Cherokee Messenger
May 2000


CCS Meeting To Feature Chad Smith, Principal Chief, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma


Join CCS on Thursday, June 1, 2000, 7:00 p.m., when the head of state of the Cherokee Nation speaks on the "Identity of the Cherokee People and Updates on the Cherokee Nation" at the Tracy Gee Community Center, 3599 Westcenter. The monthly meeting location is one block south of Richmond Avenue, east of the Sam Houston Tollway West Belt. There is no admission charge for the program, which is open to all who are interested in the Cherokee. Bring guests to our monthly meeting - they are always eligible for the door prize which is awarded that night.

Chad Smith, who was elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma in 1999, has worked diligently to strengthen Cherokee culture and extend services to Cherokee Nation citizens. See details at the CNO website.

Other Events & Projects


As with all pow wows and other events, double check before making travel plans; events may change unexpectedly.

CCS Artists Honored in National Show


The Cherokee Heritage Center, operated by the Cherokee National Historical Society in Tahlequah, OK, presented the 29th Annual Trail of Tears Art Show on May 6, 2000. The event showcases outstanding Native artists in various media and this year honored two of our own! Charlie Strack received an "Honorable Mention" for his steel sculpture "The Chase". Bob Annesley received 2nd Place in the "Trail of Tears category" for his painting "The Beginning of the Trail". Both artists are very supportive members of the Cherokee Cultural Society. We are certainly proud of Bob and Charlie and congratulate them on receiving these honors. See http://www.leftmoon.com/cnhs/

Cherokee Course Is Set


Mark your calendar for two Saturdays, August 19 and 26, 2000, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., at Challenger 7 Park, near NASA Blvd. Cherokee Nation Certified Teachers and CCS members Marjorie Lowe and Deborah Scott will teach an outstanding course on Cherokee culture. If history, mythology and genealogy are your interests, this is the course for you! The 12-hour curriculum features in-depth information, hand-outs, videos, presentations, and hands-on demonstrations. It is part of the mission to understand and preserve our Cherokee culture. Fees: All must be pre-paid to attend. Cost is $55 for CCS members and $75 for non-members of CCS. Newcomers: Pay $75 for the course and get a one-year CCS membership! Contact Deborah Scott, 713-861-6667 or e-mail dpscott@sageways.com

Honoring The Survivors


The following is a partial list of persons who had survived the Trail of Tears and whose gravesites have been marked by the Oklahoma Chapter of the Trail of Tears Association. Perhaps some of our readers will recognize ancestors on this list. Any persons interested in researching and documenting the graves of their ancestors to qualify for this commemorative marker can contact Marjorie Lowe e-mail hunter@hal-pc.org

Tahlequah City Cemetery: Richard Taylor, Susan Fields Taylor, Rev. Evan Jones, George Lowery, Dennis Wolf Bushyhead, Edward Bushyhead, Eliza Missouri Bushyhead Alberty.

Baptist Mission Cemetery: Rev. Jesse Bushyhead, Carrie Bushyhead Quarles

Dwight Mission Cemetery: Rev. Daniel S. Butrick, Elizabeth Proctor Butrick.

Ross Cemetery: Chief John Ross, Andrew Ross Nave, Eliza Jane Ross, George Washington Ross, Lewis Anderson Ross, Nannie Otterlifter Ross, Jane Ross Nave, Elizabeth Ross, John Golden Ross, Lewis Ross, Minerva Nave Ross.

Woodlawn Cemetery, Claremore: Elijah Hicks, Margaret Ross Hicks, Mary Hicks McCoy, Victoria Susan Hicks Lipe, Charles Renatus Hicks II, Ruth Emeline McCoy Kephart, James Christopher McCoy, John Ross Hicks, John Gunter Schrimsher, Sara Foreman Mayfield, Sarah Rosalie Hicks Stephens.

Free Resources


Available while supplies last are the two volumes entitled:

COMPREHENSIVE MANAGEMENT AND USE PLAN-TRAIL OF TEARS NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL and

COMPREHENSIVE MANAGEMENT AND USE PLAN-MAP SUPPLEMENT TRAIL OF TEARS NATIONAL HISTORIC TRAIL.

Request from: The United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Long Distance Trails Group Office-Santa Fe, P. O. Box 728, Santa Fe, NM 87504-0728. Attn: John T. Conoboy, Chief, Interpretation and Resource Management.

Copies of these volumes were circulated at the March, 2000 CCS monthly meeting when Trail of Tears President Jack D. Baker was guest speaker.

Scholarship Reminders


CCS Board member Marjorie Lowe reminds us that 50 DAR $500 scholarships will be awarded to Indian students this year throughout the US. Students need to submit applications by the July 1, 2000 deadline. Marjorie recently has been appointed Vice Chairman of the American Indian Committee of the Texas Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Congratulations are in order!

Other Member Highlights


Appreciation from CCS Vice President Barbra (B.J.) Callihan upon her recent exit from the hospital and during recovery from cardiac treatment. Says Barbra, "Thank you for the lovely plant (sent by CCS) and for all your thoughts and prayers. Don't know what I'd do without friends like you." Barbra is back in the routine, looking great and boosting our CCS projects.

Congratulations to Cyndie Menard, who became an official college graduate May 12 at Hofheinz Pavillion in Houston. Cyndie received her Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies. "That is Martian for Elementary Education," she says. Hopefully she has her teaching contract by the time you read this. Cyndie and husband Clabert have been active members of the CCS board.

Red Nations Remembering 2001 Opinion Survey / Volunteer Form


CCS is at a crossroads on the Red Nations Remembering project presented each spring and we need your ideas! If you are a current CCS member or plan to be active, please use this form to assist us in our future planning:

Do we continue as in previous years, planning and conducting the same type of RNR event, with all its activities?

OR ....

Do we have an extended CCS family gathering, maybe a picnic at a local park, with simpler planning?

OR ....

I have the following terrific, DOABLE idea and will help make it happen:

- Name
- E-Mail Address


Volunteer for RNR


For those who want to volunteer for the more elaborate RNR, similar to what we have had during the past several years: We MUST have your support! That means TIME, SWEAT and old-fashioned EFFORT. Let us know HOW we can depend on you! If we lack this support, RNR will not happen as before. Then we all go out for a grand style CCS picnic. It's Y O U R C C S - let us know WHO will do WHICH tasks for RNR 2001. We need to start soon to make it happen next spring. Use the form provided to volunteer now.

- Name
- E-Mail Address
- Daytime phone
- Evening phone

Your special interest/talent/skill for this project:


CCS


The purpose of the Cherokee Cultural Society of Houston is to build community, to preserve Cherokee heritage, to perpetuate the Cherokee culture, and to build the future of our people. CCS is an independent nonprofit organization which is not affiliated with any other Native American association. We do support the efforts of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.
Copyright © The Cherokee Cultural Society of Houston