approved to cover Class II gaming disputes without being
designated as a Class II process. That
regulation could apply to both Class
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II and Class III games. The proposed
CODE
regulation for Class III games would
TO SEE
also cover disputes involving card/
VIDEO
table games. This regulation mirrors
the procedure outlined in the tribe’s
gaming compact with the state.
“It was commented that it really belonged on its own and we
agreed with that,” Jamie Hummingbird, CNGC director, said.
“We took the elements that were pertaining to promotional
activities out of the price claim regulation and put it in its own.”
According to the new regulation, a patron may initiate a
claim for the event for which payment is being sought by filing
a written prize claim notice with either casino personnel or
the CNGC.
It also states that a “management official receiving the claim
shall investigate information available to render a decision”
and the CNGC shall be informed of that decision. If the claim
is not resolved within 72 hours the CNGC will inform the State
Compliance Agency.
If a patron wants to appeal the decision, the appeal would
go to the CN District Court to coincide with the tribe’s gaming
compact.
The other passed regulation was created to ensure that
patrons are afforded due process in seeking resolution of a tort
claim for personal injury or property damage arising out of
incidents occurring at the gaming facility.
“The tort claim regulation is based on the compact
provisions regarding such claims and incorporates, not just
the gaming machine compact as I call it, but also the off-track
wagering compact because both compacts have tort claims
procedures in those and the tort claim regulation takes those
into account,” Hummingbird said.
According to the regulation, a patron may initiate a tort
claim for the event for which payment is being sought by filing
a written tort claim notice with either the CNGC or with the
enterprise, or “entity conducting gaming operations on behalf
of or as authorized by the Cherokee Nation.”
It states that all notices of tort claims must be filed within
one year of the date of the alleged occurrence.
It also states that a judicial proceeding for any tort claim
may be filed only if the claimant has followed all procedures
required, including the delivery of a valid and timely written
tort claim to the enterprise or CNGC, the enterprise has
denied the tort claim and the claimant has filed the judicial
proceeding no later than 180 days after denial of the claim
by the enterprise. Any claim or award or judgment rendered
thereon may not exceed the limit of liability.
To view the regulations, go to http://www.cherokee.org/
News/PublicNotices.aspx.
The next commission meeting is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on
Jan. 8 in the CNGC building at 200 N. Water St.
CNB receives Earl Sneed
Business in the Arts Award
BY STAFF REPORTS
OKLAHOMA CITY – The 2015 Governor’s Arts Awards
Selection Committee, which recognizes businesses and
corporations for exhibiting outstanding support of the arts,
has named Cherokee Nation Businesses as a recipient of this
year’s Earl Sneed Business in the Arts Award.
The tribe and its businesses purchased more than 700 pieces
of art in 2015.
According to CNB Communications, during the past
year, CNB has placed more than $1.7 million into the state’s
economy through its procurement of art. The tribe’s business
arm serves an important role in preserving, promoting and
supporting Cherokee culture and art, as well as continually
supporting the arts throughout Oklahoma since 2007.
In accordance with tribal law, the Cherokee Nation and
CNB use new construction and renovation projects to fund the
procurement, preservation and exhibition of cultural artifacts
and artwork. The law calls for those funds to be used for any
form of art deemed historical, cultural or traditional, including
crafts, paintings, beadwork, sculptures and landscaping.
16
People • xW
Cherokee soldier retires after
32-plus years of military service
BY WILL CHAVEZ
From left to right in the front row are Supreme Court Justice
Angela Jones, Secretary of State Chuck Hoskin Jr., Tribal
Council Speaker Joe Byrd, Tribal Youth Councilors Julie
Thornton, Abigail Shepherd, Jori Cowley, Laurel Reynolds,
Camerin James, Treyton Morris, Destiny Matthews. From left
to right in the back row are Education Services Program
Liaison Lisa Trice-Turtle, Education Services Executive Director
Ron Etheridge, Government Relations Executive Director Kim
Teehee, Tribal Councilor Keith Austin, Tribal Youth Councilors
Austin Jones, Jackson Wells, Taylor Armbrister, Bradley
Fields, Sarah Pilcher, Chelbie Turtle, Sunday Plumb, Principal
Chief Bill John Baker and Junior Miss Cherokee Madison
Whitekiller. Not pictured were Tribal Youth councilors Amy
Hembree, Emily Messimore and Sky Wildcat. COURTESY
Tribal Youth Council
sworn into office
BY STAFF REPORTS
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – On Nov. 21, the 2015-16 Cherokee
Nation Tribal Youth Councilors were sworn into office to begin
serving and potentially help shape future tribal policy.
“It’s going to be a good opportunity to get involved and make
a difference and build relationships within the tribe,” Laurel
Reynolds, a Claremore High School sophomore, said.
The 17-member Council learns the CN Constitution and bylaws
and identifies issues affecting Cherokee youths to pass on to the
Tribal Council and administration.
The leadership program started in 1989 and has 184 alumni.
Students meet monthly and serve as tribal ambassadors.
“The best days of the Cherokee Nation are in front of us
and we need leaders in every field imaginable from doctors,
lawyers, engineers, teachers, administrators and business people.
Leadership starts with young people like you, who are willing to
serve,” Principal Chief Bill John Baker said. “The Tribal Youth
Council is an opportunity for young Cherokees from all over
the 14-county tribal jurisdiction to gain exposure to our tribal
government, get to know the elected officials and have a voice in
the discussions that will impact the Cherokee Nation today and in
the future.”
The 2015-16 Tribal Youth Council members are Taylor
Armbrister, of Kansas; Jori Cowley, of Vinita; Bradley Fields, of
Locust Grove; Amy Hembree, of Tahlequah; Camerin James,
of Fort Gibson; Austin Jones, of Hulbert; Destiny Matthews, of
Watts; Emily Messimore, of Claremore; Treyton Morris, of Salina;
Sarah Pilcher, of Westville; Sunday Plumb, of Tahlequah; Laurel
Reynolds, of Claremore; Abigail Shepherd, of Ochelata; Julie
Thornton, of Gore; Chelbie Turtle of Tahlequah; Jackson Wells, of
Tahlequah; and Sky Wildcat, of Tahlequah.
Potter receives Indian
College Student of
the Year award
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
AKINS, Okla. – Breanna Potter, a 21-yearold Cherokee Nation citizen from Sequoyah
County, was recently awarded the Indian
College Student of the Year award from the
Oklahoma Council for Indian Education.
Potter is a senior at Northeastern State
University in Tahlequah pursuing a degree in
special education mild/moderate disabilities.
She said her passion in life is Native youth and Breanna Potter
believes that education will change the world.
“To me, this honor stands as proof to other
Indian students that they are capable of obtaining an education
and accomplishing what they desire to,” she said. “It represents all
the hard work that others have poured into me as a young woman.
As someone who desires to make a difference for Native youth in
education, I hope to use this award to help motivate other youth in
my community to pursue their education.”
