Bozho nikanek
(Hello friends),
As I write this, my wife Julia and I are preparing for our trip to Washington, D.C., where we will attend our districts 1 and 2 joint meeting Nov. 11, Veterans Day. Veterans in attendance will be honored.
My military career of “three years” began in 1950 just before the Korean War. Fortunately for me, I was sent to Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean to participate in the first hydrogen bomb test. Google “Operation Greenhouse 1951.” If you do that, keep in mind these were small, simulated air drops, not near what would be used in wartime.
I am looking forward to meeting the veterans and hearing their stories. As a radio operator on Eniwetok with lots of gear, I could occasionally hear the radios in Korea; real words and real emotions — not the stuff of movies.
All this is why each election year I sign up for another term. Not only do I get to participate in the operation of our great Citizen Potawatomi Nation, but I also get to travel my district and make so many new and wonderful friends. I have seen people meet family members they didn’t know existed at our meetings.
At each meeting, we honor our youngest member, our wisest member and the one who traveled the farthest with gifts. I hope to see you at our next District 1 meeting, and if I do, please introduce yourself and shake my hand.
I close this article, as always, with a plea for your contact information. If you do not receive an occasional email from me, it is because I do not have your contact information. Due to privacy issues, the Nation cannot provide me with it. You can reach me at rslavin@potawtomi.org or rjslavin@gmail.com.
Thank you for allowing me the privilege of serving as your representative.
Roy Slavin
Netagtege (Forever Planting)
Representative, District 1
816-741-5767
1-888-741-5767
rslavin@potawatomi.org
rjslavin@gmail.com