2023 Elders and Presenters
rupert encinas (tohono o'odham)
Rupert, Flying Eagle, comes from a long line of traditional medicine people. He grew up knowing his first language and his tribe's traditional ways. He is a spiritual leader of his tribe near Tucson, Arizona. He has led revitalization in the tribal schools through their non-profit organization, "Children First--A'al We Pek". Rupert teaches them traditional protocol, including sweat lodge ceremonies that are meant to purify and to simulate a healthy family structure. His work includes teaching tribal language and culture, and providing counseling on alcohol and drug prevention. He is a Sundancer, a Native American Church roadman, a sweat lodge ceremonial water pourer, and a traditional healer. Rupert has led indigenous wellness workshops across the United States, in Great Britan, Estonia, and other parts of Europe.
reuben iron horse-kent ( Iowa tribe of ks & ne)
Reuben's emphasis is on the Birdman" tablet discovered in 1971 that presents the 'above and below' concept which was central to Cahokia culture. Reuben explores the Cahokia Mounds as a foundation for Midwestern and Oeota descendants of the plains/prairie/woodlands peoples, their cultures, and languages. He traces the Cahokia influences to the present day artwork of the Iowa Tribe of NE Kansas and SE Nebraska.
ARNOLD CLIFFORD (DINÉ)
(Excerpt from New Mexico magazine, May 4, 2020, "Nature the Navajo Way" by Andi Murphy. Further edited for placement here.)
"Here's a story of Clifford has heard all his life. He comes, his family tells him, from seven or eight generations of Navajo ethnobotanists--people who study the traditional relationships between plants and local communities... Clifford learned much of what he knows about Navajo ethnobotany from his grandmother Sarah Charley, ... beginning when he was nine. She taught him about edible plants, plants used to make dyes, utilitarian plants, medicinal plants, ceremonial plants, plants that provide protection, and plants used in warfare."
Since graduating from San Juan College, inn Farmington with degrees in botany and geology he has spent over thirty years collecting and cataloging plants in the Carrizo Mountains. "He says, 'It's all controlled by geology...that's how I find these rare plant species.'"
"His Navajo cultural understanding, though, is his most important tool. 'I'm thinking about these plants as Holy Plant People and being reverent about my science. When you think of them that way, they reveal themselves to you.'"
"Here's a story of Clifford has heard all his life. He comes, his family tells him, from seven or eight generations of Navajo ethnobotanists--people who study the traditional relationships between plants and local communities... Clifford learned much of what he knows about Navajo ethnobotany from his grandmother Sarah Charley, ... beginning when he was nine. She taught him about edible plants, plants used to make dyes, utilitarian plants, medicinal plants, ceremonial plants, plants that provide protection, and plants used in warfare."
Since graduating from San Juan College, inn Farmington with degrees in botany and geology he has spent over thirty years collecting and cataloging plants in the Carrizo Mountains. "He says, 'It's all controlled by geology...that's how I find these rare plant species.'"
"His Navajo cultural understanding, though, is his most important tool. 'I'm thinking about these plants as Holy Plant People and being reverent about my science. When you think of them that way, they reveal themselves to you.'"
Della Romerp (Puebla/Ute)
ella Romero, Flies High, (Pueblo/Ute Nations) has participated in the Lakota Way ceremonies as a Sundancer and pipe carrier for more than 30 years. Flint Hills Wisdom Keepers got to know Della through Southern Ute Grandmother Bertha Grove. Della accompanied Gramma Bertha to Wisdom Keepers for several years as her 'helper'. Before her passing in 2009 Grandmother Bertha designated Della to pass on her teachings, especially teachings about the water, the Giver of Life. Della has been an important part of Wisdom Keepers through her service to Grandmother Bertha and since 2011 when she began attending on her own.