She said she has raised $80,000 in cash and in-kind grants and
serves as a youth ambassador for President Obama’s Generation
Indigenous. She is the former president of the Cherokee Promise
Scholars at NSU and was a part of the program for the past 3-1/2
years. She has also volunteered and served as a leader for the
Cherokee Promise Scholar Program and the National Native Youth
Network in Washington, D.C. She also spends time volunteering
for the Native American Student Association and American
Indian Science and Engineering Society.
She has also received accolades from the Rho Theta Sigma
honor society.
Potter said she works to “blend traditional culture into her lessons
and is fully dedicated to changing the lives of special needs students.”
Potter is the program director for the Brushy Youth Dream
Team and the youth activities coordinator for the Brushy Cherokee
Action Association. She was a recipient of the “Dreamstarter”
grant earlier this year and was among the first the first class of
American Indian youths to receive the grant.
The grant is designed to bring to life the dreams of American
Indian youths under the age of 30.
She said in her “Dreamstarter” application she explained that
her “dream” or project was for her community group, the Brushy
Cherokee Action Association. The grant was for $10,000.
To read more on that story visit the http://www.cherokeephoenix.
org/Article/index/9528.
STUTTGART,
Germany
–
Cherokee Nation
citizen and Lt.
Col. Brian W.
Wright, a U.S.
Army
Special
Forces
officer,
will retire after Lt. Col. Brian W.
32 years and 9 Wright
months of service
on Dec. 1.
Lt. Col. Wright is a 1991 graduate
of Northeastern State University in
Tahlequah, Oklahoma, as well as his
great-grandmother who attended the
Cherokee Female Seminary prior to
what is known as NSU today.
Wright served in the U.S. Army
Special Forces as a Green Beret. The
Special Forces symbol is the crossed
arrows, which was derived from
Native American Indian Scouts who
served the U.S. Army in the 19th
century and passed on this legacy
to the modern Special Forces. Their
motto “De Opresso Liber” means, “to
free the oppressed” in Latin.
Wright, 51, said he believes serving
his country came natural because
his father, Ged Wright, is a retired
brigade general who served with the
Oklahoma Air National Guard.
“I think service was kind of a natural
thing for me. It was kind of natural for
myself, my brother, my sister. All of us
ended up joining the National Guard.
I took a little different route,” Brian
said. “The infantry was really a way for
me to go because it’s very outdoorsy.
You’re outdoors and you’re having
fun, and I love the outdoors. It was a
natural fit.”
Brian’s military career began as an
enlisted airman radio communication
repair specialist in the Oklahoma Air
National Guard in 1983. After two
years, he transferred to the Army
National Guard. And after three years
reached the rank of sergeant. In 1986,
he was selected and attended the U.S.
Army Officer Candidate School in
Fort Benning, Georgia, becoming
an infantry officer with the 1-279th
Infantry OANG.
He spent the next six years in
the OANG as an infantry officer
commanding several platoons and a
rifle company. He then transferred to
the Alabama National Guard, where
he served the next two years as a
Special Forces officer. He was selected
to serve on active duty in 1994 and
spent the next 21 years serving in
various leadership positions around
the world as an active duty U.S. Army
Special Forces officer, serving in South
America, Central America, Mexico,
Europe, Southwest Asia and Africa.
His active duty assignments include
detachment commander, A Company,
1st Battalion, 7th Special Forces
Group (Airborne), Fort Bragg, North
Carolina; detachment commander, C
Company, 3rd Battalion, 7th Special
Forces Group (Airborne), Panama
City; instructor Mexican Military
The Wright family has a long history of military service. Ged Wright, left,
is a retired brigade general who served with the Oklahoma National
Guard. Brent Wright is a colonel and is serving as the deputy chief of
staff for the Oklahoma Air National Guard and is also commander of the
138th Support Group in Tulsa. Lt. Col. Brian Wright, right, served more
than 32 years in the Army and retired as a Green Beret. And Janna Wright
formerly served as a captain in the Oklahoma Air National Guard Aero
Med Squadron. COURTESY
Academy, Mexico City; detachment
commander, B Company, The Training
Battalion,
Western
Hemisphere
Institute for Security Cooperation
(Airborne), Fort Benning; G3 Staff,
Headquarters, 7th Infantry Division,
Fort Carson, Colorado; Combined
Joint Special Operations Task Force
Arabian Peninsula Iraq liaison officer
to the Multi-National Division
Baghdad; company commander,
A Company, 3rd Battalion, 10th
Special Forces Group (Airborne),
Fort Carson; strategic planner Special
Operations
Command
Europe
(Airborne),
Stuttgart;
strategic
planner Special Operations Command
South (Airborne), Homestead Air
Reserve Base, Florida; and strategic
planner U.S. Africa Command, Kelley
Barracks, Stuttgart.
Lt. Col. Wright is the only known
member of the Special Forces
Regiment and CN citizen who has
commanded five Special Forces
Operational Detachment “Alphas” as
a regular commissioned officer. He
has served at the highest levels in the
Department of Defense and has more
than eight years of service in Joint
Staff Organizations.
He said he would “miss the troops”
the most and miss serving with them
after leaving the Army.
“The NCOs (non-commissioned
officers), the junior officers, they are
really the heart of our country. They
are the young people that serve, that
volunteer. The old guys like me, we like
to stick around, but it’s the young blood
that continues to come in and volunteer
and do what they do,” he said.
Brian was born outside Vance
Air Force Base in Enid, Oklahoma.
Along with his father, his brother
Brent is a colonel and is serving
as the deputy chief of staff for the
Oklahoma Air National Guard and is
also commander of the 138th Support
Group in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and his
sister Janna formerly served as a
captain in the Oklahoma Air National
Guard Aero Med Squadron.
“In my family everybody served.
My grandfather served in World War
II and got four or five battle stars in
the Pacific,” Wright said.
Friends and family gathered on the
Kelley Barracks in Stuttgart on Nov.
30 to celebrate his military career and
transition into civilian life. His wife of
20 years, Monica, from Lima, Peru,
was expected to attend along with
his son, Brian, 19, and his daughter
Michelle, 22.
Law graduate named assistant district attorney
BY WILL CHAVEZ
TULSA, Okla. – After recently
passing the Oklahoma Bar exam
and being sworn in to the Oklahoma
Bar Association at the state Capitol,
Zachary Stuart has been hired as an
assistant district attorney with Tulsa
County.
The 26-year-old Cherokee Nation
citizen graduated from the University
of Oklahoma Law School in May
and passed the bar exam on his first
attempt. He was sworn in to the OBA
on Sept. 22.
The Tulsa resident has worked at
the Richards & Conner Law Firm, but
his last day at the firm was expected to
be Oct. 30. He was expected to begin
working in the Tulsa County District
Attorney’s Office in November. He
said he would handle juvenile and
misdemeanor cases but wants to
eventually work on white-collar
crimes and human-trafficking cases.
