The 2022 FireLake Fireflight Balloon Fest drew its largest crowd ever to Shawnee, Oklahoma, on August 12 and 13 to enjoy hot air balloon rides, live music performances and family entertainment. “The committee works hard to make each year better than the last,” said Vice-Chairman Linda Capps. The Festival will return in 2023, with new activities for its sixth year.
Tribal member Kaylee Almand has shown a love for animals since she was a small child, and as she finishes her junior year at Tarleton State University, she is one step closer to her goal of becoming a veterinarian. Her experience includes exhibiting goats and lambs in high school, and working with deer at Sierra Mesa Ranch.
After two years of battling the coronavirus, the Citizen Potawatomi Nation’s Child Development professionals now are optimistically looking toward the future. West Child Care Center Manager Courtney Garza said the past two years challenged employees like never before, but their dedication made the difference.
This month’s update from Language Director Justin Neely provides an update on the children’s book project, online class offerings, and highlights his participation in the 54th annual Algonquian Conference.
Photographer Sharon Hoogstraten spent twelve years photographing members of the Potawatomi nations across North America dancing in their regalia to create an heirloom book, Dancing for Our Tribe. The book documents Potawatomi regalia as a “current art” while also telling Potawatomi stories of the past and present. She hopes it will inspire tribal members to create their own regalia.
Citizen Potawatomi Nation Supreme Court Associate Justice Jennifer Lamirand was nominated for the prestigious Oklahoma Magazine 40 Under 40 annual awards. The publication chose her as one of the 2022 honorees in April. Lamirand focuses on tribal and Indigenous law at her employer, Crowe & Dunlevy, and is particularly interested in international law and tribal sovereignty.
This episode explores the Brackeen v. Haaland U.S. Supreme Court case as well as the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978.
CPN Workforce Development and Social Services’ Andrea Smiley and Stephanie McElfresh work together to bring CPN’s LIHEAP (Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program) benefits to local families. The program served 250 households during the 2022 cooling season.
The October 2022 veterans report highlights a new preparatory course pilot program to elevate Army recruits’ fitness and academic standings, and reminds members that this month’s meeting will be held a week earlier than usual, on October 18.
Tribal Chairman John “Rocky” Barrett received three awards in 2022 at the state and national level in recognition of his career in public service, belief in servant leadership and decades-long devotion to the expansion of tribal sovereignty across the United States.