Soldiers called him ‘Devil’ Editorial by James E. Billie - December 30, 2014April 7, 2015 That ol’ Devil, the soldiers called him. It was almost a romantic term. You know: "That ol’ Devil escaped us again!" More and more as time went on, the word Devil was also put on the haunts of the Seminole medicine man Abiaki (aka Sam Jones). More than 150 years
Hey Pilot! Pffut-DING! Editorial by James E. Billie - April 30, 2014April 7, 2015 Pilot Billie. I have always been tickled by the name "Pilot." Wasn’t that the name of the guy in the Bible who sentenced Jesus to death? I often think maybe it had something to do with an airplane pilot. How he got the name Pilot I’ll never know. The people
Ruby Osceola: No Tampa without the pig Editorial by James E. Billie - April 1, 2014April 7, 2015 Back in 1979 when I first became Chairman, one of my dreams was to expand our reservations around the state of Florida. The areas where I wanted to go were industrial-type cities, and Tampa, with all its shipping, was one of them. And one other thing that came to mind
Beetles killing our ‘Tu lee’ must be stopped Editorial by James E. Billie - February 26, 2014April 7, 2015 My grandparents and their forefathers on my mother’s side of the family were practitioners and users of traditional indigenous medicine. As a child I would go along with Grandmother to collect medicine plants for the Medicine Maker. On many occasions one particular plant or tree was selected. A carefully chosen branch full
From Killer Moon to Little Big Winds Editorial by James E. Billie - January 29, 2014April 7, 2015 The year 2014 has finally arrived and we have passed through the Killer Moon and are going into the Little Big Winds. The significance of the Killer Moon is that it is the time of the year when it gets very cold and many things will die and I guess
The Christmas I had Toys Galore Editorial by James E. Billie - December 17, 2013April 7, 2015 Back around 1948 or ’49, my grandparents moved to Delray Beach, Fla. West of town was a small cattle ranch owned by Neil McMillin and his family. There, Johnny Buster and my grandmother worked as ranch caretakers. The ranch had horses, cows, cow pens and a small barn where they
Enjoy your Butterball fay-tee Editorial by James E. Billie - November 26, 2013April 7, 2015 To our Tribal members, our friends around the world, our employees, I’d like to say Happy Thanksgiving. Hope you enjoy that fay-tee. You know, few things irk me during the holiday season. One in particular is I have not had my turkey dinner yet, and when I drive by Walmart
Like the old Florida flag: ‘Let us alone!’ Editorial by James E. Billie - October 24, 2013April 7, 2015 Mascots have started to surface again, with controversy. Different people of this land are objecting to the use of Native American mascots and it’s in the news again. We Seminoles down in Florida have no qualms with other Indian people objecting to the use of mascots that may insult Native
Budget: A pain in the hookchee Editorial by James E. Billie - September 24, 2013April 7, 2015 Tribal Council is now going through its yearly budgeting process. It’s a pain in the hookchee but it is necessary for our government operations. The humor of it all is when an individual Tribal member overhears an in-house discussion or a debate on some program that we should get rid of
From wars to prosperity, Florida Seminoles survive Editorial by James E. Billie - August 27, 2013April 7, 2015 When the Spanish got here in 1513, for the first 100 years, the Indians were still carrying on their traditional ways. But during that 100-year stretch, the Indians began slowly assuming certain European ways. And then, when the 1600s came, they were definitely wearing European clothes and trying to live