November 1999
You Are Invited
to the next CCS monthly meeting:
Thursday, December 2, 1999
7:00 p.m. social gathering
7:30 p.m. program & meeting.
It is time for our Annual "White Elephant" Gift Exchange. Holiday time means trading all those strange but wonderful items that we love to pass on to some other lucky person. They may just adopt these "gems" into their homes with great holiday joy. Come for the seasonal laughs and friendship as we wrap up those orphaned gifts and close out the Millennium CCS style! CCS Meeting Location: The Tracy Gee Community Center, 3599 Westcenter, one block south of Richmond, east of the Sam Houston Tollway West Belt. Guests are always eligible for the door prize awarded that night.
Other Events & Projects
As with all pow wows and other events, double check before making travel plans; events may change unexpectedly.
Houston Area:
- The Women's Shawl Society welcomes women of all tribes each second Saturday monthly from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. to share crafts and friendship. Call for details and meeting directions: Barbra "BJ" Callihan, 713-541-4170.
- The Shakey Hollow Ceremonial Ground, near Conroe, TX, site of dances each last Saturday of the month, starting with a potluck dinner, will continue through upcoming holidays. Christmas will be on Saturday and will be enhanced by this Native tradition. Call with any questions: 281-399-1661.
- The Alabama-Coushatta Indian Reservation has monthly pow wows. Contact for details: Rt. 3 Box 640, Livingston, TX 77351. Phone 1-800-444-3507.
Outside Texas:
- The Cherokee Homecoming Show at the Cherokee National Museum in Tahlequah, OK began November 6, 1999 and will continue through December 31, 1999. The exhibit includes baskets, pottery, traditional crafts, and fine arts. All artists are Cherokee tribal members and these items make wonderful holiday gifts. Contact the Museum through the Cherokee Heritage Center, P.O. Box 515, Tahlequah, OK 74465-0515, phone: 918-456-6007, fax 918-456-6165. (The Museum is closed to visitors during some weeks in winter.)
- December 4th, 1999: 25th Christmas Powwow of Champions, Fair Grounds, Tulsa, OK. Phone: 918-836-1523.
- December 31st, 1999: Good Medicine Sobriety Powwow, at the Kitchens of America Building on the State Fairgrounds, Oklahoma City, OK. Contact Kathy Stairs, phone 405-751-7132, e-mail: goodmedicine@hotmail.com
- The Oklahoma Native American Network will host a 12 month film and interactive lecture program that details the Holocaust Of The American Indian 2000, beginning in January 2000, and meeting each first Monday at 7:00 p.m. at the Tulsa (OK) Central Library. Admission is free: For background details, see www.cherokee.org/navbar/EVENTS/film.htm
Welcome To New Local CCS Officers
The board of directors for CCS met soon after recent elections to determine offices to be held by newly elected board members. Look forward to a great CCS year with Judith Bruni, President; Barbra "BJ" Callihan, Vice President; Marjorie Lowe, Secretary; and Cindy
Linnenkohl, Treasurer. Deborah Scott is Special Projects Chair.
Newsletter Chairs, in charge of assembling, labeling and mailing, will be Jimmy Melton and Clabert Menard. It was agreed that the meeting minutes and the treasurer's report of each meeting will be printed for members to pick up as they come to the monthly meetings, to read before the president calls for additions and/or corrections. They will become available at the December meeting.
Heritage Day
A Celebration of Native American Culture, Saturday, November 27, 1990, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Houston Museum of Natural Science, Hall of the Americas. The Museum is the place to be, as we round out a Thanksgiving weekend. If you have the family, or extra company to amuse and look for another great place to take them, we have the answer!
- For all ages and definitely "family friendly", here is the scene for entertainment and good memories.
- Wear Native regalia, or come in usual attire.
- Join in or watch Cherokee games.
- Hear authentic flute playing by J.C. High Eagle.
- Catch some genuine Cherokee storytelling.
- Enjoy our many fine arts and crafts.
- Try out some authentic Cherokee Language greetings.
It is all part of our rich Cherokee culture! Contact with questions or to assist: CCS President Judith Bruni, e-mail jbruni2@attglobal.net
On The Art Front:
Five Civilized Tribes Art Show Winners Announced
Winners for the 1999 Five Civilized Tribes Museum Art Show were announced Saturday, October 9, during the artists' reception held at the Museum in Tahlequah, OK. Board President Warren Roberts presented, assisted by Chickasaw Nation representative Lisa Jackson, director of the Chickasaw Foundation.