Della recently retired after 17 years as a Supervisor of Family Therapy with emphasis on 'Youth at Risk'. She worked with hundreds of families, including many Native families. Today, Flies High is a grandmother and founder of Tiospaye, which means the making of relatives. She is a founder with her two daughters of a transformational and leadership non-profit company, which has been a big learning experience. Della continues to learn, to grow and to teach about our Panchamoma and the Feminine Principle in harmony with the Masculine.
Della recently retired after 17 years as a Supervisor of Family Therapy with emphasis on 'Youth at Risk'. She worked with hundreds of families, including many Native families. Today, Flies High is a grandmother and founder of Tiospaye, which means the making of relatives. She is a founder with her two daughters of a transformational and leadership non-profit company, which has been a big learning experience. Della continues to learn, to grow and to teach about our Panchamoma and the Feminine Principle in harmony with the Masculine.
sue morningstar shunatona (pawnee)
Sue Morningstar Shunatona (Pawnee, Otoe, Wyndotte Nations)
Born in the city of Pawnee, Oklahoma, Sue Morningstar Shunatona was raised in Wichita, Kansas. Her grandfather on her father's side, Chief Joseph Shunatona, was the last hereditary chief of the Otoe Tribe. Her father had to decline that position due to health reasons, after which it became an elected position.
Sue has witnessed various events to know that there is more to life than the material reality most of us live in. Being raised in the city, she was led to many different teachers and pathways. Traditionally, she was trained as a water pourer in the Lakota sweat lodge, she was a Sundancer with the Lakota and the Ute Tribes, she participated in Apache ceremonies which made her a Warrior For Mother Earth by doing “A Run For the Sun”. She also studied Eastern techniques, such as martial arts, Chinese exercises,
yoga and various healing techniques. Sue’s eclectic background has enabled her to reach out to all the peoples of the sacred wheel of life on Mother Earth.
She attended this annual gathering in Kansas as a participant during its early 21st century years and was acknowledged by those Native Elders for her vast support and practice of her Native heritage. Sue Morningstar Shunatona is happy to be a presenter at the 2023 Flint Hills Wisdom Keepers Gathering to share her knowledge and experience with an open heart and mind.
Born in the city of Pawnee, Oklahoma, Sue Morningstar Shunatona was raised in Wichita, Kansas. Her grandfather on her father's side, Chief Joseph Shunatona, was the last hereditary chief of the Otoe Tribe. Her father had to decline that position due to health reasons, after which it became an elected position.
Sue has witnessed various events to know that there is more to life than the material reality most of us live in. Being raised in the city, she was led to many different teachers and pathways. Traditionally, she was trained as a water pourer in the Lakota sweat lodge, she was a Sundancer with the Lakota and the Ute Tribes, she participated in Apache ceremonies which made her a Warrior For Mother Earth by doing “A Run For the Sun”. She also studied Eastern techniques, such as martial arts, Chinese exercises,
yoga and various healing techniques. Sue’s eclectic background has enabled her to reach out to all the peoples of the sacred wheel of life on Mother Earth.
She attended this annual gathering in Kansas as a participant during its early 21st century years and was acknowledged by those Native Elders for her vast support and practice of her Native heritage. Sue Morningstar Shunatona is happy to be a presenter at the 2023 Flint Hills Wisdom Keepers Gathering to share her knowledge and experience with an open heart and mind.
eugene joe (DINÉ)
chiffon lark (white mountain apache/coahuiltecan)
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Chiffon Lark (b.1989) is a California Native, who grew up in the Central Valley. Both her parents are of Indigenous descent, her father is White Mountain Apache (b.1965 Texas) and her mother (b.1968 Arizona) is Mescalero/Lipan Apache and Coahuiltecan descent.
