AN URGENT MESSAGE FROM TOM PORTER
Dear Friend and Supporter of Kanatsiohareke:
I hope this letter finds you in good health and spirits. I am writing to you today to express my gratitude for all of your support and friendship over the years. But I am also writing –with some reluctance-- to ask for your help. For over two decades, the Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community has been my home. It is the place to which I return in between times of helping with ceremonies and working in our communities to maintain our language and traditional teachings for our future generations. Kanatsiohareke has also served many of you as a place of communal gathering, cultural learning, and language revitalization, as well as a place of ceremony, rest, and rejuvenation. It is a place that we all cherish, despite the numerous infrastructural issues and setbacks that have accumulated over the years.
Unfortunately, the existing infrastructural issues at Kanatsiohareke have accumulated to a point that we can no longer put off addressing them. The Kanatsiohareke Community needs to act quickly to address two of the most urgent of these issues: our water and septic systems. Over a century old, the spring water system in the community is now in such dire need of repair that we have been advised not to use the water that flows in abundance through our community. We have, instead, been forced to spend thousands of dollars a year purchasing bottled water that is trucked in from distant lands. Similarly, our septic system, which has never been fully operational, has recently shut down completely, requiring costly repairs to prevent sewage from backing up into the facilities. If Kanatsiohareke is to survive and thrive into the future, we will need to begin repairs and upgrades on these systems right away, and we are looking to raise $40,000 by mid-October of this year, as well as some additional funds there after.
Water is Life. We each have a responsibility to protect and care for the water sources around us. Because of the gravity of this responsibility and the accumulated weight of our struggle, we are asking that you support our efforts and share with us in upholding our collective responsibilities. Your tax-deductible donation in support of the Kanatsiohareke Clean Water Project will help us to do this, and it will allow us to build a more sustainable, flourishing community for the future generations.
Niawenko:wa tahnon skennenhatie,
Sakokwenionkwas Thomas Porter and the Kanatsiohareke Board of Directors
Donations can be made by check, cash (in person only), or credit/debit card.
By check, please make checks out to Kanatsiohareke and mail them to: PO Box 714, Fonda, NY 12068.
Cash donation in person, please come visit us at: 4934 State Highway 5, Fonda, NY 12068.
Credit or debit card,* please go to our online fundraiser at: https://www.youcaring.com/kanatsiohareke-891992
* To avoid giving additional funds to YouCaring.com, follow the link next to your donation amount (listed as "recommended"), and edit the amount you are giving.
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EVENTS:
“Bumping Hips: A History of Lacrosse”, September 2 through October 28, Vestal Museum, 328 Vestal Parkway East, Vestal, NY. Saturday, Sept. 16, 1 p.m, Alfred Jacques, the Onondaga traditional stick maker, will speak. A lacrosse stick created by him for the museum will be on display throughout the exhibit. Anthony Gonyea and Wendy Gonyea of the Onondaga Nation will be speaking at 2 and 3 p.m on Sept. 16th.
International Iroquois Beadwork Conference, Friday-Sunday, Sept. 15-17, Ganondagan State Seneca Art & Culture Center. There are a few late registration slots available for $150. Questions? Please visit the webpage: www.otsiningo.com/iibc2017/iibc-home.html
Gifts of the Haudenosaunee: Living History Event, Saturday, Sept. 23, 10 am-4 pm, Ganondagan State Historical Site. Immerse yourself in the rich Haudenosaunee culture, heritage, and traditions through story telling and traditional & contemporary arts at our 2017 Living History event. Admission is $8/adults; $5/members, seniors and students; free for kids 5 and younger. Admission includes the Seneca Art & Culture Center exhibits & film, Gift Shop, tours of the Bark Longhouse and trails. A day not to be missed!
Read more here!
Moose Hair Tufting with Bonnie Bowen, Sept. 23, 10 AM-4PM, Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community, 4934 State Highway 5, Fonda, NY 12068. Come learn this ancient art form used by Indigenous peoples in the northern climates to decorate their clothes and other items with hair from moose, elk, and/or caribou. Though this art form was almost completely lost in the 1900s due to colonization, over the last 30 years it has made a comeback. Come be a part of that comeback. Tuition of $125 includes: a kit with all necessary tufting supplies and preparation materials; a tufting book with “how to” pictures; hands-on experience and instruction; and coffee, tea, morning snacks and a home-cooked lunch.
Haudenosaunee Women’s Traditional Roles with Wendy Hill, Sept. 30, 10 AM-4PM, Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community, 4934 State Highway 5, Fonda, NY 12068. Spend the day with Wendy Hill as she talks about Haudenosaunee Women’s traditional roles from birth to death, including ceremonies, moon time, daily life and the importance of self-care/healing. Tuition of $25 includes lecture, home cooked lunch, as well as coffee, tea and morning snacks.
Making a Traditional Mohawk Wedding Basket with Richard Nolan, Oct. 7 &8, 10 AM-4PM, Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community, 4934 State Highway 5, Fonda, NY 12068. Participants will spend two days making and then taking home a traditional Mohawk Wedding Basket (8” x 5.25” x 6”), while learning about Haudenosaunee wedding traditions and about various basket making principles and strategies. Baskets can be used for a variety of purposes. Space for 12-16 students. Tuition: $175, includes two days of instruction, materials, 2 lunches, and one breakfast.
