To highlight some of the CPN Cultural Heritage Center’s archival holdings, the Hownikan is featuring photographs and family history of every founding Citizen Potawatomi family. Records show a long legacy of public service in the Johnson family history.
The Institute of Museum and Library Services recently awarded the Citizen Potawatomi Nation Cultural Heritage Center nearly $100,000. The funds will support the CHC’s efforts to modernize and enhance technology to improve the visitor experience.
October is National Field Trip Month. Citizen Potawatomi Nation offers area schools and youth groups two options for an exciting experience outside of the classroom at the Cultural Heritage Center and Eagle Aviary.
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.
Harvard University Native American Program (HUNAP) Faculty Director Joseph P. Gone has announced Kelli Mosteller (Citizen Potawatomi) as the new executive director of HUNAP. Mosteller’s appointment concludes a national search led by Gone and Lori E. Gross, associate provost for arts and culture at Harvard University.
The official start of summer — niben (time of plenty) — begins Tuesday, June 21. Before the invention of grocery stores, it was a key time to harvest and procure food as well as celebrate. During niben, Potawatomi continue age-old traditions of the season that strengthen cultural and personal connections.
This month’s Language Department update highlights several events and programs that will be open to Festival-goers, as well as several online resources.
The Citizen Potawatomi Nation Eagle Aviary received its U.S. Fish and Wildlife permit and opened its doors one decade ago this June. Aviary managers Jennifer Randell and Bree Dunham sat down with the Hownikan to reflect on the last decade of caring for these sacred animals and what the next 10 years may bring.
Artisans of all skill levels are welcome to attend the crafts classes at the Cultural Heritage Center during the 2022 Annual Family Reunion Festival. This year, in-person instruction returns to the CHC and will be offered for: bandolier making; beaded Tribal pins and bolo ties; hand drum making; shawl applique and fringe; beaded lanyards; moccasin making; chokers; and beaded bracelets.
This year, Family Reunion Festival attendees will find something in their gift bags they never have before — a set of four children’s books from the Citizen Potawatomi Language Department. The staff worked on them after receiving a $200,000 grant from the United States Department of the Interior’s Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development as part of its Living Languages Grant Program in 2021.