Before attending OU Law School,
he received his undergraduate
degrees in business and international
finance at OU and served with
AmeriCorps in Tulsa. AmeriCorps
is a civil society program supported
by the U.S. government, foundations,
corporations and other donors
engaging
adults
in
intensive
community service work with the
goal of “helping others and meeting
critical needs in the community.”
He was the first student from
OU Law School selected for an
internship program with the U.S.
State Department and spent a
semester with the department in its
International Claims and Investment
Disputes area.
“I think just getting that public
service experience and to find out
what was going on in the world was
great. It was a really good time and
really interesting,” he said.
Stuart said he’s thankful for the
CN scholarship that helped pay for
his undergraduate courses and three
years of law school. He also used the
GI Bill through a program that allows
students to use higher education
benefits provided to their parents.
His mother Dixie Stuart, also a CN
citizen, is a
commander in
the U.S. Public
Health Service.
“Right before
I
entered
law
school,
that summer
Zachary Stuart
is
when
they
made
it to where
members of the
United States Public Health Service
could actually transfer their GI Bill
benefits to their dependents,” he
said. “Both of my parents were really
supportive. I’m just grateful for all
their help and support, and of course
the support of the Cherokee Nation.”
He said law school was “expensive”
and the scholarship helped him a lot.
“We, he was blessed to have the
extra help from the Cherokee Nation,”
Dixie said. “I’m just so proud of him.
I just would like citizens to know
that the scholarship program really is
doing a lot to develop great Cherokee
professionals.”
People • xW
17
2 Cherokees see success at Indian National Finals Rodeo
BY WILL CHAVEZ
VINITA, Okla. – Two Craig
County-based Cherokee Nation
citizens recently competed and won
their respective categories at the
41st Indian National Finals Rodeo
in Las Vegas.
Kayla Greenwalt, 14, of Big Cabin,
won the World Junior Barrel Racing
Championship at the 2015 INFR
held Nov. 8-12. She finished with a
total average time of 48.081 seconds
after three rounds and won a saddle,
belt buckle and $2,388 dollars
during the three-day competition.
Her mother, Angie Greenwalt,
said Kayla never won a round but
had good enough times in each
round to have the best overall time
to win the title.
“That was basically her goal, just
to get a little bit faster every time,
and then it just kind of surprised
her that she had won it,” Angie said.
Kayla said she competed against
32 other girls from throughout the
country and Canada, but she said
it was “like a normal barrel run”
for her, and she wasn’t fazed by all
the competition, which included
some former INFR barrel racing
champions.
She said she rode and practiced
every day and exercised her horse
before traveling to the INFR. She
added that one has to have “the right
horse” and a certain style of riding
during competition.
Barrel racing is a timed event in
which competitors race toward and
circle three barrels in a cloverleaf
pattern. Kayla’s fastest time for one
run during the INFR was 15.908
seconds. This year marked her
second time competing at the INFR
and her first championship.
She said she wants to continue
competing in barrel racing and
often competes in area barrel
Kayla Greenwalt, 14, of Big Cabin, Oklahoma, won the World Junior
Barrel Racing Championship at the 2015 Indian National Finals Rodeo
held Nov. 8-12 in Las Vegas. She brought home a saddle, belt buckle,
and $2,388 dollars during the three-day barrel racing competition.
COURTESY
Tie-down calf roping champion and Cherokee Nation citizen Dillon
Sherrick of Welch, Oklahoma, dismounts his horse to take down a calf
he roped at the Indian National Finals Rodeo held in November in
Las Vegas. During the timed tie-down calf roping event a competitor
ropes a calf around the neck from his horse, dismounts, flanks the calf,
throws it down and ties any of the calf’s three legs together. COURTESY
racing events.
Kayla said she would use some
of her prize money for rodeo entry
fees and credits her mother and
father Bill Greenwalt for helping her
become a successful barrel racer.
Dillon Sherrick, 20, of Welch,
won the Tie Down Calf Roping
World Championship at the INFR.
In this timed event, a competitor
ropes a calf around the neck from
a horse, dismounts, flanks the calf,
throws it down and ties any of the
calf ’s three legs together.
“I placed second in the first
round. I was second in the second
round, and then I went sixth in the
third round, and that set me up to
be in the lead in the average. I went
to the short round and tied one in
11.073 (seconds),” he said.
After roping and tying four calves,
his total average was 39.71 seconds,
which won him the title.
Along with the title, he received
a belt buckle, saddle, jacket and
prize money. He also received
an exemption into the semifinal
round of “The American” qualifier
in February in Fort Worth, Texas.
The finals for “The American”
rodeo will be in March at
Arlington, Texas. “The American”
is the biggest one-day rodeo of the
year in which winners share $2
million in prize money.
Sherrick said he practices tie down
calf roping in an arena at his house.
He has been roping calves since he
was about 8 years old and started
competing at rodeos at 9. He recently
won the Oklahoma-Missouri Series
calf-roping championship and has
been “winning here and there.”
He said winning tie down calf
roping championships is currently
the way he makes a living.
“My family has got a ranch, so I
work for them too, but I’m kind of
seeing where this (rodeos) takes me
right now,” he said.
He also attends Northeastern
Oklahoma A&M College in Miami
and is on the university’s rodeo
team. In November he was 11th in
the nation in tie down calf roping
and is working to make it to the
college rodeo finals in June. He is
studying agriculture business.
He said he wants to attempt to
make a living on the professional
rodeo circuit after college and then
follow his family into ranching.
“I played sports all through high
school, and I like the athletic ability
it (tie-down calf roping) takes, and
you get to travel and see a lot of
cool places while you’re doing it
and meet a lot of new people. It’s
just something I fell in love with,”
he said.
‘Maud’s Line’ first
novel by Verble
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Cherokee Nation citizen
Margaret Verble recently had her first book, “Maud’s
Line,” published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
The book is set in eastern Oklahoma, near Fort
Gibson in Muskogee County, where Verble’s family
is from.
“My whole family, other than my mother, was
sitting down that whole section line (near Fort
Gibson) and in Muskogee,” she said.
After her family moved from Oklahoma, she grew
up near Nashville, Tennessee, went to college there
and received two degrees, as well as a doctorate in
the education field. She now lives in Lexington,
running a business.
Verble said she always enjoyed writing and
during the years had several academic articles
published. She started writing fiction about 20
years ago.
“(I wrote) Just sort of in my basement simply just
because I had a deep urge to do it. And I started
doing it every day, and I’ve been doing it every day
since. I was just compelled to do it,” she said.
“Maud’s Line” takes place during the late 1920s
and features an 18-year-old female character
named Maud, who lives with her father and brother
on their original Cherokee allotment land.
For years, Verble tried to get another book she
had written to get published with no luck. It was
set in the same area of the country, but was a more
Native American-oriented book.
“I have a real deep passion for that book and
tried to get it published for years, but I really got
some good advice. If you want to sell a book in New
York you have to write it about a single character,
particularly a first novel,” she said. “Well you know,
that sort of goes against the whole Indian grain. So I
had to pick a time period in the tribal history where
it was really the low point and where there was a
real denigration of the tribe.”
