BIG CYPRESS — For nearly 700 students from cities and towns that surround the Big Cypress Reservation, hours at the Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum’s 18th annual American Indian Arts Celebration equaled one awesome out-of-classroom adventure. "The culture, the alligators, the dancing, the crafts, the clothing – it was a really great and fun

I was 17 years old when I first considered working for the Seminole Tribe of Florida. Linda Iley, the Tribe’s Higher Education adviser at the time, had planted the seed during one of our many telephone conversations before I started college in 2007. She pitched the idea of working for

BRIGHTON — Traci Mendez’s eighth-grade reading class at Pemayetv Emahakv Charter School recently learned how much magazines, letters and snacks mean to troops serving overseas when Gina Buhlmaier visited Nov. 13 to tell them about Loving Our Heroes. Buhlmaier founded the nonprofit organization several months after her son Kory was deployed

Across reservations, in keeping with the Red Ribbon mission, communities gathered to present a unified and visible commitment to a drug-free future. From color runs, poster contests, marches against drugs, pledges and promises, the Seminole Tribe stood strong against drugs and celebrated the week’s theme, "Respect Yourself, Be Drug Free." The Red

HOLLYWOOD — Hollywood Police Explorers became paramedics and detectives for an evening as they learned how to check for vital signs and uncover important clues at crime scenes. Seminole Fire Rescue and Police departments teamed up Nov. 17 to offer Explorers hands-on experience in their areas of expertise. Paramedics brought equipment so

BRIGHTON — The room was like any other day care center; babies sat on caregivers’ laps and clapped along to the "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and the "ABCs." But what made this room special was language. Everything from the cartoons to the conversation was in Creek. The sign on the door to

When children are raised to respect fire as a daily and necessary part of life, teaching them about the dangers of flames can be tricky, according to the Seminole Tribe Fire Rescue Department. "Herbert Jim once called us ‘the fire keepers,’" said Fire Marshal Robert Brown. "So during National Fire Prevention

BRIGHTON — As a recent automotive graduate of Universal Technical Institute (UTI) in Orlando, Reese Bert Jr. feels like a kid playing with Legos again. "It’s fun to put things together and know you did it right," said Bert, 21, who graduated Sept. 4. Bert wasn’t always interested in cars, but he

  HOLLYWOOD — The Hollywood Boys & Girls Club kitchens were transformed into competitive arenas recently as teens worked to outdo each other in a pair of after-school cook-offs. At stake were bragging rights and popsicles; winners got the glory while losers had cleanup duty. The good-natured contests were designed to build camaraderie