Chiffon’s maternal Great-Grandmother (b.1919 Texas), was a member of the Lipan Apache Band, who are not a federally recognized tribe (as of 2009 are now recognized by the State of Texas as an Indigenous Tribe). She worked as a ‘migrant’ field worker who picked cotton in Texas and grapes in California. Chiffon’s Great-Grandfather was a peyotero, or medicine person, who was consistently in and out of jail for holding ceremonies before the The American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978 (AIRFA). He found work in the 1940’s bringing indigenous peoples from Mexico into Texas illegally as a “Coyote”. While Chiffon’s father is estranged now, she recalls him as a gifted Storyteller. Her physical features bear close resemblance to him and she carries pride in her dark hair and skin she’s inherited. Her mother, and maternal Grandmother (b.1946 Texas), raised Chiffon and taught her the ways of SacredEarth. Being especially close with her Grandmother, Chiffon was raised to know how to grow food from the land. She learned how to use plants and other species to cultivate physical healing through indigenous food preparation. She empathetically developed relationships with the plants and livestock her family grew. Her Grandmother encouraged her to continue this and eventually taught Chiffon how to rely on her Dreams and prayer for guidance. Chiffon graduated from San Diego State University with a BA in Fine Arts/Studio Arts and received her MBA from the University of Notre Dame Mendoza College of Business. She is a full time Artist/illustrator who specializes in Alcohol Ink Illustrations of Wildlife. Her volunteer work involves being a Field Tech. for the SDZG Wildlife Alliance and she is passionate about helping recovering addicts in her community by sponsorship and emotional support. |
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Council Grove Elders — Since 2002
Mike Bastine (Algonquin)
Debra Bolton (Ute/OhKay O’Wingeh/Diné)
ARTHUR SHORT BULL (OGLALA LAKOTA)
JAY AND TERESA CLAUSE (TUSCARoRA)
ARNOLD CLIFFORD (DINÉ)
TERRI DELAHANTY (CREE/OJIBWe)
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Flies with Bees Woman serves the FHWK Foundation Board of Directors as a consultant on Native issues. She is a presenter, has served as Mistress of Ceremonies, and teaches the Sacred Drum Workshop at the Gathering.
Terri holds her Native heritage in high esteem. She practices her traditions and Native Ceremonies and carries the women’s ways. She received the rights from elders to pour sweat lodge and has poured lodges for the past 20 years. She Sundanced for 11 years. Her Spirit journey is returning knowledge about the Sacred Feminine and Sacred Masculine that had been lost to the community. She leads workshops on creating personal Sacred Drums and Rattles as well as Spiritual workshops. Terri sits on the Board of Trustees at the Institute of American Indian Studies in Washington Depot, Connecticut. She is on the steering committee for creating a Commission on American Indian Affairs. She is a founding member of Women In the Spirit (WitS) and serves on the board. She facilitates workshops on “Meeting Death" at the Wisdom House Retreat Center. As an ordained minister she enjoys facilitating marriages, baby blessings, and funeral services. Always following her Native Traditions brings a richness of Spirit into her professional life. She has worked in an educational setting since 1991 with a focus on Multicultural Education for all students. Terri served as Secretary on the State Board for Multicultural Education and on the board for the annual New England Conference for Multicultural Education for 8 years. She is certified Level 2 in Braille. She is a Certified Parent Educator, Supervisor Level through the National Parents as Teachers organization. She is Director for Greater Hartford Even Start, a Family Literacy Program, and the Family Engagement Specialist at the University of Hartford Magnet School. |
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Grace Elm (Cree)
Rupert Encinas (Tohono O’odham)
Minisa Crumbo Halsey (Citizen Band Potawatomi/Muscogee Creek)
William Hensley (Alaskan Inupiaq)
Eugene B. Joe (Diné)
DANIEL WILDCAT (YUCHI MEMBER OF THE MUSCOGEE NATION)
RITA LONG VISITOR HOLY DANCE (OGLALA LAKOTA) --ACCOMPANIED BY HER SON, NATHAN BLINDMAN
NANCY LONGWALKER (TSALAGI)
SADIE MANN (MANDAN)
SHELDON P. WOLFCHILD (DAKOTA)
THE JAMES & ELANA NELLS FAMILY (DINÉ/ARAPAHO/CHEYENNE)
CARMAN RAMOS (TAINO)
DELLA ROMERO (PUEBLA/UTE)
Della Romero, Flies High, (Pueblo/Ute Nations) has participated in the Lakota Way ceremonies as a Sundancer and pipe carrier for more than 30 years. Flint Hills Wisdom Keepers got to know Della through Southern Ute Grandmother Bertha Grove. Della accompanied Gramma Bertha to Wisdom Keepers for several years as her 'helper'. Before her passing in 2009 Grandmother Bertha designated Della to pass on her teachings, especially teachings about the water, the Giver of Life. Della has been an important part of Wisdom Keepers through her service to Grandmother Bertha and since 2011 when she began attending on her own.