She said many people in the late 1920s had to
fend for themselves.
“So that particular historical period then would
be a good time to create a character who is a strong
character, who is out fending for herself even though
she is nestled down there in her family. She has a
real individual consciousness as opposed to more of
a tribal consciousness,” Verble said of Maud.
Verble began writing “Maud’s Line” in 2012.
“I wrote it very quickly, unusually quickly. I wrote
it in about 14 months. Of course I was writing
about things I was extremely familiar with,” she
said. “Maud is fictional. Booker is fictional. But a lot
Cherokee Nation citizen Nathan Stanley, shown here with the San Jose
SaberCats, signed with the Arena Football League’s LA KISS on Nov. 9 in Los
Angeles. SAN JOSE SABERCATS
Stanley signs with LA
KISS football team
BY STAFF REPORTS
Maud’s Line
of those characters, Maud’s aunts and uncles, you
know those are my grandparents, my great aunts
and uncles. People I’ve known all my life.”
Although the writing was done quickly, she aid it
took time to get it published.
“You know you go through all sorts of editing
processes after you finish it, and it takes a long
time, particularly with this book. It’s with a major
publisher. Takes a long time to get a book out,” she
said.
With regards to selling a book that is based
on Native American descent, Verble said it’s a
difficult task in New York. “It’s hard to sell Indians
in New York, and I hate to say that, but it’s the
truth.”
Many people who write about Natives must
decide, she said, whether they will write a book
about “Indians” or one about “people as people who
happen also to be Indians.”
“And that’s a real distinction. I chose to write
about people who are people. You know, being
Indian is not right at the top of their minds. You
don’t go around every day thinking ‘I’m a Cherokee
Indian,’” Verble said. “I think if you want to write
a novel that you can get a really good publisher on
that you really have to write about people who are
people and have people problems and they may
happen to be Indians.”
Amazon and retailers such as Wal-Mart and
Target carry the book. For more information, visit
http://www.margaretverble.com.
LOS ANGELES – The LA KISS have
been assigned quarterback Nathan
Stanley, who was most recently on the
San Jose SaberCats when they won the
2015 Arena Bowl Championship. The
third-year quarterback looks to bring
his championship pedigree to the LA
KISS for the upcoming 2016 season.
“We are very excited to have a player
of Nate Stanley’s caliber join the LA
KISS,” said Omarr Smith, KISS head
coach, said. “Over the last two seasons,
Nate has proven to be one of the top
up-and-coming signal callers in this
league. I have seen Nate mature on and
off the field over the last two seasons
and I am looking forward to watching
Nate compete at the quarterback
position. I think big things are in the
future for Nate and the LA KISS.”
Stanley, a 6-foot, 4-inch, 225-pound
quarterback
from
Southeastern
Louisiana University, is entering his
third year in the AFL. Stanley’s career
started in 2014 when he threw for
2,436 yards and 50 touchdowns as
a rookie for the San Jose SaberCats.
The following season Stanley was a
backup quarterback for the SaberCats,
but he still put up impressive numbers
throwing for 723 yards and 20
touchdowns in 9 games. In Week 7,
Stanley was named “Russell Athlete
Offensive Player of the Week”, when he
threw for 242 yards and 7 touchdowns
in a victory over the Las Vegas Outlaws.
“We are very happy to have Nate
a part the LA KISS family,” said Joe
Windham, CEO of the LA KISS. “We
know he will fit in our organization
nicely since he has been with Omarr
the last two seasons so there should be
no learning curve.”
Stanley is originally from Tahlequah,
Oklahoma, where he played high school
football at Sequoyah High School.
From there he went to the University
of Mississippi before transferring to
Southeastern Louisiana University. In
2013, the Baltimore Ravens signed him
as an undrafted free agent.
Stanley initially joined the San Jose
SaberCats as a backup quarterback.
Stanley became the starter, however,
when original starter Russ Michna
was declared out with concussion-like
symptoms.
On Oct. 13, 2014, Stanley was signed
to the practice roster of the Calgary
Stampeders of the Canadian Football
League. The Stampeders released him
on Nov. 6, 2014.
Stanley returned to the San Jose
SaberCats in 2015, where he again
served as backup. An injury forced
Stanley to once again become the team’s
starter. In his second season, Stanley
threw a total of 20 touchdown passes
(and no interceptions) while winning
every game in which he started.
For more information about the LA
KISS, visit lakissfootball.com.
18
Culture • i=nrplcsd
Cherokee Treasure excels at making kanuchi
BY ROGER J GRAHAM
Media Specialist
STILWELL, Okla. – Since she
began making it for her family as a
young girl, 1992 Cherokee National
Treasure Edith Knight has become
an expert at making kanuchi, which
is a traditional Cherokee meal made
from hickory nuts.
Knight received her National
Treasure honor for making tear
dresses. As for being an expert
kanuchi maker, she said, “After I
make it I never have any left.”
Knight also said there are good
and bad years for hickory nuts. This
year, the hickory trees surrounding
her home did not produce at all. So
she had to gather nuts from a friend
whom she knew had Mockernut
hickory trees.
“My mother made it for many
years, and I learned to make it just
like she did,” Knight said at her
Adair County home. “You see there’s
different kinds of hickory nuts. I
like to use the Mockernut hickory
because it has a larger nut-meat and
it has a better flavor.”
According to www.cherokee.org,
hickory nuts are gathered in the fall
and allowed to dry for a few weeks
before the kanuchi making begins.
“Begin by cracking, then shelling
the hickory nuts by shaking the
pieces through a loosely woven
basket, or picking them out by hand,”
the website states. “Traditionally,
a section of log or a tree stump
was hollowed out into a bowl-like
shape. The shelled hickory nuts are
placed in the hollowed log bowl and
pounded with a long heavy stick
until they are of a consistency that
can be formed into a ball that will
hold its shape. Kanuchi balls are
usually about 3 inches in diameter
and must be stored in a cold place.
Today kanuchi is usually preserved
by freezing.”
In today’s world, kanuchi is
considered a delicacy although it is
believed to have been used as a filler
when food was scarce. “I believe
sometimes in
SCAN
the long past
CODE kanuchi might
TO SEE have been all
VIDEO they had to
eat. It was one of the few foods they
could store because of it coming
from the hull,” Knight said.
Knight said kanuchi is sometimes
made with corn or hominy and
seasoned with salt, although her
family has always preferred to mix
the hickory solution with rice and
add sugar.
She said today most people
don’t use the traditional “kanon”
or hollowed out log to contain the
crushed nuts. “The idea is to keep
hammering until the nut meat rises
to the top and the oils begin to make
it stick together. That’s how you
make a kanuchi bowl.”
During the kanuchi-making
process, Knight said she advises to
start cooking the rice early and to
always sift and boil the slurry twice
before proceeding. She said that
gets rid of all the bacteria.
“Remember we pick these
(hickory nuts) up off the ground.”
