The Native Blog

'Potawatomi Basketball in the Summer of 2007' by Gary Mitchell

"For a group of Potawatomi basketball players, the Native American Basketball Invitational (NABI) in Phoenix, Arizona, didn’t have the expected results, but they had the satisfaction of knowing they had played hard and by the rules – the wins and losses were what they were.

But, first a weather and a people report. The summer months of Arizona can see temperatures rise to 122 degrees, but it was only about 109 degrees on average the days the kids were there, and for sure the heat could take your breath away. The kids would find out why people vacation in Phoenix in the winter time.

There were close to 95 Indian boys and girls teams from all over the States and Canada. The kids were high school age and were very young looking. It made a person wonder about their home lives, where they came from, how they live on their rez, their home environment, their trials and tribulations, what the future holds for them and what they had to do in order to get to Phoenix to play basketball. All that aside, they were the best from their reservations and that counts. Now back to basketball.
Clearly, for the Kansas teams five wins and three losses is not a bad effort considering the competition level. Going into the tournament, of the two teams the girl’s team, called Kansas Hoop n’ It, was projected to go further in the tournament. They had done well in previous tournaments in Oklahoma and Kansas City. With the addition of two guards from Oklahoma, the guard situation had stabilized in those tournaments and it was easier to break the full-court press. In the game of basketball, as the competition gets better the full-court press kicks in more. The top team’s employed this concept for quick scores and, of course, wins.

In addition, the front-line for the team included a solid and experienced group. They were led by Tara Mitchell, Lois Stevens, Kiti Mirada and backed up by Sydney Jessepe. But, even the best laid plans can go astray. One of the point guards didn’t show up and that absence came back to haunt the team. The girls did open the tournament pool play with a convincing 58-39 victory over an Arizona team, but the bottom fell out after that. The full-court press of the next two opponents caused turnover after turnover leading to two losses in pool play and eventual elimination from the tournament. They lost out advancing to the single elimination portion of the tournament by only a few points.
Tara Mitchell, who will play college ball in Kansas City next year led the girl’s team in scoring with 20 points a game and had a high game of 26 points against a team from Salt River, Arizona. Lois Stevens will play for Haskell Indian Nations University next fall. Other scorers were Kiti Mirada with a 7.1 ppg and Sydney Jessepe scored 7 points a game. Other Kansas Hoop n’ It team members were: Ashton Tiger who will play at Oklahoma Baptist University; Mona Nozhackum, Kendra Haag and Cham Pahmahmie. The girls were coached by Charles Nez and Melissa Haag. The team also watched the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA play the San Antonio Silver Stars at U.S. Airways Center and were given the opportunity to listen to Diana Taurasi, a star of the Phoenix Mercury team.

The boy’s team called the Kansas Kings, won pool play victories over a team from North Carolina 75-46; 68-46 over the P.S. Warriors (AZ); 72-64 over Native Warriors; 58-52 over the Arizona Boys and lost to a team from Oklahoma, 90-67, made up of Sequoyah High School players, who had won a state championship. This team called “For the Love of the Game” eventually took second place in the tournament losing to the Cheyenne Arapahoe team also from Oklahoma 74-66. The Kansas Kings achieved the honor of getting into the final eight in a 50 –team tournament.

They were led by Jordon Kapayou, an excellent player who will play at Haskell next year. Jordon averaged 22.2 points per game with a high of 26 points. David Martin scored 14.6 points per game and is only a sophomore at Jackson Heights next year. His high game was 21 points. Kwaki Hale averaged 8.4 points per game and Shawn Keich averaged 7.8 points per game. William Evans scored 6.8 points per game while providing a strong rebounding presence for the team. Other members of the team were B.J. Fasthorse; Tony Grier; Nyeh Washkeh Littleaxe; Evan Evans and Authi Parker. The boy’s team was coached by Shane Negonsett and junior manager Isiah Potts.