Della recently retired after 17 years as a Supervisor of Family Therapy with emphasis on 'Youth at Risk'. She worked with hundreds of families, including many Native families. Today, Flies High is a grandmother and founder of Tiospaye, which means the making of relatives. She is a founder with her two daughters of a transformational and leadership non-profit company, which has been a big learning experience. Della continues to learn, to grow and to teach about our Panchamoma and the Feminine Principle in harmony with the Masculine.
Della recently retired after 17 years as a Supervisor of Family Therapy with emphasis on 'Youth at Risk'. She worked with hundreds of families, including many Native families. Today, Flies High is a grandmother and founder of Tiospaye, which means the making of relatives. She is a founder with her two daughters of a transformational and leadership non-profit company, which has been a big learning experience. Della continues to learn, to grow and to teach about our Panchamoma and the Feminine Principle in harmony with the Masculine.
Elders Who Have Passed
Grandmother Bertha Grove, Red Earth Woman (Southern Ute)
Bertha Marie Burch Grove was born to Samuel Burch and Clara Cloud Burch May 27, 1923, in Ignacio, Colorado. She worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Pino Nuche Restaurant and served on various tribal committees. She enjoyed traveling and had toured Korea, Australia and other parts of the world. She was the first Southern Ute Tribal Royalty. She participated in horse racing, Sun Dance, pow-wows and other Native American dance cultures. She was a member of the Native American Church. She raised numerous children in addition to her sons, nieces and nephews.
She was involved in community affairs and also found time to educated the general public about Native American traditions and issues of sovereignty and Native rights.
She was tireless in her work for the welfare of her Southern Ute people and all people, and Mother Earth.
Grandmother Bertha had a dazzling way of expressing what she knew people ought to be doing, how we ought to be treating each other and the world.
She would begin her talk at White Memorial Camp in the morning by greeting the group, “Good Morning. I thank Creator for a good night’s sleep last night. I’m all refreshed, so I thank Creator. I hope you had a good night’s sleep last night so you could get up this morning refreshed and join us.
Then she would launch into her teaching.
Today I’m gonna tell you about the giveaway.
You know that air that you breathe? Take a deep breath. That air that you need and that you breathe all day long, that’s a gift. You can’t make the air. You don’t know how to get it. It’s just there for you all day long, every day. That air is a gift.
Why can’t you learn to give away?
Water. That water that you drink when you’re thirsty. That water that you need every day is there for you. You can’t make it. It’s a gift. You and all the plants and animals need that water to live. And it is there for you every day.
Why can’t you learn to give away?
What about all that food that you eat two, three, maybe more times every day. That food is a gift from the plants and animals, and it all comes from Creator. You can’t make it. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, maybe a snack, all gifts.
Why can’t you learn to give away?
So when you see the gifts of air to breathe, water to drink, and all the food you eat so you can live a good life, maybe you can see something that you can do to help someone else out. Give back something to help Creator out. All those gifts showered on you, you can give your neighbor a ride to the grocery or take ‘em a casserole when they’re sick. And do things so that nobody knows who did it. Give back to the degree that you’ve been given all that you need to live a good life. That’s the giveaway.
