Commissioner's News

Commissioner Stamps Visits ANA Projects in South Dakota and Minnesota

Commissioner Stamps traveled to Rapid City, SD and Minneapolis, MN April 24 - 28, 2006 to visit The Lakota Fund, the Alliance of Tribal Tourism Advocates (ATTA) and the Minneapolis Indian Center. Unfortunately the Commissioner was unable to travel to The Lakota Fund in Kyle, SD due to bad weather; however she was able to meet with the Executive Director, Dr. Dowell Caselli-Smith in Rapid City during her visit. ANA funding is enabling The Lakota Fund to develop new loan products, appoint an expanded loan committee to approve and monitor business loans, appoint an investment committee, and develop comprehensive investment policies and procedures. The grantee has completed grant activities as scheduled and is progressing well.

Commissioner Stamps was warmly welcomed by the innovative and visionary ATTA Executive Director, Daphne Richards-Cook, as well as numerous ATTA community partners. The Alliance of Tribal Tourism Advocates' project will provide tribally driven travel and cultural/heritage packages to local, national and international tourists. ATTA has developed 50 partnerships and has leveraged over $22 million. ANA funding will enable the Tribal consortium to develop a market presence in Rapid City ensuring short and long term profitability, growth and success. It is evident that ATTA will change the face of tourism in the Dakotas.

The Commissioner toured the Minneapolis Indian Center with George McCauley and Paul Minehart during the annual Health Fair. After the tour, the Commissioner met with Executive Director, Frances Fairbanks, and enthusiastic staff members to discuss the progression of their ANA project to develop and implement a QUICWA Case Management System. The impressive web-based database was very well designed. Currently, the Minneapolis Indian Center is implementing a 2 year compliance study with cases from North and South Dakota.

Commissioner Stamps Visits ANA Projects in Oklahoma

Commissioner Stamps traveled to Oklahoma March 28, 2006 to visit ANA projects at the Cherokee Nation, the Pawnee Nation and the National Indian Women's Health Resource Center. During her visit to the Cherokee language immersion program she stated, “I continue to be impressed by this project and often cite it as an exemplary language program.” A tour of the language classrooms showcased enthusiasm from students and their instructors as they sang, conversed and completed math problems in Cherokee. During the visit, the Commissioner met with Dusty Delso, Senior Director of Curriculum, Gloria Sly, Project Director, and Margaret Raymond, Language Coordinator, regarding challenges and strengths of the project and suggestions for the ANA language program.

Arranged by Cherokee Chief Chad Smith, Commissioner Stamps had the opportunity to visit the community multi-purpose building at Dry Creek, one of the Community Self Help Projects. The building was designed and built by the Dry Creek community. The Community Self Help Program staff provided technical assistance and organized the delivery of the materials while the community provided the labor.

The Commissioner met the National Indian Women's Health Resource Center (NIWHRC) staff at Sequoyah High School to observe a “gender role” curriculum demonstration from their Healthy Relationship Skills for Youth program. After the demonstration, Commissioner Stamps met with Pam Iron, Executive Director, and the rest of the staff at the NIWHRC office where success stories were shared. It was evident that NIWHRC has made a difference in the lives of many women and youth.

Commissioner Stamps was warmly welcomed by Chairman Ron Rice, the Business Council, and project staff at the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma. The Commissioner received a tour of the community from Dawna Hare, Tribal Executive Director. The tour included the language lab where students were using headphones to hear the correct Pawnee pronunciation and the after-school language program where students prepared for a fashion show in Pawnee. Enthusiastic language staff and economic development directors explained the programs and their positive impact on the community. The Pawnee Nation has a long history of implementing sustainable ANA projects.

Commissioner Quanah Crossland Stamps Presents Keynote at the Native Wellness Institute Gathering

Commissioner Quanah Crossland Stamps traveled to Reno, Nevada on March 14, 2006 to deliver the keynote speech at the Native Wellness Institute's North American Native Wellness Gathering V entitled "Belonging: Living Our Ancestor's Songs.” Her speech discussed the importance of community wellness. “The Wellness of our communities is our choice. We as Native people have the choice of what we will take with us into the future and what we will leave behind. To ensure we as Native People have a future, we must focus on the wellness of our children, families and communities.”

Commissioner Stamps encouraged her audience to reflect on the past, heal the present and choose the future. Her empowering speech spoke about the roles we play in our communities, the responsibility we have to give back, and the importance of modeling responsible behavior for our children.

The mission of the Native Wellness Institute is to promote the well-being of Native people through programs and trainings embracing the traditions of our ancestors. Their ANA project, “Leading the Next Generation,” will implement a training model with Tribes, Tribal organizations and Tribal communities to address historical and intergenerational traumas, culturally specific healing and wellness concepts. This training model and curriculum will be disseminated to improve and promote healthy couple relationships.