Last week, I had the pleasure of attending the National Congress of American Indian (NCAI) Mid Year Conference in St. Paul, MN. Bryan Schuler, vice president for housing development, and I caught up with friends and clients and spoke with many new people about potential development opportunities.
We also heard wonderful stories from attendees about what #20YearsEquals to them. We’ll be posting them on our anniversary page soon. Check it out to see who has contributed so far!
In addition to meeting representatives from tribes, tribal organizations and nonprofits that work in Indian Country, I met Sylvia Nelson of Nizhoni Trading. She is a jewelry maker and Native entrepreneur who travels around to tradeshows in Indian Country and sells her beautiful, handmade jewelry.
Sylvia explained to me that she makes some of her jewelry from Juniper berry seeds. Before she starts a new project, she travels to areas that have Juniper trees and collects seeds that have fallen to the ground. She said that many of the trees grow near the Grand Canyon.
Sylvia told me that bracelets or necklaces made with Tsi’dze (Juniper berry seeds) were traditionally used by Dine’ mothers who placed the jewelry on their babies to protect them from illnesses, bad dreams or evil spirits. Adults also wear them for protection.
Check out Sylvia’s beautiful jewelry in the gallery below and email her at nizhonitrading@yahoo.com to see where she’s traveling next.
In addition to NCAI’s sessions and the marketplace, the conference included fun activities like a welcome reception hosted by the law firm Hogen Adams, and it featured food by Chef Sean Sherman (Oglala Lakota), the Sioux Chef. Chef Sherman cooks modern and traditional Native American cuisine. Bryan and I sampled each of his appetizers, and they were all delicious!
Through his Sioux Chef business, Chef Sherman caters and leads food education courses, and he is also opening a food truck called Tatanka Truck in the next few weeks. Residents and visitors of the Twin Cities — keep an eye out for him in your area — and follow Tatanka Truck on Facebook and Twitter to find out where the food truck will be. We wish Chef Sherman much success on his new business!
At two evening receptions at the Crowne Plaza in St. Paul, we were treated to musical performances by the Big ‘N Tasty blues band and A Tribe Called Red and a live painting performance by artist Bunky Echo Hawk. I have read a lot about these artists, and it was truly a wonderful experience to see them in person!
We congratulate NCAI on a successful conference and appreciated the opportunity to attend and make new connections!
Did you go to the NCAI Mid Year Conference? If so, what was your favorite part?
The “A Tribe Called Red” along with “Bunky Echo Hawk” was very creative! The music was so contemporary, yet intertwined with video of traditional dancers, it made me very proud of our young people sharing their passion for Art and Music. Watching the Artist “Bunky Echo Hawk” was equally amazing as his art was brought to life before my very eyes! Very entertaining, and can’t forget “Back to the Future’s” Marty, cruizin’ cross da screen! Great Time. Mii Gwetch!
Hi, Jackie – Thank you for reading and for adding your thoughtful comments! It was an entertaining evening!