July 2011
Bozho, Jayek -
Like everyone else who attended the Family Festival, I was very impressed with the Nation’s major expansion currently taking place. Improvements include a spacious, state-of-the art healthcare clinic located behind the FireLake Grand Casino, an almost finished arena/events center which will house equestrian events, concerts and RV shows and the newly opened Firelake Bowling Center.
I can honestly say that this is the very best bowling and entertainment facility I have ever been in. It boasts a twenty- four lane bowling area with electronic score keeping and all new Brunswick bowling equipment. Tracy Peltier, FireLake Resort’s General Manager, took me on a quick tour behind the scenes of the lanes – very impressive. There is also a Subway sandwich shop, a bar, and an arcade for the kids complete with comfy couches with a view of the bowling lanes. There is a pizza restaurant under construction that will compliment the facility nicely and feed into the birthday party rooms off the arcade. It is easy to see that the tribe has made a good investment with this new facility.
Besides the infrastructure that impressed, I was heartened to see the number of Potawatomi from outside the state of Oklahoma. Mrs. Capps, our Vice Chairman, stated that she believed for the first time ever, non-Oklahomans outnumbered locals. I was especially proud to see our district so well represented.
District 8 fielded a good looking hand games team with matching shirts with the tribal seal in front and “District 8 Hand Games Team –Gshinenjen - Fast Hands” on the back. While temperatures were around 100 degrees, our team made up of Brett and Joy Brinton, Bill Brinton, Ginger Blackmon, Susie Gretler and Jan Nestler (and a young man I recruited from the crowd) looked cool. We won our first round of hand games, but were defeated by the Potawatomi Leadership Program (PLP) team.
It was a particularly great festival for Ginger Blackmon of Anchorage Alaska. Ginger won the archery contest with her compound bow AND took the prize for the “farthest traveled” at the general counsel meeting.
A few personal notes: I’d like to say that I was very proud of my niece, Susanna Bassapa, who was participating in the PLP program. She just completed high school in Tampa and will be attending the University of San Francisco this fall. My children enjoyed spending time with Susanna, their East Coast cousin (not to mention District 2 Legislator (Aunt) Eva Marie Carney. I was also proud of my son, Nick (16) who joined Legislator Theresa Adame on a pick up team for the volleyball tournament Sunday afternoon.
I am currently gathering supplies and working on names for events in Missoula, Montana and Washougal, Washington. By the time this issue of the HowNikan arrives in your home, these major District 8 activities of the summer will be history and I will be planning a Fall Feast event at the district office in Olympia. I am open to suggestions, but am tentatively planning on some needle basket making and showing some founding family DVDs while sharing a potluck lunch.
As always, please feel free to contact me if I can be of assistance.
Migwetch,
Dave Carney/Kagashi
District 8 Representative
www.dave-carney.com
dcarney@potawatomi.org
360.259.04027
877.335.4395
Bozho, Jayek -
Like everyone else who attended the Family Festival, I was very impressed with the Nation’s major expansion currently taking place. Improvements include a spacious, state-of-the art healthcare clinic located behind the FireLake Grand Casino, an almost finished arena/events center which will house equestrian events, concerts and RV shows and the newly opened Firelake Bowling Center.
I can honestly say that this is the very best bowling and entertainment facility I have ever been in. It boasts a twenty- four lane bowling area with electronic score keeping and all new Brunswick bowling equipment. Tracy Peltier, FireLake Resort’s General Manager, took me on a quick tour behind the scenes of the lanes – very impressive. There is also a Subway sandwich shop, a bar, and an arcade for the kids complete with comfy couches with a view of the bowling lanes. There is a pizza restaurant under construction that will compliment the facility nicely and feed into the birthday party rooms off the arcade. It is easy to see that the tribe has made a good investment with this new facility.
Besides the infrastructure that impressed, I was heartened to see the number of Potawatomi from outside the state of Oklahoma. Mrs. Capps, our Vice Chairman, stated that she believed for the first time ever, non-Oklahomans outnumbered locals. I was especially proud to see our district so well represented.
District 8 fielded a good looking hand games team with matching shirts with the tribal seal in front and “District 8 Hand Games Team –Gshinenjen - Fast Hands” on the back. While temperatures were around 100 degrees, our team made up of Brett and Joy Brinton, Bill Brinton, Ginger Blackmon, Susie Gretler and Jan Nestler (and a young man I recruited from the crowd) looked cool. We won our first round of hand games, but were defeated by the Potawatomi Leadership Program (PLP) team.
It was a particularly great festival for Ginger Blackmon of Anchorage Alaska. Ginger won the archery contest with her compound bow AND took the prize for the “farthest traveled” at the general counsel meeting.
A few personal notes: I’d like to say that I was very proud of my niece, Susanna Bassapa, who was participating in the PLP program. She just completed high school in Tampa and will be attending the University of San Francisco this fall. My children enjoyed spending time with Susanna, their East Coast cousin (not to mention District 2 Legislator (Aunt) Eva Marie Carney. I was also proud of my son, Nick (16) who joined Legislator Theresa Adame on a pick up team for the volleyball tournament Sunday afternoon.
I am currently gathering supplies and working on names for events in Missoula, Montana and Washougal, Washington. By the time this issue of the HowNikan arrives in your home, these major District 8 activities of the summer will be history and I will be planning a Fall Feast event at the district office in Olympia. I am open to suggestions, but am tentatively planning on some needle basket making and showing some founding family DVDs while sharing a potluck lunch.
As always, please feel free to contact me if I can be of assistance.
Migwetch,
Dave Carney/Kagashi
District 8 Representative
www.dave-carney.com
dcarney@potawatomi.org
360.259.04027
877.335.4395