The experience of playing this type of competition will only help each player in the long run. Now they know what they have to do to improve and what they have to do next time they face this type of competition. They represented the Potawatomi well. College recruiters were there and made contacts with many of the players, so the exposure factor can lead to better things for these players.

Spending a week in Phoenix, Arizona didn’t come cheap. Joanna Mitchell, Doris Potts, Voncile Mitchell, Lindy Tecumseh, Frank Parker and many others worked extraordinarily hard to raise money at food stands and raffles to make it all possible. Family support is alive and well on the Potawatomi reservation. In addition, many kind sponsors, including the tribe, stepped up and made generous donations and many more Potawatomi tribal members bought raffle tickets. Not enough thanks can be said to all these people.

What all that hard work and generosity translated into was the experience of a lifetime for the kids. Now it’s time to start working for next year’s NABI or the Indigeneous Games in Canada. And, why not? Our kids are worth it."

Potawatomi Vet

Eli Wabnum’s Story

By Gary E. Mitchell

Three decades have passed since the Vietnam conflict, but the passage of time doesn’t diminish the memories for many veterans.

As a young man, Eli Wabnum wanted to join the army to participate in the Korean War. His mother, Edna, discouraged the idea of her son going to war. Eventually despite his mother’s protests, Eli joined the army. He completed two tours in Germany and one tour in Korea, before serving as a sergeant to 33 men in the Vietnam conflict. Before leaving for Vietnam, he told his mother he would still serve in wartime.

For those who have not experienced it first hand, the horrors of war are unimaginable. But listening to Eli describe his harrowing past paints a clear picture of the pain and hardship of war.

Eli tells of an event he remembers from the Vietnam Conflict - he stepped on a land mine. “The only thing I remember is a flash of white as I got blown into the air. When I came to, I looked and saw another man lying nearby. I crawled to him to see what I could do to help. My men said, ‘Eli, you’re bleeding.’ Blood was coming out from the bottom of my shirt. They tore off my flak jacket and saw that I was hit in several spots with fragments from the mine.”

Eli was flown out in serious condition and underwent surgery. Post surgery, the Doctor told Eli he was going back to the United States. Eli had another agenda. He wanted to go back to his first responsibility - his men. After he recovered he was allowed to return to the battlefield. Looking back he proudly states, “Of the 33 men I led as a sergeant, 30 returned to the United States alive.

Even so, his accomplishments on the battlefield will never be fully told. Eli for the most part remained a private man who kept so much inside. But if you ask him about his musical background, he’s quick to share. He played the steel guitar while attending Haskell Institute and later while stationed in Germany. Eli smiled and said, “The girls hollered for me before they hollered for Elvis!”

Eli remained a respected member of the Potawatomi reservation until his death May 31, 2007. The war will no longer torment this old veteran.

Reflections of the 2007 Basketball Season

Reflections of the 2007 Basketball Season
By Gary E. Mitchell

The 2007 basketball season was truly one-dimensional.  Our household followed Tara Mitchell to every game of a 22-game season.  It was a time of constantly being on the move.  On a typical game day, we would go to work, rush home, change into comfortable clothes, load up the riders of the day and head off to wherever Royal Valley was playing.  It was the same pattern as last year.  We would arrive at the game, pay the $4 entry fee, buy hot-dogs, popcorn and pop for our basketball supper and sit back and wait for the game to start.  We hardly ever got to watch other games because the Royal Valley games were our true focal point or obsession. It was truly rewarding from a grandparents’ view to see all the hard work pay off for Tara.  She was the consummate team player and thought ‘pass first’.  Teamwork is great, but the word sometimes drags down statistics.  Here are some thoughts on Tara’s season.

