Tradition and scientific achievement came together at a presentation at the Citizen Potawatomi Eagle Aviary. Audrey Kiefer, who was, at the time, senior director of customer experience operations at Axiom Space, presented the Aviary an eagle feather that traveled to space on the Axiom Space AX-3 mission. Kiefer has since transitioned to running her own consulting firm, Sema Ventures, LLC.

CPN Eagle Aviary Managers Jennifer Randell and Bree Dunham accepted the feather and gave Kiefer a private tour of the Aviary and an 8th Generation wool blanket. Blankets are often gifted by the Potawatomi and other tribes as a symbol of appreciation and warmth.

Kiefer, a descendant of the Theresa Richstatter family, said it was important to her to honor the work the Aviary does because of the spiritual importance of eagles to Indigenous people. Eagles are messengers who carry the prayers of Indigenous people to the Creator.

The Axiom AX-3 mission launched on Jan. 18, 2024, and returned to Earth on Feb. 9, 2024. It was the first all-European commercial astronaut mission to launch to the International Space Station. During the 18-day mission, 54 scientific research projects from more than 30 partners were included. According to Axiom Space, the AX-3 mission refined the pathway to low-Earth orbit and charted a course for the world’s first commercial space station.

The feather that was returned to the Aviary had special significance for Randell and Dunham. It came from Kche-Gizhek (Big Sky), an eagle also known as Kyla.

Kche-Gizhek came to the CPN Aviary in 2012 from Raptors of the Rockies in Florence, Montana. She was a fledgling who had possibly fallen from a nest, sustaining several breaks to her right wing.

After she settled in at the Aviary, she received the name Kche-Gizhek to honor her former home of Montana as well as her big personality. She paired with another Aviary eagle named Zagéndem-nené (Charlie), and the two built a nest in their enclosure. This is unusual for birds in captivity.

The pair further surprised the Aviary staff by laying eggs in 2015 and 2016. Those eggs weren’t fertile but in 2017 the duo successfully hatched a fertile egg. An eaglet named Mko Kno (Bear Eagle) was welcomed by the Aviary. It was the first eagle hatched and released from a Native American Aviary on Sept. 20, 2017.

“It meant a great deal to us that this feather was from Kyla because it really shows how far she’s come,” said Aviary Manager Jennifer Randell. “Her story has come full circle.”

Axiom Space is the leading provider of human spaceflight services and developer of human-rated space infrastructure, according to their website.

The company operates end-to-end missions to the International Space Station while developing Axiom Station, an eventual successor to the International Space Station, or ISS. Axiom Space is also known for building next-generation spacesuits and recently announced a partnership with Italian design house Prada to make a spacesuit that will eventually be worn on the lunar surface.

Visit the potawatomiheritage.com/aviary to learn more about the eagles.