Meet the duo helping families heat and cool their homes

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.

Training offers educators empowerment and resilience

The Citizen Potawatomi Nation’s Cultural Heritage Center hosted a blanket healing exercise for education professionals in the area. The purpose of the NIEA training is to foster truth, understanding, respect and reconciliation among Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

Bourassa descendants preserve and repair homes

Bourassa descendant Ty McBride and his sister Jimmie Hodgkins use the latest technology and draw on their grandfather’s teachings to repair homes in cost effective and environmentally friendly ways.

Trail of Death caravan readies for next observance

From Sept. 4 to Nov. 4, 1838, the United States forcibly removed a band of 859 Potawatomi and marched them from northern Indiana to present-day Kansas. A caravan in remembrance of this history is held every five years to honor victims and survivors. The next observance will be in 2023, said Janet A. Pearl, member-at-large, Potawatomi Trail of Death Association.

Parenting classes

Parents want what is best for their children, but knowing how to provide that sometimes can be tough. Here at the House of Hope, we offer parenting classes at no charge to those in the community who either need or desire such classes. The class goes over many different topics and can be helpful for parents or guardians with children at all stages of adolescence.

Combs descendant wins Oklahoma public school art award

Citizen Potawatomi Nation tribal member and Piedmont High School junior Shelby Grove was awarded a 2022 State Superintendent Award for Arts Excellence in Visual Arts for her work, “Tools,” which showcases her skills in shading and expresses her experience of change during the coronavirus pandemic.

Legislator finds retirement fun in Oklahoma film industry

Earlier this year, Citizen Potawatomi Nation District 12 Legislator Paul Schmidlkofer spent several weeks working on the set of the Peabody Awards-winning show Reservation Dogs as they filmed season two. The comedy-drama created by Seminole Nation citizen Sterlin Harjo tells the story of four Indigenous teenagers growing up in rural Oklahoma and their efforts to determine their futures.

CPN, Dunbar Heights celebrate historic community partnership

On June 17, 2022, Citizen Potawatomi Nation and the Dunbar Heights Community of Shawnee, Oklahoma, held a VIP reception in honor of Juneteenth. The partnership works to acknowledge the historical ties between Native tribes and slavery, repair the historical divides between Native American and Black communities, and pave the way toward a more just and equitable future.

FireLake Fireflight Balloon Festival earns top award at tourism event

The FireLake Fireflight Balloon Festival received the Outstanding Event award during the 2022 RedBud Awards, hosted by the Oklahoma Travel Industry Association. For the past 25 years, the RedBud Awards have recognized Oklahoma’s top tourism attractions, events, programs and organizations for their outstanding efforts to serve and promote Oklahoma’s tourism industry, according to the OTIA website.