Tara Mitchell, daughter of Joanna Mitchell, had two goals in mind when the season started.  She wanted the Royal Valley High School girls’ team to win the Flint Hills Shootout and go back to the state tournament.  She played on the Royal Valley team that went on to play in the state tournament when she was a sophomore.  Her team accomplished the first goal, but not the second.  Yet, the season was a positive one for her and the team, but most of all; it was rewarding to watch for her family and friends who followed every game. 

In preparation for her senior season, Tara played summer league basketball at Washburn University and attended a 5-Star basketball camp at the University of Massachusetts this past July.  She, along with her family, raised the necessary money for airfare and expenses. She learned the value of raising her own money and discovered the good in people.  There were tribal members who bought chances from her on different raffle items; and, for that support, she will always remain grateful.  The summer work, along with long hours of practice shooting the basketball on the concrete courts of the rez, with her brother Nyeh Washkeh and cousin Rusty, paid off in her senior season.

Tara scored 35 points in one game and 23 in another. In her senior season, Tara followed up her All-League and All-County Junior season by leading the All-Big Seven League in scoring averaging 14.5 points per game, rebounds 9 per game and steals 2.5 a game.  She is expected to add the same all-league and all-county honors this year.  Tara was also All-Tournament at the Flint Hills Shootout, where Royal Valley won the championship. She was named by the Holton Recorder as ‘Athlete of the Week’ twice this season.

She is now listed in the Royal Valley record books for scoring 2nd on the all-time list for a single game with 35 points, most 2-point shots made in a game (14) and steals.  For the year, she scored 318 points, which places her seventh on the schools all-time list for single-season scoring.  Tara hopes those records will be broken by another Potawatomi in the future. Tara also was the choice for queen in the King of Queens event earlier in the year.

Royal Valley finished their season 14-8, placing third in the Big Seven League, advanced to the semi-finals for the second straight year, and lost to Hayden High School of Topeka, Kansas, for the second straight year.  This disappointing loss to Hayden didn’t take anything from Tara Mitchell “stellar senior season,” as a local sportswriter said in one of his columns. 

Tara is now deciding on where she will go to school next year, but her basketball playing days will not end anytime soon.  For now, Tara and some of her friends are again raising money for an All-Indian high school basketball tournament in Phoenix, Arizona, in July. 

At one point in the season, after Tara got through playing her game at Royal Valley, we rushed off to watch Topeka High play at 7:45pm.  Justin Purdee plays for Topeka High and they were playing Seaman High School at Seaman which is only located 15-20 minutes down the road, but we still had to hustle to see the opening tip-off.

Some facts about Purdee.  He is a tribal member and the son of Angela Emmert.  He is a 6' 4" guard (forward) and followed up an outstanding junior season with a solid encore performance as a senior.  Topeka High gets up and down the court fast and has a strong combination of outside shooters and a strong inside game.  Purdee fits well on this team and has made a name for himself.  Purdee can shoot out the lights with his 3-point shooting abilities; he’s averaged over 12 points per game as a junior - and during his senior seasons.  Last year, he was chosen third team All Class 6-A.  Purdee was also chosen as a candidate for the McDonalds All-American team this year.

I was able to take a few pictures during the game and, afterwards, to share with our tribal members.  It doesn’t hurt to see the people you’re writing about.  I remember seeing him as he grew up and it’s rewarding to see a tribal member do so well.

My daughter told me about a kid named Adrian Herrera who played for Highland Park and said he was a tribal member.  Of course, I didn’t know that.  Our tribe has close to 5,000 members and it’s hard to know everybody especially when they live all over the United States.  I told her I would go see him play if I got the chance.

Once Tara’s team was eliminated in the sub-state finals, I read that Highland Park was playing the next day.  So, I persuaded my wife and granddaughter to go with me to watch the sub-state finals between Highland Park and Bonner Springs.  My wife said, “Sure, I’d like to go watch a Potawatomi play.”  Of course, by then, I think we had turned into basketball junkies and we had to have some time to withdraw from watching Tara’s games – a painful process for sure.  Here’s what I wrote about Adrian. 