She was involved in community affairs and also found time to educated the general public about Native American traditions and issues of sovereignty and Native rights.
She was tireless in her work for the welfare of her Southern Ute people and all people, and Mother Earth.
Grandmother Bertha had a dazzling way of expressing what she knew people ought to be doing, how we ought to be treating each other and the world.
She would begin her talk at White Memorial Camp in the morning by greeting the group, “Good Morning. I thank Creator for a good night’s sleep last night. I’m all refreshed, so I thank Creator. I hope you had a good night’s sleep last night so you could get up this morning refreshed and join us.
Then she would launch into her teaching.
Today I’m gonna tell you about the giveaway.
You know that air that you breathe? Take a deep breath. That air that you need and that you breathe all day long, that’s a gift. You can’t make the air. You don’t know how to get it. It’s just there for you all day long, every day. That air is a gift.
Why can’t you learn to give away?
Water. That water that you drink when you’re thirsty. That water that you need every day is there for you. You can’t make it. It’s a gift. You and all the plants and animals need that water to live. And it is there for you every day.
Why can’t you learn to give away?
What about all that food that you eat two, three, maybe more times every day. That food is a gift from the plants and animals, and it all comes from Creator. You can’t make it. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, maybe a snack, all gifts.
Why can’t you learn to give away?
So when you see the gifts of air to breathe, water to drink, and all the food you eat so you can live a good life, maybe you can see something that you can do to help someone else out. Give back something to help Creator out. All those gifts showered on you, you can give your neighbor a ride to the grocery or take ‘em a casserole when they’re sick. And do things so that nobody knows who did it. Give back to the degree that you’ve been given all that you need to live a good life. That’s the giveaway.
Bear Heart, (Muskogee Creek/Citizen Band Potawatomi)
Wallace "Mad Bear" Anderson (Tuscarora)
Grandfather Ted Williams (Tuscarora)
Grandfather Lloyd Elm "New House" (Onondaga)
Grandmother Sarah Smith (Mohawk)
Jake Swamp (Mohawk)
grandmother DONNA JOSEPH (LAKOTA)
grandfather ALDEN NARANJO (SOUTHERN UTE)
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Alden Naranjo began accompanying his mother, Grandmother Bertha Grove, Southern Ute, to the Wisdom Keepers Gathering in 2002. He came with her every year that she attended, and he began speaking as part of the forum. When Grandmother Bertha passed, Alden continued her generous work of teaching the essence of Southern Ute culture. Alden also continued his mother’s tradition of challenging people by asking difficult questions like, “What are you people doing with what we Native people are telling you?” Or “Do you want to get out of kindergarten? You can’t know what we’re talking about unless you do some ceremonies with us.” Grandmother Bertha and her son Alden became an enduring part of the Wisdom Keepers tradition of making the teachings of elders available to all who want to learn.
Alden is a prominent leader on the Southern Ute Reservation and recently retired after 20 years of service as the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) Coordinator for the tribe. During his total of 40 years service to the tribe he also worked 16 years as a police officer, spent two years working for the Division of Wildlife and two years as a probation officer. The information in this paragraph is from an article by reporter Sacha Smith in the Southern Ute Drum. Read more about the retirement party here. Alden is revered by his tribe for his devotion to language preservation, to helping to create the Southern Ute Cultural Center, to being a Roadman for the Native American Church, and to mentoring youth regarding the Ute language, traditions and ceremonies. He is a repository of cultural knowledge and wisdom that his tribe will continue to rely upon. Alden and another tribal member provide commentary for the Rocky Mountain PBS film titled “The Wickiup Investigation.” Part of a series of films called The Colorado Experience, this film beautifully illustrates the complex interactions of archaeologists and Southern Ute tribal members as they encounter the very different approaches each group takes toward land and the human interaction with that land. |
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grandfather CURTIS KEKAHBAH (KANZA/KAW)
Julia Brownwolf (Lakota)
