Seminole Tribe lifts mask mandate Community Health News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - April 25, 2022April 25, 2022 The use of masks is now optional at the Seminole Tribe. (Image via Facebook) HOLLYWOOD – The Seminole Tribe lifted its mask mandate after more than two years of having it in place during the Covid-19 pandemic. Health and Human Services (HHS) executive director, Dr. Vandhana Kiswani-Barley, announced the change in
Valholly Frank lends support for renewable energy goals Community News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - April 25, 2022April 25, 2022 Valholly Frank, center, from the Big Cypress Reservation, speaks April 21 at a news conference in Miami with Delaney Reynolds, left, and FDACS commissioner Nikki Fried. (Screenshot via Facebook) The Seminole Tribe’s Valholly Frank might be a bit soft spoken in person, but she’s been a fierce and outspoken leader in
Indigenous big band to convene for unique show Arts & Entertainment News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - April 19, 2022April 19, 2022 Keefe has been a vocalist and musician for many years. (Courtesy Julia Keefe) Jazz vocalist, actor and educator Julia Keefe (Nez Perce) has achieved something uncommon. She’s assembled an all-Indigenous, 16-piece big band for a May 19 performance at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts in Olympia, Washington. Keefe says that
Father-son team continues Osceola business legacy Community News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - April 13, 2022April 13, 2022 Gem Osceola (Courtesy photo) HOLLYWOOD – Seminole tribal members Gem and John Osceola have been busy these days. The father-son team are involved in several business ventures and said they stay inspired by the memory of family patriarch Joe Dan Osceola, who died in 2019 at 82. Joe Dan Osceola is known
Conference tackles weighty Indian Country issues Community Health News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - April 13, 2022April 14, 2022 This graphic was created by Viola Clark to represent the conference’s opening keynote titled: "Homecoming: Our Journeys and Experiences." (Courtesy NICWA) The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) held a virtual conference for a third consecutive year April 3-6. A range of Indian Country issues was presented during the three-day event.
Child abuse prevention draws extra focus in April Community News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - April 7, 2022April 7, 2022 The tribe is promoting awareness of child abuse issues in April. (Image via Facebook) The Seminole Tribe has planned a series of activities in April to bring more attention to child abuse prevention. The activities coincide with “National Child Abuse Prevention Month” which has been observed in April since 1983. From April
Book: Indigenous women are resilient through centuries News by Damon Scott - April 7, 2022April 7, 2022 The book’s cover features a barefoot Sarah Downing, a Cherokee woman photographed in 1875 in Cherokee Nation Indian Territory by photographer John K. Hillers. Author Karen Coody Cooper said Hillers “romanced the photo” a bit by adding flowers and a buckbrush basket. (Courtesy image) The matrilineal line of Indigenous cultures were
Cookbook helps Seminole Tribe’s new grads make a quick meal Community Education Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - March 28, 2022March 28, 2022 Karen Two-Shoes takes part in a cooking demonstration that was produced and recorded by Seminole Media Productions inside the Betty Mae Jumper Medical Clinic on the Hollywood Reservation. (Courtesy SMP) HOLLYWOOD – A love of cooking and an idea born out of the pandemic has resulted in a partnership among three
Kastelic on ICWA: ‘Tribes are rightly concerned’ Community News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - March 25, 2022March 25, 2022 The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear its first ICWA-related case in almost 10 years. (Image via Native Voice One) The U.S. Supreme Court announced Feb. 28 that it would hear challenges to ICWA – the Indian Child Welfare Act that governs the adoptions of Native American children. The law
Still masks, but HHS expands focus Community Health News Top News Top Story by Damon Scott - March 24, 2022March 24, 2022 HOLLYWOOD – Even though positive Covid-19 cases have recently decreased, the head of the tribe’s Health and Human Services (HHS) department, Dr. Vandhana Kiswani-Barley, said the virus and other airborne illnesses aren’t going away anytime soon – one of the reasons a mask requirement is still in place. The tribe entered