Saturday, June 6, 2015
6:00 – 10:00 pm
For the First People of Minnesota (mnisota, water that reflects the sky), the stories and the land are inseparable. To dwell in this land is to be surrounded by a sacred story-scape that is little known or understood by most present-day Minnesotans. The land presents a silent testimony to the wisdom and spirituality of its once-vibrant people, and to the modern history of their decimation. As a local Dakota Elder and historian said of the area at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers, “From Genesis to Genocide in two and a half acres.”
Come awaken to these stories, and hear them told while walking the places where they reside, accompanied by a Mohican-American, a Lakota-American, and a Euro-American.
Car caravan departs from the Carondelet Center at 6:00 pm for Cold Water Spring and Fort Snelling Park and concludes with a fire under the stars at Pilot Knob near the Medicine Wheel.
Facilitators:
A member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Nation of central Wisconsin, Jim Bear Jacobs is a cultural facilitator who works to raise the public’s awareness of American Indian causes and injustices, and founder of Healing Minnesota Stories, a group dedicated to creating events of dialogue and education between Native communities and interfaith organizations.
Bob Klanderud, of Dakota and Lakota heritage, is a volunteer with Healing Minnesota Stories who also advocates for Native Father’s groups and works with the Department of Corrections providing spiritual services for Native inmates.
Ramona Kitto Stately is an enrolled member of the Santee Sioux Nation. She has a BA in Dakota Art and Culture. She also coordinated and directed the Success for the Future Indian Education Program ISD279 Osseo Area School District since 2004. She is an artist who makes Plains style moccasins and believes that this is not only a traditional shoe covering, but a representation of the path we choose to walk in this life. “As indigenous people today, we have to walk in two worlds and be successful in both. If we use our native identity and traditional values as a foundation, we can walk forward into the future with confidence and success.” It is a healing journey for all Minnesotans.
John Marboe holds advanced degrees in mythological studies and theology but regards himself as a lifelong student of mythological and biblical reflection. An ordained ELCA minister, freelance writer, and convener of interfaith dialogues, John grounds himself by conducting funerals for persons without a church and by hauling trash for a St. Paul garbage company.
