Mesa, Arizona—“Fatherhood fails when fathers fail to communicate with their kids,” said Dr. Joe Shirley, the newly re-elected Navajo Nation President at the First National Native American Fatherhood Conference. The conference was held at the Mesa Convention Center in Mesa, Arizona. “I think that’s why sons go astray, when fathers and sons don’t connect,” Shirley added. More than 200 people from several states including Alaska, New York and South Dakota attended the conference.
Jessica Moore, Osage, Pawnee, Otoe and Sac
& Fox and daughter of Terry Mason Moore (31st Osage Tribal Council
Woman) and Ted Moore (Office of Grants Management, Osage Nation) won the
title of Miss Indian Oklahoma last weekend at the Iowa Tribal Complex in
Perkins, Oklahoma. The title of Miss Indian Oklahoma is sponsored by the
Oklahoma Federation of Indian Women. Her home town is Fairfax, Oklahoma
and she is from the Gray Horse District of the Osage Nation.
Jessica represented the Osage Nation, of which
she is a member. She is 22 years of age and a student at Oklahoma State
University where she majors in Landscape Architecture with an emphasis on
Design, and has a minor in Art.
Jessica is very involved with the
Multicultural Student Center, and has been the Native American Student
Association (NASA) President for the past 2 years and recently served as
this year’s American Indian Student Leadership Conference Coordinator.
This upcoming year she will be serving as the NASA Cultural Chair.
Tous! Hello, my name is Kay Kay Franklin and my Indian name is Nanak'ate Hisea, which means 'Light Hair Woman' in Arapaho. I am from El Reno and I represent the Cheyenne-Arapaho people as well as the Kiowa and Creek tribes of Oklahoma. I am the daughter of Dara Franklin and Billy Whitlow, the granddaughter of the late Arapaho Chief Virgil Franklin, Sr. and Violet Youngbear Franklin, the late Geraldine Tallbull Morton and William Whitlow of Chicago, Illinois. I am also a descendent of Arapaho Chiefs Littleraven and Littlebear.
Nogales, Sonora, Mexico- I grew up on the San Carlos Apache Reservation and I thought I’d seen poverty until I went to a community in the heart of a dump in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. I don’t mean the neighborhood is a “dump.” About 13 families live in the middle of a municipal dump, where a quarter of a million people leave their trash. Myself, my husband John Mosley and our 11-year-old son Bear joined several members of the Crossroads Nazarene Church in Chandler, Arizona, for a one-day trip earlier this month to help a man with a big heart.
Hi, my
name is Brittany Anstead. I am 14 years old. I’m from Warrenton, North
Carolina. I’m a member of the Haliwa-Saponi Tribe and I'm currently
serving as Senior Miss Warren County. I attend Warren County High
School and I have one
Hi, my name is Samantha Anstead. I am 9-years-old. I’m from Warrenton, North Carolina. I’m a member of the Haliwa Saponi Tribe.
I attend Vaunghan Elementry School. I have one
Halito. Hello. My name is Sherman Earl Billie. I am 23 years old and I
live in Choctaw, Mississippi. I am enrolled tribal member with the
Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.
I am also the 2005-2006
Male Co-President of the National UNITY Council. UNITY stands for
United National Indian Tribal Youth. Currently, I am
Siyo. Hello. My name is Sarah Geloneck. I'm a 17-year-old biracial
Cherokee ( no princesses in the family, I promise!) I am currently
looking to enroll with the Eastern Band in North Carolina. I am in
college now, studying to become a registered nurse and then
Hi, my name is Autumn Locklear. I am 16-years-old. I’m from Pembroke,
North Carolina. I’m a member of the Lumbee Tribe. I attend Purnell
Swett High School. I have one brother and one sister. The town I live
in is small with a population of about 8,000. My hobbies are
cheerleading, singing, dancing, and beading. My most favorite thing to
do is
“Christmas” seems like a fantasy to me. It’s another one of those seasons when a guy tries to bring joy to his otherwise depressing life. This
opportunity to cover up said life is greatly embraced by most, because
it seems to help them believe in “happily ever after” – and gets them
out of their boring and monotonous life. Well if an overly happy fat man in red helps them believe in make believe, then more power to them I guess. Just know that the smile he wears is fake.
Then there’s that other guy who knows nothing will cover up his junk. He celebrates the holidays more realistically, though it may not look very different than the other guy. The difference is, he buys what he needs and what his family needs as opposed to getting them everything they want. He doesn’t want his family growing up believing life is about getting what they want, because we won’t always get what we want. Occasionally
he’ll buy them things they want, because he sincerely loves them and
wants them to be happy, but he doesn’t blame the fat man in red for the
gift – he takes the credit himself, and his sincere smile expresses his
content in knowing his family is happy.
Hello all,
The following is a letter from the principal chief of my
tribe (United Houma Nation) letting everyone know about our situation
and ways that you can help. Please pass this on to all you friends,
colleges, and tribal governments so that we can get the support we need
to rebuild our communities.
Yakoke,
Jared Crosby
(featured in NYM)
14 September 2005
The outpouring of support from our fellow native communities through
Photo: (L to R) Verna Patten, Willie Joe Patten and Janice Patten
San Carlos, Arizona—“It’s good. I like it. I’m happy,” said Verna Patten in her Apache language. Patten, a San Carlos Apache tribal elder spoke those words as she and her family inspected a new doublewide manufactured home they will rent for $1 a month under a new housing program created by the Gilson Wash District Economic Enterprise (GWDEE). Patten, along with her daughter and grandson, had been living in what visitors described as third world conditions. Their former mobile home, standing just 100 yards away from their new home, was literally falling apart. It was probably built in the 1960s and its tin roof no longer had insulation, windows were broken and the walls were stained from rainfall leaks. Patten, on a fixed income, couldn’t’ afford to make repairs. “We pulled through it,” said Willie Joe Patten, 19, Verna’s grandson as he stood in the doorway of his new home.
“We’d like to be able to do this for more people,” said David Beaver, GWDEE Board Chairman. The Gilson Wash District Economic Enterprise is a tribal entity chartered by the San Carlos Apache Tribe. Under lease terms, Verna Patten will only pay $1 a month for use of the rental unit.
Tous! Hello, my name is Kay Kay Franklin and my Indian name is Nanak'ate Hisea, which means 'Light Hair Woman' in Arapaho. I am from El Reno and I represent the Cheyenne-Arapaho people as well as the Kiowa and Creek tribes of Oklahoma. I am the daughter of Dara Franklin and Billy Whitlow, the granddaughter of the late Arapaho Chief Virgil Franklin, Sr. and Violet Youngbear Franklin, the late Geraldine Tallbull Morton and William Whitlow of Chicago, Illinois. I am also a descendent of Arapaho Chiefs Littleraven and Littlebear. 
Hello all,