Lisa Osceola takes the helm at EIRA News by Beverly Bidney - January 2, 2018January 31, 2018 For the first time, the Eastern Indian Rodeo Association has a female president. Lisa Osceola was elected at the EIRA annual awards banquet this summer. Osceola is no stranger to the rodeo. The daughter of Josiah Johns, an Indian National Finals Rodeo Hall of Famer and co-founder of the Florida Indian
Big Cypress thanks employees with fun day Community by Beverly Bidney - November 30, 2017November 29, 2017 BIG CYPRESS — About 100 Big Cypress employees were treated to a day of fun, bingo and a leisurely lunch Nov. 7 as a thank you for the work they did related to Hurricane Irma, which barreled through the reservation in September. “I want them to know how important they are,”
Osceola siblings bring Seminole history to life Education by Beverly Bidney - November 30, 2017November 29, 2017 NAPLES — About 50 fifth-graders at the Community School of Naples received an inside look at Seminole culture Oct. 20 thanks to their classmate O.B. Osceola III and his sister Bryce Osceola. The duo gave a comprehensive presentation of Seminole history and brought a trove of patchwork, beadwork, sweetgrass baskets, dolls
Immokalee BG Club delivers Thanksgiving turkeys around town Community by Beverly Bidney - November 30, 2017December 1, 2017 IMMOKALEE — Kids from the Immokalee Boys & Girls Club made Thanksgiving special for 100 needy families in Immokalee on Nov. 20 by surprising them with a delivery of turkeys and all the fixings. It was the second time the club helped fill bellies around town. Former Immokalee Council project manager Pete
Remembering American Indian Movement founder Dennis Banks Community by Beverly Bidney - November 30, 2017January 3, 2018 Dennis Banks, a revered Native American activist of the 20th and 21st centuries, passed away at age 80 on Oct. 29. A member of the Ojibwa Tribe, Banks was laid to rest where he was born in 1937, at the Leech Lake Reservation in Minnesota. Banks died from pneumonia he contracted
American Indian Arts Celebration draws record-setting crowd Community by Beverly Bidney - November 30, 2017January 3, 2018 BIG CYPRESS — It was easy to see that the 20th annual American Indian Arts Celebration was a success by expressions of the event’s 1,679 visitors as they experienced Native American culture first-hand. The Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum festival, held Nov. 3 and 4 in Big Cypress, drew record crowds and featured a
Tribalwide housing plan unveiled News by Beverly Bidney - November 30, 2017January 3, 2018 More than 1,500 acres of land in Brighton, Big Cypress, Hollywood, Immokalee and Lakeland will sprout new housing units in the not too distant future, thanks to the Tribalwide housing plan. The plan is in the design and engineering phase and should be complete by September 2018, the end of
National Grandparents Day unites families for lunch and love Education by Beverly Bidney - October 31, 2017November 9, 2017 BRIGHTON — Though National Grandparents Day was Sept. 10, Pemayetv Emahakv Charter School celebrated the annual event Sept. 29. Although Irma may have been the larger force of nature, there is little question that grandparents can have a significant impact on the lives of their grandchildren. Since 1978, National Grandparents Day has been
Competitive grazing field trial underway in Brighton Community by Beverly Bidney - October 31, 2017October 30, 2017 BRIGHTON — Smutgrass is the bane of cattle ranchers throughout Florida, who spend a lot of money trying to eradicate it. The invasive grass, originally from Asia, has a strong foothold in Tribal pastures in Big Cypress and Brighton. Aaron Stam, federally-recognized Tribal extension program agent, knows that most ranchers, academics
PECS inaugurates Student Council, holds clothing contest Education by Beverly Bidney - October 31, 2017November 30, 2017 BRIGHTON — A new team of leaders took the oath and the reins of the Student Council at Pemayetv Emahakv Charter School Sept. 29. Dressed in their finest patchwork, the 10 newly elected K-8 representatives and council chairwoman put their left hands on the bible, raised their right hands high and