"Best of Show" was awarded to a bronze sculpture entitled "Cherokee Medicine Man" by Troy Anderson of Siloam Springs, ARK. The "Heritage Award" went to an acrylic painting entitled "Navigators" by Virginia Stroud of Tahlequah. "Spirit of Oklahoma Awards" went to: "The Stomp's Begun," by our own CCS member Bob Annesley, Missouri City, TX; "Black Coat," by Troy Anderson; "Honoring
Her Gift," by Dana Tiger, Park Hill, OK; "Wolf Tracks," by Gary Montgomery, Shawnee, OK; "Creek Tribesmen (Yafke)," by Johnny Tiger, Jr., Muskogee, OK; "And When I Dream, I Dream of Home," by Joan Hill, Muskogee, OK. The show was completed on November 7, however, all entries are for sale.
Special Note
Houston area members of the Cherokee Cultural Society are invited to stay tuned for upcoming Cherokee Language classes conducted by CCS Past President Victor Carroll. Tentative plans are under way to begin next May or June, at no charge for members. Class enrollment will be limited to seven persons, meeting twice each week for one to one and
a half hours, during eight weeks, to study the syllabary and study methods. For questions, contact Victor, e-mail RedE77604@aol.com
Web Gems:Native Music Contacts
- Robert Mirabal has several webpages of music.
- Bill Miller's website also includes some great content.
- LittleDeer Music and Seminars originates
from Maribeth/LittleDeer, a Cherokee in New Mexico who is also a psychotherapist and spiritual leader. Contains short but nice music samples of her Native American music. (Your editor received a complimentary copy of her new CD and was impressed with the wide range
of themes and styles - definitely intriguing and entertaining.)
Naming Ceremony Marks Anniversary, Accents History
Celebrating its 21st anniversary, the Cherokee Nation (of Oklahoma) Talking Leaves Job Corps Center held a ceremony to name its seven main buildings after each of the seven Cherokee clans. CNO Principal Chief Chad Smith said the naming was a reminder of progress the tribe is making, as Cherokees learn more about their language, culture and arts.
Deputy Principal Chief Hastings Shade explained the history and significance of the clan names, a brief history of the clan system and how it changed since ancient times. Before European contact, the clan was the most important affiliation of Cherokees which gave them their
place in the tribe and in their world. Clan was passed from a Cherokee mother to her children. In the matrilineal kinship system, a Cherokee woman decided when and whom to marry. She could not marry a member of her mother's clan, who were considered blood relations, no matter how distant. After marriage, a man took his wife's clan. According to Hastings Shade, there was of a time when there were 14 Cherokee clans. Over the centuries the Cherokee combined clans and opened them to captives and non-Indians. The tribe settled on the number seven to honor the seven directions: north, south, east, west, up, down, and center.
The seven Cherokee clan names for the Job Corps center buildings are: A-ni Wo-di, Paint Clan Recreation Building; A-ni Go-da-ge-wi, Wild Potato Clan Cafeteria; A-ni A-wi, Deer Clan Female Dormitory; A-ni Wa-ya, Wolf Clan Male Dormitory; A-ni Tsi-squa, Bird Clan Administration/Academic Building; A-ni Gi-lo-hi, Long Hair Clan Health Building; and A-ni Sa-ho-I, Blue Clan Vocational Building. The Center was named to honor the Cherokee linguist Sequoyah, who created the Cherokee syllabary in 1821. Soon afterward the Cherokee oral tradition had written form and led to publication of the first Indian newspaper in 1828, printed in Cherokee and English. When the 1839 Cherokee constitution was adopted, awareness of educational needs prompted the Cherokee to build schools for the young, seminaries for older Cherokee students, male and female, and for freedmen. When Oklahoma was granted
statehood in 1907, the Cherokee Nation turned over almost 100 schools to the new state.
- See original and complete story of November 5, 1999 at www.cherokee.org
Language Corner
Excerpts from the Cherokee Observer Language Lessons Cherokee Observer Language Lessons just in time for a seasonal feast:
Food Names (English alphabet only shown here.)