Portions of the kanuchi ball can
be saved and refrozen, depending
on the number of those eating.
Once the kanuchi-slurry is mixed
with the rice and the proper amount
of sugar is added, Edith hands the
bowl of kanuchi to her husband
Owen, who’s served as her kanuchi
tester for almost six decades.
After tasting the finished product,
Owen said, “It’s good. I think you
did real good.”
ᏍᏗᎵᏪᎵ, ᎣᎦᎵᎰᎹ. – ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎤᎴᏅᎲ ᎪᏢᏍᎬ ᎦᎾᏥ ᎾᎿ
ᎠᏂᏏᏓᏁᎸ ᎠᎨᏳᏣ ᏥᎨᏒ ᎤᎴᏅᎮᎢ,
ᎾᏍᎩ
ᏐᏁᎳᏚ
ᎢᏍᎪᎯᏧᏈ
ᏐᏁᎳᏍᎪ
ᏔᎵ
ᎤᏕᏘᏴᏌᏗᏒᎢ
ᎤᎩᏒ
ᏣᎳᎩ
ᎬᎾᏕᎾ
ᎠᏁᎯ
ᎠᏃᏢᏅᏍᎩ ᎨᏥᎸᏉᏔᏅ ᎠᎨᎳᏕ
Edith Knight ᎠᏏᎾᏍᏗ ᎪᏢᏍᎩ
ᎦᎾᏥ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᎢᏳᏍᏗ ᎠᏂᎩᏍᎪ
ᎠᏂᏣᎳᎩ ᏐᎯ ᎪᏢᏔᏅᎢ.
Knight ᎤᏁᏒ ᎾᎿ ᎬᎾᏕᎾ
ᎠᏁᎯ ᎠᏃᏢᏅᏍᎩ ᎨᏥᎸᏉᏔᏅ
ᏥᎨᏥᏁᎰᎢ ᎾᎿ ᏐᏌᏃᎢ ᏗᎪᏢᏍᎩ.
ᏃᎴᏍᏊ
ᎠᏏᎾᏍᏗ
ᎦᎾᏥ
ᎤᏬᏢᏗᎢ, ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ, “ᏯᏉᏢᏂᏃ Ꮭ
ᏯᏓᏁᎯᏯᏍᎪ.”
Knight ᎠᏗᏍᎬ ᎣᏍᏓ ᎠᎴ
Ꮭ ᎣᏍᏓ ᏕᎦᎶᏍᎪ ᏓᏕᏘᏱᏍᎪ
ᎤᎾᏕᏗ ᏐᎯ. ᎯᎠ ᏧᏕᏘᏴᏌᏗ,
ᎾᏍᎩ ᏐᏗ ᏕᏡᎬ ᏧᏪᏅᏒ ᎬᏩᏕᏯᏛ
Ꮭ ᏯᎾᏓᏛᎦ ᏐᎢ. ᏃᏊ ᏧᏭᏖᏍᏗ
ᏂᎦᎵᏍᏗ ᎤᎾᎵ ᏧᏪᏅᏒ ᎾᎥ ᎾᎿ
ᎠᏁᎲ ᏐᎯ ᎢᏳᏍᏗ ᏐᎢ ᏕᏡᎬᎢ.
“ᎠᏯ ᎠᎩᏥ ᏧᏕᏘᏱᎶᏓ ᎤᏬᏢᎾ,
ᎠᎴ ᎠᏆᏕᎶᏆᎥ ᎠᏉᏢᏗ ᎤᏠᏯ
ᏄᏛᏁᎸᎢ
ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ,”
Knight
ᎠᏗᏍᎬ ᏧᏪᏅᏒ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏓᏫᏍᎦᎵ
ᏍᎦᏚᎩ ᎤᏪᏅᏒᎢ. “ᏣᏅᏔᏛ
ᏧᏓᎴᏅᏓ ᎨᏒ ᏐᎯ ᏕᏡᎬᎢ. ᎠᎩᎸᏉᏓ
ᏗᏮᏙᏗ ᎾᏍᎩ ᏐᎯ ᎢᏳᎾᏍᏗ
ᏅᏗᎦᎵᏍᏙᏗ ᏚᎾᏔᎾ ᎠᎴ ᏓᏤᏟ
ᏗᏅᏢᏗᎢ.”
ᏚᎾᏙᎵᏤᎲ ᎾᎿ www.cherokee.
org, ᏐᎯ ᏓᏄᏖᏍᎪ ᎤᎳᎪᎲᏍᏗ
ᎠᎴ ᏗᎧᏲᏙᏗ ᏯᏛᎾ ᎢᎸᏍᎩ
ᏳᎾᏙᏓᏆᏍᏗ ᎩᎳ ᎠᏃᏢᏍᎪ ᎦᎾᏥ.
“ᎠᎾᎴᏂᏍᎪ
ᏓᏅᏍᏆᎶᏍᎬ
ᏐᎯ ᏃᎴ ᎠᏂᎴᏍᎪ ᏐᎯ ᎤᏩᏙᏛᎢ
ᎠᏅᎫᏍᏗᏍᎪ ᎠᎬᏘᏓ ᎠᏅᏗᏍᎪ,
ᎠᎴ ᏧᏃᏰᎾ ᏓᏅᏗᏍᎪ ᎠᏂᎴᏍᎪ
ᎤᏩᏙᏅᎢ ᏐᎯ,” ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᏗᏍᎬ
website.
“ᎢᏳᎾᏛᏗ
ᎨᏒ,
ᎠᏍᏆᎵᏓ ᎠᏓ ᎠᏂᏔᎴᏍᎪ ᎠᏰᏟ
ᎾᎿ ᏖᎵᏙ ᎤᏠᏯ. ᎾᏍᎩ ᏐᎢ
ᎤᏩᏙᏅ ᎾᎿ ᏓᏂᏢᏍᎪ ᎠᏔᎴᏒ
ᎠᎴ ᎠᏂᏍᏙᏍᎪᎢ ᎾᎿ ᎦᏅᎯᏓ
ᎠᏓ ᎠᏂᏍᏙᏍᎪ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎪᎢᎭ
ᏱᏄᎵᏍᏔᎾ ᏗᎦᏌᏊᎸ ᏂᏓᏅᏁᎰ
ᏧᏂᏍᏆᏂᎪᏙᏗ. ᎦᎾᏥ ᎨᏒ ᎠᏎ ᏦᎢᎭ
ᎢᏏᏔᏗᏍᏗ ᏗᎦᏐᏆᎸ ᎨᏐ ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᏓᏂᏍᏆᏂᎪᏗᏍᎪ ᎤᏁᏌᏴᏢᎢ. ᎪᎯ
ᎢᎦ ᏥᎩ ᎦᎾᏥ ᎦᏁᏍᏓᎳᏗᏍᏗᏍᎩ
ᎠᏂᏍᏆᏂᎪᏗᏍᎪᎢ.”