Adrian Herrera, a Potawatomi tribal member, contributed to a great basketball season at Highland Park High School in Topeka, Kansas.  Highland Park is a traditional 5-A power-house in Kansas basketball. 

Highland Park is loaded with Division 1 talent and is ranked 15th in the country by one poll.  The school located on the East side of Topeka finished undefeated in the regular season at 20-0 and won the 5-A sub-state regional held at Seaman High School by beating Bonner Springs High School  83-43.  Highland Park is a heavy favorite to win the 5-A state tournament. 

During the season, Highland Park defeated many 6-A schools and is a team that plays a fast-paced game getting up and down the court with lightning speed.  They have a blend of top, outside shooters and big men who can wake up the house with slam-dunks.  On top of all that, they lose little at substitution time.

Herrera is a 5'11" Junior Guard with a super smooth shooting motion.  His shooting touch has enabled Herrera to score 24 points in one game and 23 in another this basketball season. For the season, he is a 51% 3-point shooter - figures that will no doubt draw Division 1 interest.  Illinois State has shown the most interest at this time. “If that doesn’t work out, he will go the JUCO route and then work toward playing at a Division 1 school,” Herrera said.

Highland Park Head Coach Ken Darting had confidence in Herrera, gave him the green light to shoot, and wanted him to play a tough defense.  “I’m a shooter and Coach Darting is one of the best coaches he ever played for.  He teaches us about life as well as basketball,” Herrera said.

That confidence by the coach has paid off in the two big scoring games. “I was feeling it, so I just kept on shooting,” Herrera said, after the 24-point game against Emporia High School.  “As a shooter, if you’re feeling it, you just keep shooting no matter what.  I’ve never shot like that before - that was probably one of my best games of the year.” 

Scoring points in bunches like Herrera did this year didn’t come about by accident.  He started to play basketball at seven years old with his older brothers in the driveway.  “It helped his game to play against older kids,” he said.  This prepared him for organized ball as he advanced through the lower grades and high school.  One of the older players, who he admired and wanted to emulate, was Robert Townsend, who recently passed away.  Herrera said he was one of the best players ever at Highland Park.

His advice to younger players is to go the gym everyday, develop your game and work on shooting drills.  Herrera said kids need to stay in the gym, stay hungry and always compete.  “Everything won’t be perfect,” said Herrera, “you can’t be perfect, but by practicing everyday your game will improve.  It is so important for kids to listen to their coaches; and, then and only then, can they move forward and get better.”   

Next year when Herrera is a senior, he will once again dial in those high arching shots from the perimeter and those 24-point games will become a regular occurrence on the courts of Topeka, Kansas, and elsewhere.

As for us, 2007 will always be remembered as the greatest of times in high school basketball.  We got to see some top guns, both boys and girls. It’s better yet when they were Potawatomis.  Next year should be more of the same.

Gary Mitchell speaking at the Kansas Governor Inauguration today

Gary Mitchell said "I was invited to participate in the fifth Inaugural All Faith Service January 8, 2007 for Governor Kathleen Sebelius and other elected officials of Kansas. The Capital Journal's Sharon Stauffer wrote the following day: Gary Mitchell, of the Prairie Band Potawatomi, said American Indians are one group of people who have been misunderstood, but said each religion and ethic group has the ability to understand one another because everyone has similar goals they like to achieve. I think we all pray, indeed, for all the same things in our lives," said Mitchell who gave a short blessing in his language.

During times like this invocation, I never fail to mention the role my mother played in learning some of my language. I miss her, but her words will continue as long as I'm alive and will carry on with my grandchildren."

John Echohawk Speaks on Critical Issue

John Echohawk Speaks on Critical Issue

By Gary E. Mitchell

"John Echohawk, a national renowned lawyer who has worked for 36 years for the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) in Colorado came to the Potawatomi reservation to give a summary of the Cobell v. Kempthorne case on Saturday, December 2, 2006. In attendance were concerned tribal members from the surrounding area.

