Bozho nikanek (Hello friends), As the air in California starts to clear from the summer’s fires and the hints of the fall season are upon us, it is good to take the time to reflect on our families and our heritage. November is recognized in the United States as Native American Heritage Month, and it Read More »

Bozho nikan (Hello friends), Pick a date between Sept. 4 and Nov. 10 1838, and it will mark a time when our Potawatomi ancestors were moving along the route between Indiana and Kansas known as The Trail of Death. Once the Indian Removal Act was signed into law by President Andrew Jackson, the United States Read More »

Bozho (Hello), Wow, lots of information today. Interesting how the only thing you can count on is change. We resist change yet is the very thing that provides growth in our personal, professional and spiritual lives. This month has certainly been one of change and opportunity for me. The P.O. Box 5905, Mesa, AZ 85211 Read More »

Bozho (Hello), Another story of Native American history in Kansas The April 18 Kansas City Star featured an interesting article regarding the discovery of what appears to be the location of the lost city of Etzanoa, a home to ancestors of today’s Wichita tribe. For centuries, the Wichita tribe was indigenous to Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas Read More »

Bozho nikan (Hello friend), As we know, the last 10 days of August and all of September have had our attention around Hurricane Harvey and its aftermath. Many in south Texas, including many of our CPN family members, have lost much. Some may have lost their entire homes, autos and pets. Others, while they did Read More »

Bozho nikanek (Hello friends)! Family field trip to Birmingham, Alabama? I’m excited to host fellow Potawatomi at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute (BCRI) for a tour of the Institute, followed by a lunch and business meeting in the BCRI Commons, beginning 10 a.m. March 10. I believe this is the first “official” Citizen Potawatomi Nation Read More »

Bozho nikan (Hello friend), The first thing I want to mention in this article is our upcoming Districts 1 and 2 fall feast and veterans celebration 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Nov. 11 at Little Falls Presbyterian Church social hall, 6025 Little Falls Road, Arlington, Virginia. We will honor our veterans at the meeting. Please RSVP toll-free Read More »

Bozho nikanek (Hello friends), In mid–July, I hosted a gathering of Potawatomi at my home. I had recently constructed a “gazebo” of sorts — really a basic roof over a fire pit at the rear of my yard. It is often a challenge to find a location for a naming ceremony, so I was interested Read More »

Bozho nikanek, (Hello friends) In my July article, I wrote about my grandfather David Johnson’s trunk on display at the Cultural Heritage Center. It was his school trunk assigned to him when he attended the Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and contained all of his worldly possessions at the time. With schools back in Read More »

Bozho nikanek (Hello my friends), I hope this month’s column finds you well. The dog days of summer linger but early signs of seasonal change are starting to emerge. The days are definitely getting shorter. The sun seems to be sleeping in a little and getting ready for bed earlier. Evening temperatures are comparable to Read More »