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎪᎯ ᏥᎩ, ᎦᎾᏥ ᎤᏂᎸᏉᏓ
ᎤᏃᎯᏳᏐ ᎪᎯᎦ ᏥᎨᏒ ᎾᏍᎩ
ᎠᎾᏗᏔᏍᎦ ᎠᎵᏍᏓᏴᏗ ᏄᏂᎲᎾ
ᏱᎩ. “ᎠᏉᎯᏳᏐ ᎢᏴᏓᎭ ᎪᎯᎩ
ᏥᎨᏒ ᎾᏍᎩᏊ ᎢᎦ ᎤᏂᎮ ᎤᏂᎩᏍᏗ.
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏌᏊ ᎠᎵᏍᏓᏴᏗ ᎤᏂᎮ
ᎬᏩᏂᏍᏆᎪᏙᏗ
ᎾᎿ
ᎤᏬᎭᏄᎵ
ᎨᏎ,” ᎠᏗᏍᎬ Knight.
Knight ᎠᏗᏍᎬ ᎢᏴᏓᎭ ᏎᎷ
ᎠᎴ ᎦᏃᎮᎾ ᎠᎾᏑᏴᏍᎪᎢ ᎠᎹᏅ,
ᎾᏍᎩᎾ ᎤᏅᏌ ᎠᏂᏏᏓᏁᎸ ᎤᎪᏙ
ᎤᏂᎸᏉᏙ ᏗᎵᏆ ᎠᎴ ᎧᎵᏎᏥ
ᎤᎾᏑᏴᏗᎢ.
ᎠᏗᏍᎬᎢ ᎪᎯ ᏥᎩ Ꮭ ᎧᏃᏂ
ᏯᏅᏗᏍᎪ
ᎠᏂᏍᏙᏍᎬ
ᏐᎯ
ᏧᏅᏍᏆᎸᏗ. “ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᎾᎾᏛᏁᎲ
ᎠᏅᏗᏍᎬ ᎧᏃᏂ ᎤᎪᏗ ᎾᎿ ᎪᎢ
ᎦᎾᏄᎪᎬ ᎡᎵᏊ ᏗᎦᏐᏆᎸ ᎢᏗᎦᎬᏗ
ᎨᏒᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏄᏱᎸᏛᎢ ᎧᏃᎾ
ᏓᏅᏗᏍᎬᎢ.”
ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᏃᏢᏍᎬ ᎦᎾᏥ, ᎠᏗᏍᎬ
Knight ᎢᎬᏱ ᎬᏂᏍᏙᏗ ᏗᎵᏆ
ᎠᎴ ᎬᎫᏍᏙᏗ ᎠᎹ ᎠᎵᏢᏙᏗ ᎠᎴ
ᎬᎫᏍᏙᏗ. ᏂᎦᏓ ᎬᎫᏍᏙᏗ ᎤᏲᎢ
ᎨᏒᎢ. “ᎠᏅᏓᏗ ᏐᎢ ᎦᏙ ᏗᎫᏖᏍᏗ
ᎨᏐᎢ.”
ᎢᎦᏓ ᎦᎾᏥ ᎠᎵᏏᏅᏙᏗ ᎠᎴ
ᎢᎬᏁᏍᏓᎳᏗᏍᏙᏗ,
ᎠᏓᏅᏖᏗ
ᏯᏂᎢ ᏛᎾᎵᏍᏓᏴᏂᏒ. Edith ᎠᏁᎭ
ᎠᏂᏁᎳ ᎠᏟᏍᏛ ᎦᎾᏥ, ᎾᏍᎩᏃ
ᎠᏁᎶᏗᏍᎩ ᎨᏐᎢ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎪᎯᎦ
ᎬᏩᎴᏅᏓ.
ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᎤᏂᎬ ᎠᏍᏆᏙᏛ ᎦᎾᏥ,
Owen ᎠᏗᏍᎬ, “ᎢᎦ ᎣᏍᏓ, ᎢᎦ
ᎣᏍᏓ ᎾᏛᎦ.”
Cherokee Nation citizen and National Treasure Edith Knight crushes
hickory nuts in a “kanon” or hollowed out log with an “alstostodi,”
the traditional way to make kanuchi. Recipient of the Cherokee
National Treasure award for tear dress making in 1992, she is also an
expert at making kanuchi, a traditional Cherokee delicacy made from
hickory nuts. PHOTOS BY ROGER J GRAHAM/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
Cherokee Nation citizen Edith Knight gives her husband Owen a bowl
of kanuchi she made. She said she made the kanuchi this year from
Mockernut hickory nuts.
CN publishes redlettered Cherokee
New Testament
BY TESINA JACKSON
Reporter
Cherokee National Treasure Noel Grayson discusses the process he uses to make bows from bois d’arc
wood. Grayson said he will wait up to four years before cutting the wood and uses moon phases to
determine the best cutting time during winter. BRITTNEY BENNETT/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
Grayson shares Cherokee
tools, weapons knowledge
BY BRITTNEY BENNETT
Intern
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – Flakes, bows and war clubs
were just a few of the tools and weapons that Cherokee
National Treasure Noel Grayson recently discussed
during a Cultural Enrichment Series presentation
sponsored by the Cherokee Nation’s Community and
Cultural Outreach.
Grayson, a Cherokee National Treasure for flint
knapping and bow making since 1998, has been
teaching for 28 years and is a supervisor in the Cherokee
Heritage Center’s Diligwa Village in Park Hill.
He demonstrated how to create a “flake,” or a small,
sharp piece of stone chipped from a larger stone.
Flakes have multiple uses in Cherokee culture,
including cutting material and taking down small
game after being shaped into spear points and
arrowheads.
Grayson recommended using obsidian or flint
stones to create flakes and demonstrated the process
using “percussion techniques,” or striking stone with
force using a blunt object.
The first technique involved utilizing a “hammer
stone,” or a rounded stone, to strike a flake off an area of
the stone’s surface measuring less than 90 degrees. After
striking the flake, Grayson demonstrated one of its uses
by cutting a piece of leather with minimal effort.
He also cut multiple flakes using a technique
involving bone from the base of a deer antler and
emphasized hitting the stone at an angle to make
flaking easier.
“The base of an antler where it attaches to the head
is good and solid, but the best part of the antler is
actually the bone that the antler grows on,” he said. “If
you got the right angle, you don’t have to hit it hard. I
give it three tries. If it doesn’t come off in three tries,
something’s wrong. I’ll adjust the angle.”
Grayson’s presentation included how to make bows,
which he said he has been doing since he was a child.
“It’s just a toy I never gave up,” he said. “Me and
my brothers used to make bows and we would shoot
arrows at each other all the time.”
Grayson said he uses bois d’arc wood for his bows
and cuts the wood during winter using moon phases
to determine which time is best.
“The moon controls tides, so it controls sap,” he
said. “When there’s no moon, that sap will be low. You
want to cut that tree in the dark of the moon. Now
generally, myself, I let my wood season about for four
years before I ever make a bow out of it, before I even
think about making anything.”