This case involves a class action suit where various Indian entities want a legal accounting of individual and tribal accounts held by the government which are commonly called IIM accounts. They cite mismanagement of the funds.

Echohawk said a generation of people went to Washington D.C. to complain about the Bureau of Indian Affairs accounting system, but nothing was ever done. Congress passed the 1994 Trust Reform Act, which chronicled the mismanagement of the government and mandated a legal accounting of each IIM account held by individual Indians and Tribes. But nothing happened everything in D.C. went back to normal, Congress allocated no money to the project whcih turned into a meaningless act.

Eloise Cobell, the lead plaintiff, who had worked hard for ten years at getting the legislation passed in 1994, grew frustrated at the turn of the events following the passage of the act. She said we needed to take the issue to court to enforce government responsibility. Echohawk said NARF had hoped it would be handled politically but knew the system was incapable of handling the problem. The courts were the only answer.

An Arizona Republic editorial agreed, stating: “The Interior Department, under both Presidents Clinton and Bush, has shown such breathtaking ineptitude that the only answer is to take the job away and let the courts sort it out.”

Over the years there have been about 500,000 IIM accounts, and Echohawk said the government has the control and are like bankers. But under their trust responsibility, they just haven’t done their jobs. The litigation asked for a proper legal accounting for the government to comply with the law and to restate the account balance of each IIM account since they are understated now. The money is income from grazing, mining logging and oil drilling on Indian land. As the system was set up in 1887, the federal government collects the payments and distributes them to individual tribal members who have rights to the land.

Once in court in front of Disrict Judge Royce C. Lamberth, the government couldn’t get five sample IIM accounts up to speed. Lamberth held many administration officials in contempt for numerous delays. He eventually ruled that the Department of Interior breached its fiduciary duties by its massive and long-standing mismanagement of the IIM accounts.

The government didn’t take the challenging the issue of validity seriously, and Lamberth found them in contempt for not producing the necessary records. “The government couldn’t do the accounting since the records were in such disarray,” said Echohawk. After Lamberth took a hard line approach with the government, they asked that he be removed from the case because, in their minds, he was biased and prejudiced against the government. Echohawk said Lamberth was dismissed from the case. The Bush administration didn’t want to take it to the Supreme Court under the guise of working it out and seeking resolution, but after the filing deadline passed, they also failed to do anything like past administrations.

To put the argument in perspective, in 1887, $13 billion went through these accounts and adding interest to these figures, Echohawk said $176 billion has gone through these accounts. In July of 2005, Dorgan of North Dakota and John McCain of Arizona proposed a settlement bill, but had no monetary amount set. NARF has suggested $27.465 billion based on the calculation that the government receives credit for paying 80% or only doing 80% of their job. Looking at past government behavior, Echohawk said the government wouldn’t want to pay the interest involved.

Echohawk said that $8 billion is now mentioned but with two factors. One, the shares would go out like a per capita payment and each IIM account holder would receive a share. Two, a weighted system would go into effect to take in account the size and value of each IIM account.

But the government has argued for some stipulations such as 1) to begin a process to let beneficiaries to manage a trust themselves; 2). no more liability for the government; 3) to develop a system of no more than ten owners on an allotment; and 4) all the tribes trust funds be settled. Echohawk called it a global settlement.

Echohawk said the tribes have more money involved than individual IIM account holders and have until December 31, when a statute of limitations ends, to challenge the Arthur Anderson accounting figures of how much the tribes have lost, after that they are stuck with these numbers. Tracy Stanhoff, Tribal Chairperson, said the Potawatomi Nation has voiced their objection legally.

All of this, according to Echohawk will come up in the 110^th Congress starting in January of 2007, and he recommends settlement."