Seneca Cornbread Wheels, Saturday/Sunday, October 7 & 8, 10 am - 2 pm, Ganondagan State Historical Site. Follow New York State's "Path Through History" right to Ganondagan! See how traditional corn bread is made in the Bark Longhouse with Belinda Patterson (Tuscarora), and then taste a free sample for yourself! Free with admission to the Seneca Art & Culture Center.
Seneca Bark Longhouse At Ganondagan State Historical Site Is Open now through October 31. You can further your understanding of the Seneca and Haudenosaunee - and their message of peace - from a comprehensive cultural, historical, and environmental perspective. Tour the full-size replica of the 17th-century Seneca Bark Longhouse, walk miles of self-guided trails, climb the mesa where a huge palisaded granary stored thousands of bushels of corn and then visit the Seneca Art & Culture Center.
Walking the Steel: From Girder to Ground Zero Exhibit, April 1 - November 30, 2017, Iroquois Indian Museum, Howes Cave, NY. Artwork, artifacts, photographs, and audio recollections interprets the long-standing cultural and occupational tradition of iron working and its prominent role in Iroquois communities. Also explores the response to 9-11 by these individuals who had no national obligation to aid in the recovery but selflessly did (in some cases at immense personal cost), and concludes with the Haudenosaunee role in raising the 758-ton spire for the Freedom Tower at One World Trade Center in May 2013.
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MONTHLY:
NOON Steering Committee Open Meeting, Tuesday, September 12, 7-8:30 pm, Syracuse Peace Council, 2013 East Genesee St, Syracuse, NY. Since new people often have a lot of questions, we recommend talking with Carol Baum, Syracuse Peace Council Staff (3154725478, carol@peacecouncil.net) or Sue Eiholzer, NOON Volunteer (3154922684, rsue@twcny.rr.com) before the meeting.
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FYI:
ONONDAGA NATION SCHOOL
Onondaga Nation parents walk students back to school – Syracuse Post Standard with great pictures.
Compromise Reached in Boycott of Native American School – Resolution outcome was covered by the New York Times.
Indigenous bishop slams the “doctrine of discovery”
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NOON RESOURCES:
WITNESS TO INJUSTICE: UNRAVELING HISTORIC NATIVE & U.S. RELATIONS This inter-active group exercise is a 1 ½ hour teaching tool that uses participatory education to raise awareness of the history of the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples in the part of the world now known as the United States. Through the use of meaningful quotes, and blankets that represent part of Turtle Island (the Western Hemisphere), we explore this shared history that most people rarely learn in traditional settings. We engage in a conversation about the European colonization of Turtle Island in order to deepen our understanding of the denial of Indigenous peoples' nationhood throughout U.S. History. NOON is offering this exercise to groups, organizations, schools and churches. A good will offering to support NOON's work is appreciated If you would like additional information or to schedule a time for a presentation, please contact Sue Eiholzer at 315-492-2684 or rsue@twcny.rr.com.
The Doctrine of Discovery: Unmasking the Domination Code film is premised on Pagans in the Promised Land: Decoding the Doctrine of Christian Discovery, a book based on two decades of research by Shawnee, Lenape scholar Steven T. Newcomb. Available to borrow. Contact Carol Baum at 315-472-5478 or carol@peacecouncil.net
Standing on Sacred Ground Videos. Each of the 4 episodes is 60 min. Pilgrims and Tourists, Profit and Loss, Fire and Ice and Islands of Sanctuary. If you have a group of friends or know an organization that would like to view any of these films, please contact Carol Baum at 3154725478 or carol@peacecouncil.net
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SAVE THE DATE:
Making a Plains Courting Flute with Eric Marczak, Oct. 14 & 15, 10 AM-4PM, Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community, 4934 State Highway 5, Fonda, NY 12068. Learn about the history of flutes while being guided through the process of making a 21-inch Plains-Style G Minor Flute with craftsman and musician Eric Marczak. Completed flutes retail for around $175-$200. Workshop Tuition of $175 includes coffee, tea, morning snacks and a home cooked lunch both days. Space is limited (Max 6 students)!
Symposium on Woodland Indian Art & Material Culture, Friday-Saturday, October 20-21, Ganondagan State Historical Site. Join national and international guest speakers to better learn and understand woodland Indian art and material culture, both from an historic context and as a modern cultural tradition. Early-bird admission is $80 through Sept. 30, and $100 thereafter. Event takes place Friday evening and Saturday. Registration includes continental breakfast and lunch on Saturday. To register, please email info@ganondagan.org or call (585) 742-1690. We can only take 140 registrants, so register now!
Family Harvest Festival with Kay Olan, Amanda Tarbell and the Akwesasne Women’s Singers, November 4, 10 AM-4PM, Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community, 4934 State Highway 5, Fonda, NY 12068. Join Amanda Tarbell in learning about and making traditional Haudenosaunee Corn Husk dolls in the morning, then spend an afternoon of song, storytelling, and social dancing with the Akwesasne Women’s Singers and storyteller Kay Olan. Attendees will be treated to hours of entertainment and invited to try their new dance skills. Admission: $5 for adults, $3 seniors/ children under 12. Children 5 and under are free. Light refreshments and lunch provided for low cost.
Winterization Workday, Volunteer Appreciation Dinner & Film Screening, November 11, all day, Kanatsiohareke Mohawk Community, 4934 State Highway 5, Fonda, NY 12068. Gwendoln Cates will discuss her film, “The Good Mind”, after the screening. Bring a dish to share or just yourself.
You can access past NOON E-Newsletters.