Grayson said the person who makes the bow
determines the size and strength of it, while aged
wood creates a hard and fast shooting bow.
“I’m going to get past all the bark,” he said. “I’m
going to get down to the sapwood, because you have
bark, a white layer of sapwood then you have that
hard wood in the middle. I’m going to split it in half
or quarter it. You get any smaller than that and it will
warp on you a little bit. It’s a reaction. Take all the bark
and sapwood off of it and seal the ends of it.”
Grayson said he’s used bear fat to seal his bows, but
also recommended using bacon grease or vegetable oil.
The presentation concluded with a brief discussion
on war clubs, which Grayson said were largely made
from tree roots and featured a heavy balled head that
occasionally contained a spike of bone or metal.
He said the war club was one of many weapons used
in the hand-to-hand combat style of the Cherokee
people. This type of combat meant that young men
had to train in games of stickball before handling
items such as the war club.
“Now, if I remember right, that’s actually what
stickball sticks represent, the use of war clubs,” he
said. “(Stickball) is called a-ne-jo-di, the little brother
of warfare. We didn’t send our young men out into
warfare without being prepared for it. We let them
play a-ne-jo-di. A-ne-jo-di teaches a young man how
to watch out for himself on the field of battle and the
sticks represented war clubs.”
Grayson also emphasized teaching children to carry
on the knowledge of Cherokee tools and weapons.
“Little kids are just like sponges,” he said. “I always
tell everybody, ‘if you have the time, if you’re sitting
there and a little kid comes up to you and asks you
what you’re doing and how you do it, take the time to
show them.’”
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – After nearly three years of work by the Cherokee
Nation’s translation department, the tribe recently published its first redlettered New Testament in the Cherokee language and gave copies to several
local Cherokee pastors.
The New Testament was originally translated and published by the American
Bible Society in 1860. The tribe’s most recent version shows the words of Jesus
Christ in red letters, the first Cherokee New Testament to do so.
“The New Testament is one of the most popular and most enduring pieces
of published text in syllabary,” Roy Boney, Cherokee Language Program
manager, said. “While others have published versions of the 1860 American
Bible Society translation, the Cherokee Language Program believed it was
important for our translators to review and revise the Bible so it read as
accurately as possible in Cherokee, compared to the English version.”
Boney said the new version is the first Cherokee New Testament that the
CN has published, and it was done so with a larger, cleaner font so it would be
easier to read. It also fixes errors and misspellings.
“The edition from the American Bible Society had some misspellings and
other minor errors in it that many Cherokee speakers have noted over the last
140-plus years,” Boney said in a 2014 Cherokee Phoenix article.
Jeff Edwards, CN language technologist, typed and uploaded the syllabary
New Testament, and translator specialist Durbin Feeling and his brother,
Russell, who served as the primary editors, added the red lettering with input
from the rest of the translation department.
“We’re both ministers and we got him on board,” Durbin said of his brother.
“He started from the back and I started in the front and we met in the middle.”
Durbin said he and Russell used an English New Testament to match up
the red lettering.
Edwards said it was important that the New Testament was proofread by
Cherokees and published by Cherokees because when it was printed in the
1800s, some syllabary characters used in typeset were incorrect because they
resembled another character.
“So that’s why we wanted these guys to proof it so it would be as accurate
as it could be,” he said.
Copies of the CN-published red-letter New Testament are available for
purchase in the tribe’s gift shops for $45. Visit www.cherokeegiftshop.com to
purchase a copy.
A previously printed Cherokee New Testament, left, did not include the
red lettering of Jesus’ words. The new version, right, now features the
red lettering with a larger, cleaner font so it would be easier to read.
TESINA JACKSON/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
19
CN obtained sovereignty through ‘Marshall Trilogy’
BY WILL CHAVEZ
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – Between
1823-32, the U.S. Supreme Court
redefined the status of Indian tribes
through opinions referred to as the
“Marshall Trilogy,” named after
their primary author Chief Justice
John Marshall.
Two cases, Cherokee Nation
v. Georgia (1831) and Worcester
v. Georgia (1832), specifically
addressed the CN’s legal status. The
third case, Johnson v. McIntosh
(1823), dealt with land speculators
buying land from Indian tribes in
Illinois and Indiana and questioned
what kind of title those speculators
held on the land because they had
no right to buy land from tribes.
The legal principles established in
the “Marshall Trilogy” provide the
basis for interpreting federal Indian
law and tribal sovereignty.
CN Assistant Attorney General
Courtney Jordan provided details
about the three cases in her Nov.
30 presentation “What is an Indian
Tribe?” as part of the CN History
and Preservation group’s Lunch &
Learn Lecture Series.
Jordan spoke about what it
means for the federal government
to recognize a tribe, how the CN
came to get that recognition and
its history because it has been
involved with the sovereignty issue
since the legal status of tribes has
been an issue.
“So why do we define tribes?
Originally we defined tribes because
the government needed to know
whom it would enter into treaty
relations with, and it needed to know
the political entities it needed to
negotiate those treaties with. Later,
through federal legislation, Indians
who are members of tribes could
make claims against the federal
government for various reasons,
and if you were a tribe you were also
protected by certain rights,” Jordan
said. “Lastly, recognition as a tribe
is important because it determines
whether an individual is eligible for
federal benefits.”
Jordan said the tribal definition of
a tribe is different than the federal
Assistant Attorney General Courtney Jordan speaks about how the Cherokee Nation obtained its status
as a sovereign nation through three court cases in the early 1800s during a Nov. 30 presentation in
Tahlequah, Oklahoma. WILL CHAVEZ/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
definition. A group of Native people
can define themselves as a tribe
based on “similar cultural, linguistic,
kinship or clan ties or a land base.’
The government’s definition is
based on whether or not it shares
a
“government-to-government
relationship” with that group.
“The designation of being
recognized is more than just an
adjective. Congress has said that
recognized is more than just an
adjective. It’s a legal form of art, a
formal political act. It permanently
established
a
governmentto-government
relationship
between the United States and the
recognized tribe as a domestic,
dependent nation and imposes on
the government a fiduciary trust
relationship to the tribe and its
members,” Jordan said.
Cherokee Nation v. Georgia
originated in 1802 when the U.S.
and Georgia entered into a treaty
that required the U.S. to remove
Native people from Georgia in
exchange for land from Georgia that
is now Alabama and Mississippi.
“Georgia didn’t care where the
tribes went. They just wanted them
gone,” Jordan said.
In 1803, after the Louisiana
Purchase, which included lands
west of the Mississippi River, some
Cherokee neighbors such as the
Muscogee (Creeks) agreed to move
west to Indian Territory, but the
Cherokee said they would stay in
Georgia, Jordan said.
“They tried to push removal
off as long as they could. Georgia
didn’t respond very well to this.
They weren’t happy. Every year
they would go to Washington and
encourage the United States to have
the Cherokees removed,” she said.