Series of Photos from the Wa Ta Se Powwow

Before the Powwow at the Memorial Service: Kansas Senator Sam Brownback and my brother Gary at Prairie Peoples Park on the Prairie Band Potawatomi rez!

Gary Mitchell: On The Election Results

"Tex Hall and Cecilia Fire Thunder both lost their tribal elections. I guess their tribes didn't want good leaders. I remember Tex Hall as a very articulate man who stood up for Indian rights. He was a friendly guy, shaking hands every time I saw him on the national scene. With him being such a great national leader, he more than likely let the home politics go and it cost him. Cecilia Fire Thunder was way too far ahead of the times and the Sioux weren't ready for her. I meet her in an elevator in Albuquerque, New Mexico and she told me that I looked like I had a lot on my mind. She was right because I had lost my Mom right before that time. She, too, was a friendly woman who didn't put on the dog. I guess that's what I liked about both of them--they were big-shots with down to earth values and didn't act like they were better than others. Their tribes have lost, but don't know it, I guess."

This commentary made it on to the 'Voice of a Native Son' blog!

 

Wahwassuck, a Real Chief by Gary Mitchell

"Raphael Wahwassuck Sr., a chief in the true sense of the word, grew up on the Potawatomi reservation and learned a multitude of values that carried him through the trials of life.

Loyalty to family, traditions, religion, and the culture of the tribe constitute a short list of those values. Wahwassuck needed all the help he could get to survive the chosen profession he decided to pursue.

In 1952, Wahwassuck (Shop ko uk) joined the United States Army and the next 22 1/2 years were a true adventure.

Wahwassuck served two full tours in Vietnam during the worst fighting of the war at places like Xaun-Loc, Saigon, Hue, Perfume Valley and the Ashau Valley.

He called it a "horrible time" in which there were heavy losses. He saw many Americans die, and saw the dead enemy "stacked up like cords of wood."

Some of the battles, like those in the cities of Hue and Saigon, were fought from house to house, street to street, and the North Vietnamese killed thousands of civilians there.

After some battles, his unit would put the dead alongside the road so their people could get them and give them a proper burial.

The next day, the bodies were gone.

But for some reason, after the battle of Ashau Valley, the Vietcong didn't pick up the bodies, and all that was left a few days later was some skin and the bones.

During this short time, the bugs had eaten all the flesh off the bodies.

"It was bad. I felt bad about it, but I told the local villagers where they could find them, but the kids just laughed because the dead were North Vietnamese."

Vietnam was a bad time for him and all the soldiers who went there, but there were good memories, too. His unit, composed of Mexicans, blacks, a Hawaiian, a Chinese, German, French, and an Indian, all survived the war. He called them "tough, and making a good fighting force."

Another thing he remembered from the war was how he respected the Vietcong.

"They were fighting for their country. They fought hard. They were like we were once, fighting for their land."

During the course of his military career, he rose to the rank of master sergeant, or E-8. He won three Commendation Medals, three Bronze Stars, and the highest medal awarded by the South Vietnamese people, an award similar to a Bronze Star.

Wahwassuck credits his many accomplishments to his wife, Erna, his "sole support."

This strong combination contributed four children to the world, and they made their own marks in society.

Josette, the eldest, runs the Spinal Injuries and Trauma Center in Lee's Summit, Mo. Raphael, Jr. is an electronic engineer. The youngest daughter, Ingrid, works for the Internal Revenue Service in Salt Lake City.

Bridget Twila Wahwassuck-Quinn, the third eldest in the family, is a major in the U.S. Army. While she was in high school, Bridget was the number one student in the entire state of Missouri in 1980 and a Presidential Scholar. She went on to graduate from West Point and today teaches systematic engineering at the military academy.

Wahwassuck's many accomplishments are traceable to his long military career, but he has contributed equally through his children and his dedication to maintaining the culture of his tribe.

It is no wonder that today, Wahwassuck is one of the respected tribal elders who can look back and say he did everything possible to make the world a better place."