`al sta yvn `ti (food)
ha `wi `ya (meat)
wa `ka-ha `wi `ya (beef or cow meat)
si `qua-ha `wi `ya (pork or pig meat)
ha `wi `ya-u ka `yo sv (bacon or dried meat)
nu `na (potatoes)
`ga du (bread)
`se lu-`ga du (corn bread)
a tsa `di (fish)
u `we tsi (egg)
`ka `wi (coffee)
as ta `tlv da (cream)
kal `se tsi (Sugar or candy)
`wa du `li si (cake or something sweet)
ge `lis gi (pie)
Nation Resumes Law Enforcement
CNO Principal Chief Chad Smith administered the oath to new Cherokee Nation Marshals in the W.W. Keeler Tribal Council chambers on October 28: Sgt. Stacey Eubanks, Sgt. Franky Dreadfulwater, Interim Director of the Marshal Service Leonard McMillan, Sgt. Steve A. Garner, and Sgt. James L. Redcorn. After two years without a certified police force, the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma reinstated the Marshal Service. Former state and federal prosecutor Julian Fite will oversee the organization of law enforcement. Each marshal undergoes a comprehensive background check to receive a clearance and must meet federal standards to maintain certification. An August request by Chief Smith to the Bureau of Indian Affairs led to resumption of tribal law enforcement. The BIA agreed in September that the situation that caused them to assume all tribal law enforcement in May, 1997 no longer existed, allowing the return of the tribal force. February, 1997 had marked the transition, when former Principal Chief Joe Byrd fired the entire Marshal Service after officers removed contested documents from his office. The documents had been requested by tribal council members, and, after the chief refused to provide them, led to a two-year struggle between the three branches of
government that tested the tribal constitution.
Reminder To Registered Cherokees
The First Families Charter Member registration continues through December 31, 1999. Contact them at the Cherokee National Historical Society Genealogy Office; P. O. Box 515, Tahlequah, OK 74465; e-mail tsalagi@ipa.net. Phone requests to 1-918-456-6007; fax 1-918-456- 6165. Questions may also be directed to CCS board member Marjorie Lowe, e-mail hunter@hal-pc.org
Kudos Corner
- Special CCS thanks to our November meeting guest speaker, Robert Vann, of the Texas Gulf Coast Cherokees, an excellent and entertaining storyteller who held the attention of all ages during his presentation to our group!
- Super thanks to Powersource, who generously provides our CCS webpage and who donated a bundle of CD's and tapes for sale at our meeting. There was a wonderful variety of Native American artists represented. They are still available for $5/CD and $3/tape as a CCS fundraiser.
- To all the CCS volunteer speakers, including Marjorie Lowe and Judith Bruni, who answered the call to discuss Cherokee culture with local civic groups, schools and others who requested these services during November, Native American Heritage Month.
- Super "Pat On The Back" to everyone who has been helping with the
November 27 Museum of Natural Science event, from stickball organizers (Joe Williams and Charlie Strack), to craftspeople (Barbra Callihan, and the Shawl Society), flute player (J.C. High Eagle), artists (Charlie Strack), language experts (Victor Carroll); from friendly gophers to
Museum staff, especially our friend, Dr. Dorothy Lippert.
- Many thanks to the CCS enthusiasts who volunteered time and talent to help your editor, Vicki Henrichs, with the November 13 exhibit at Barnes & Noble Bookstore: Judith Bruni, Victor Carroll, Barbra Callihan, Jim Gravino, Pier Laird and Marjorie Lowe. We had a marvelous time visiting with persons interested in our organization who came from Japan, Canada,
Hawaii and, yes, even Oklahoma.
We could not do these special events without all of you!
Support 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. Annual membership dues are $20.00 per person and include a hardcopy newsletter subscription.
Thank you for your support of CCS! The Cherokee Messenger, a monthly publication of the Cherokee Cultural Society of Houston, welcomes news articles, family histories, poetry, and other items of interest concerning Cherokee culture. Inclusion is based on space available and
is subject to editing.
Mail to:
The Cherokee Cultural Society of Houston
P.O. Box 23187
Houston, TX 77228-3187
or e-mail vhenrich@swbell.net by the 5th of the month prior to publication the first of the following month.
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