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TOMANOWOS continued
from front page
For Archuleta, the ceremony was
very moving and she said she was
glad she made the trip.
Also attending the ceremony
was Tribal Council Secretary Jack
Giffen Jr., Tribal Council member
June Sherer, Tribal Elders Kathryn
Harrison, Patsy Pullin (Harrison's
daughter), Nancy Coleman, Arlene
Kautz and Evelyn Seidel, Tribal
members Travis Stewart and his
daughter, Sophia Morningstar
Stewart, Chris Bailey, Braden
Ebensteiner, Jeremy Lane, Kathy
Cole and her son, Tribal descendant
Zack Edwards.
Also present at the ceremony
were Esther Stewart, Travis' wife
and Sophia's mother, Tribal Public
Affairs Director Siobhan Taylor
and Seidel's sister-in-law, Jean
Nolan.
The Tribal contingent made the
trip from the West Coast to New
York City for the 12th year of the
Tribe's private ceremony, with two
years missed because of economic
reasons in 2009 and 2011.
The private ceremony was led by
Stewart, Tribal Youth Education
Culture specialist, and Harrison
gave the blessing. For Giffen, this
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Tribal member Kathy Cole, Cultural Resources Department program manager, speaks about the cultural and historic
significance of Tomanowos during the Tribe's private ceremony with the meteorite at the American Museum of Natural
History in New York City on Monday, June 1 1 .
was the third time he has partici
pated in the ceremony. He said he
., was very impressed with Stewart,
saying he is a young, spiritual lead
er and was honored to be present.
Tribal youths Ebensteiner and
Lane were chosen for this year's
Internship Program, which is a
partnership between the Tribe and
museum. They gave a brief history
of Tomanowos and the relationship
between the museum and Tribe,
and the Internship Program.
The Internship Program allows
Grand Ronde Tribal youth to work
at the museum every summer, giv
ing them an opportunity to learn
about Tomanowos and the muse
um, and experience New York City,
something that they may never get
to do without the program.
Cole, Cultural Resources Depart
ment program manager, spoke in
Chinuk Wawa, saying how happy
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The Tribal group that made the trip to New York City for the Tribe's private ceremony with Tomanowos at the American Museum of Natural History included,
from left front, Tribal Elder Kathryn Harrison; second row from left Tribal Elders Evelyn Seidel and Patsy Pullin; third row, Tribal Elder Arlene Kautz; fourth row,
Jean Nolan, Seidel's sister-in-law, and Tribal member Lisa Archuleta; right side front, Tribal member Sophia Morningstar-Stewart; second row from left, Tribal
Elder Nancy Coleman, Tribal Council member June Sherer and Tribal member Jeremy Lane; third row from left, Tribal Council Secretary Jack Giffen Jr., and Tribal
members Braden Ebensteiner and Kathy Cole; fourth row from left Tribal members Travis Stewart and Chris Bailey and Tribal descendant Zack Edwards.
she was to be attending. About
Tomanowos, she said, "It has spirit
power. I think you can feel that
still."
Cole gave more history about the
meteorite, including how the holes
in it collected water and Native
warriors dipped their arrows in the
water for good luck. Young people
would visit Tomanowos to get spirit
power or puberty rites, and other
Native peoples would go to become
healed or grow stronger.
Today, for the first time, Cole saw
Tomanowos in person. She said she
has seen pictures and heard about
it, but she said she could feel power
off it and it gave her chills.
The ceremony was then open for
Tribal members to wash Tomano
wos with rose hip water and say
and leave their prayers. Stewart,
Ebensteiner, Bailey, Tribal Youth
Education High School lead, Cole
and Edwards sang a prayer song
led by Stewart.
Bailey, who is the chaperone for
Ebensteiner and Lane, talked about
his second time seeing Tomanowos.
Referring to the meteorite as "he,"
Bailey said that "he" has taken the
Tribe places, "he's" teaching lessons
and teaching other people about
the Tribe.
Bailey said he believes that the me
teorite was meant to be moved and .
ended up in New York City for these
teachings. He said that there are
people in New York who don't realize
there are still Native Americans and
through the Internship Program,
Ebensteiner and Lane are teaching
people about not only the scientific
aspect of Tomanowos, but what "he"
means to us and where "he" came
from so that people will see that Na
tive Americans still exist.
Bailey said he's glad the interns
have the opportunity to come to
New York City and added that he
never would have come if it wasn't
for this opportunity due to Tomano
wos. After all, if Tomanowos were
not at the museum, the Internship
Program would not exist.
For Seidel, it was her first time
seeing Tomanowos and she said
that it was amazing to wash it. She
said she felt the energy and said
that Tomanowos needs to come
home to Oregon. Kautz made her
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Tribal Elders Evelyn Seidel, second from right, and Kathryn Harrison, right hold hands as a prayer song is sung
during the Tribe's private ceremony with Tomanowos at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City on
Monday, June 11.
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page to see more pHotos
second trip for the ceremony and
was glad a lot of people were able
to attend.
Harrison said she thinks it's very
important to visit Tomanowos ev
ery year to "give support, to show
not only Tomanowos, but the people
of the museum that it's ours. We lay
a claim to it every time we come and
that needs to stay."
On Tuesday, June 12, the Grand
Ronde delegation met with museum
staff at the museum for breakfast
and a behind-the-scenes tour of the
museum's anthropology collection,
where they viewed numerous Na
tive American artifacts, including
some Grand Ronde baskets.
o -
Tribal Council member June Sherer, left, and her sister. Tribal Elder Nancy Coleman, have their photo taken with
Tomanowos by Tribal Council Secretary Jack Giffen Jr. before the start of the Tribe's private ceremony with the
meteorite at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City on Monday, June 11.
Tribal members Travis Stewart,
Tribal Youth Education Culture
specialist, left and Kathy Cole,
Cultural Resources Department
program manager, take photos of
Native American artifacts during
a behind-the-scenes tour of the
American Museum of Natural
History anthropology collection
in New York City on Tuesday, June
1 2. Stewart was photographing a
carved antler that was used as a
dentalium holder from Rogue River
and Cole was taking photographs of
Grand Ronde baskets that are part
of the museum's collection.
Photos by
Michelle Alaimo
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