Even though the Cherokee
government made strides to emulate
the white government and culture,
the Georgia government and people
were relentless in wanting Cherokee
lands and property. Jordan said
the CN’s efforts to assimilate only
hastened the Georgian’s drive to
remove the Cherokee.
Georgia, using the Jackson v.
McIntosh decision, began stating
Great Britain discovered Georgia
and when the U.S. declared its
independence from Great Britain in
1776, it was Georgia who declared
its independence not the U.S.
“So then Georgia is a successor
and interest to the British crown
and therefore, under the Doctrine
of Discovery, held title to those
lands as the discovering sovereign.
So they crafted this legal argument
based on that concept that they were
the landlord and the Cherokees
were the tenant,” Jordan said.
Georgia then informed the CN
it was subject to Georgia laws as
of June 1830 and Cherokee laws
were no longer valid in the state. In
response, the CN went to the U.S.
Supreme Court in Cherokee Nation
v. Georgia and argued that because
the CN was “a foreign nation”
the Supreme Court had original
jurisdiction to hear the case.
The CN lost the case. Two
justices agreed that the tribe was
a foreign nation similar to France
or Great Britain while two other
justices agreed the CN was a state.
Two other justices were of the
opinion that the CN was a foreign
state. The foreign state opinion was
ultimately adopted and is the law
today, Jordan said.
Following the ruling, Marshall
came up with the legal terms for
tribes used today.
“He came up with the legal
terms we know today as ‘domestic
dependent nation,’ and then he
also went further to describe the
relationship between the United
States and Indian tribes is that of
a ward to its guardian,” she said.
“After that the Supreme Court said
we don’t have the jurisdiction to
hear the issue of whether or not
Georgia can enforce its laws within
the Cherokee Nation.”
Marshall also stated the court
could hear the issue with a proper
party and case in front of them.
For Worcester v. Georgia, heard a
year later, the CN was not a party,
but its legal status was at stake
because the issue was whether
Georgia could enforce its laws
within the CN. The tribe won this
case with a majority opinion that
stated the federal government has
the exclusive authority to regulate
with Indian nations.
“So Georgia can’t do business
with the tribes unless they have
the authority from the federal
government. They (court) also
say Georgia’s laws have no force
in the Cherokee Nation because
it’s a distinct community with a
self-government having territorial
boundaries,” Jordan said. “This
is an extraordinary decision. The
Cherokee Nation’s response is that
of celebration. Unfortunately, this
is also the case where (President)
Andrew Jackson said, ‘John Marshall
has made his decision, now let him
enforce it.’”
The Cherokee government and
people fought for their rights for
nearly six more years until they
were removed from their lands in
Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and
North Carolina in the spring of
1838 under Jackson’s 1830 Indian
Removal Act.
Jordan said 183 years later the
CN “possesses an absolute power
of self-government” that has not
been relinquished under treaty,
extinguished by Congress or
restricted by a federal court.
Thanks to the “Marshall Trilogy,”
the tribe has the power to form its
government and make and enforce
laws, both civil and criminal, but
its authority to enforce criminal
laws is limited when dealing with
non-Natives. The CN also has
the authority to tax, establish and
determine tribal citizenship, as well
as license and regulate activities
within its jurisdiction.
Adult choir sings to preserve Cherokee language
The Cherokee Adult
Choir does not
require members to
be fluent in Cherokee
although about 10 of
them are.
BY JAMI MURPHY
Reporter
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The
Cherokee Adult Choir – a choir
made up of all ages, races, genders
and
religious
denominations
– practices twice a month for
performances that include family
events, tribal events and funerals.
Cherokee Nation citizen Faye
Morrison has directed the choir for
about 15 years. She said it is a nondenominational choir that allows
anyone from any tribe to become a
choir member.
“There’s about 27 of us that are in
the choir right now. The majority of
them are Cherokee. We have a few
Creek that want to sing with us and
that is wonderful,” Morrison said.
“We just allow anybody who wants
to come and sing the Cherokee
hymns and learn with us. It’s just
kind of a fun thing and we believe
that it helps preserve the language.”
Morrison said she is not a fluent
Cherokee speaker, but the choir
does have about 10 speakers.
“But I’ve learned a little bit by
singing. I know what a few words
are and I’m learning a few phrases.
I do think it helps the Cherokee
language, a little bit,” she said. “We’re
not teaching it, but we do teach the
songs in the Cherokee language.”
Morrison said one doesn’t have to
understand Cherokee to enjoy the
choir’s singing.
“You don’t have to be able to
speak or understand the words we’re
saying. When we sing ‘Amazing
Grace,’ you know what we’re singing
even though we’re singing it in our
language,” she said. “I went to a little
church close to my home when I
was little. My grandmother was fullblood Cherokee, and so she would
take us down there. Everybody
knew how to sing ‘Amazing Grace’
and ‘At the Cross’ and I just wanted
to get back into that in my later life
when I had time to learn to sing the
songs. I can sing in English, but I’m
learning to sing in Cherokee.”
Sally Williams, choir treasurer
who joined around 2004, said
much of the reasoning for its
The Cherokee Adult Choir practices hymns and well-known Christmas
carols, many of which are in the Cherokee language.
JAMI MURPHY/CHEROKEE PHOENIX
existence is to help preserve the
culture. She said the choir would
perform just about anywhere that
it’s invited as a way to promote and
preserve the Cherokee culture.
“We just want them (the songs)
to continue. We don’t want to lose
them so that those coming up can
learn them too,” she said. “There’s
a number of us that aren’t speakers,
but several are fluent too, and this
way they can kind of teach us to
make sure we’re doing it right.”
Williams said she was not raised
in the Cherokee culture, but wanted
to learn as much about it and the
language as she could.
“I didn’t really have much of
a connection with my Cherokee
heritage except through my
mother,” she said. “When I came
back to Tahlequah it was because
my mother had passed away and
just wanted to continue it. A lot of
it’s for her and myself of course.”
Ed Jumper, a fluent Cherokee
speaker, said he was given a talent to
sing by God.
“It’s not for the people that I do
it, but if they get uplifted from the
songs we sing then
I feel I’ve done my
part with the choir,”
Jumper said.
The choir has SCAN CODE
performed in several TO SEE VIDEO
states, as well as many
local events.
Recently, the choir was invited
by the United Methodist Church to
perform at the General Conference
of the United Methodist Churches
in Portland, Oregon, in May.
Between now and then, the choir
will host fundraisers and events to
help pay for expenses.
“It’s quite a trip for us. It’s quite
and honor for us to be able to go
and sing for that group of people,”
Morrison said. “During the past year
the individual conferences around
the world had been focusing on
repentance to the Native Americans
for the tragedies imposed on them
during early settlement days.”
The choir plans to have one
fundraiser per month. For more
information or to donate, call 918207-5067.
“Call me anytime if you got any
questions or you want to help us,
and we love to come to events
and sing if we can work it in our
schedule,” Morrison said.
20

to view - Cherokee Phoenix

Transcription

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