NORTHERN CHEROKEE NEWSlETTER
3305
CLARK LANE
PMB 242
COLUMBIA, MO 65202
June 2018
Time passes quickly and we are
already at the end of May. As you
know,
it has been some time since a newsletter has gone out. The Deputy Chief and I have been in a lengthy
process of moving. This has been
quite
an ordeal, especially when one must downsize.
Now, hopefully we are pretty
much organized and can put that behind us and move on to other things.
We recently learned
that our beloved
Deputy Chief Arlie Strong has passed away.
He will be greatly missed. Arlie
was a dedicated tribal member and he loved his nation very much and looked
forward to the day when we would gain federal recognition. Unfortunately, this did not happen in his
lifetime, but I have no doubt that he is looking down and cheering us on to
reach that goal and cross over the line to make a touchdown for the tribe.
We have also lost another
beloved
tribal leader and Head Elder of our nation, Mike Ballard. We very much miss
Mike as we relied on him many times to help guide us in spiritual matters. Mike and Council Woman, Connie Ballard has
been a great team working together for the tribe. Now,
Connie is picking up and doing what she can for now to continue in the work
that she and Mike were doing. Due to her loss, Connie has needed to heal and
learn to live without her mate and to continue on with activities they did as a
team. For awhile she was unable
to
continue with our web site, but she is strong and dedicated and is now getting
ready to pick up where she and Mike left off. I might also add that there
will be two web sites going: the main web site that we have always had and
Deputy Chief, Pitter is also creating one.
You may have noticed that for some time, there has been little
activity going on with the tribal government and our citizens.
Much of this has been due to loss of loved
ones and lack of participation from our people, (tribal members) now, your
tribal government has once again survived hurdles and we are ready to pick up
and move our tribe forward. BUT,
we need
your help.
To bring you up to date,
we held a
council meeting a few months ago at which time we discussed problems and possible
solutions.
Due to the loss of
our Deputy
Chief, we added our former council person Glinda “Pitter” Seabaugh of SE
Missouri, to this position. Deputy Chief Pitter has been involved with the
tribe for many years and is experienced in what a tribe is and what needs to be
done. She has already proven to
be an
asset to our nation. I am expecting
many
good things as she continues to work for the nation.
NOW
I WISH TO ADDRESS
SOME PROBLEMS, which I feel can no longer be ignored. I
feel it is my responsibility to alert you
to these problems. Then you can
make
your own decisions. I absolutely do not wish to cause any conflicts with
anybody or another group, but I have been involved with our tribe since the beginning
and have played a big part in our accomplishments. I am merely going to present to you the
facts, which you can check for yourself and make your own decisions.
As you know for some
time we have
been unable to obtain funding through Administration for Native Americans. This funding is hard to get and is very
competitive, especially since funds are limited. Nevertheless, I feel much of our being turned
down was due to our no longer having a web site up and running.
As mentioned earlier, this is being resolved,
and, possibly the confusion of another group who insists on using our
name. This has no doubt confused
many
people.
I hardly ever visit the web sites on the
internet, but recently I did visit one of the sites that the other group who
has stolen our name and claims to be Northern Cherokee has up.
No wonder we are seeing so much disinterest
from our members, if they frequent these sites and this groups pow wow’s. I
think it is vital that I ONCE AGAIN address this issue and to try and come up with
a resolve.
In this newsletter
I do not intend
to rehash all the things that have happened in the past. If
anyone is interested in this, they can
read all about it in my book “We Are Not Yet Conquered.” To those who have this, you
can read what I am about to write and see the proof of what I have to write is
there.
On more
than one occasion, there have been individuals who have attempted to use our
tribe as a way to make money for themselves.
This was especially true after they learned we had received a small
grant. Then too often a tribe is
viewed
as a means for gambling. From the
very
beginning, the group and those who were involved in the illegal election had
one thing on their mind and that was how to use the tribe to make money for themselves
and to bring in gambling. It is
no
secret that they had hopes of bringing in gambling. This is a proven fact that was written in a
newspaper article. When asked about what I say, they will tell you that I was a
disgruntled LOSER of the election and that is why I refuse to step down from the
tribe. You can be assured I was
indeed a
disgruntled person when I learned what was going on and I and those who stood
with me fought to keep this group from taking over the tribe. But, this didn’t
stop them. They continued on as though they had every right to steal someone’s
identity plus all the hard work we have done.
Now many of those who helped in our achievement have walked on and I
feel I need to set the record straight; not only for us who are still here but
also for them.
I am
thinking that those who are running the other group today may not be fully
aware of what took place back then, so I am giving them the benefit of the
doubt and am attempting to let them know the truth. Someone obviously does not
have a good understanding of what a Northern Cherokee is, because on one of
their web sites, somebody wrote that I
AM NOT A NORTHERN CHEROKEE.
After the illegal election,
Carl
Griggs (now deceased) and his helper Ann Woolery who worked in the Secretary of
State Office, attempted to steal our corporation for starting bingo. “Be sure
your sins will find you out.” A person
who I had not previously known, but for some reason came in contact with,
advised me of what was taking place. I
then contacted the Secretary of State Office to alert them to this, and from
there it went to the Missouri Gaming Commission who got involved and
investigated this group. I can’t
say why
they felt they had evidence against them but for some time they were active in
trying to find out what they were doing.
I do not know what came from this, but I do know that Griggs and Woolery
were indicted by a Cole County Grand Jury for attempting to steal our
corporation. This information
as well
as the documents are in my book if you care to read pages 205-206.
After getting a copy
of someone’s
ID card which this group is obviously “selling”, I realized they were using our
corporation to make claim to being a state recognized tribe. Let
me clear up this false information.
Missouri does not accept any tribe as being recognized. If they did it would be our
tribe, The Northern Cherokee Nation of the Old Louisiana
Territory, BECAUSE, IT IS OUR NOT FOR PROFIT CORPORATION, OUR GOVERNOR’S PROCLAMATIONS
AND OUR HOUSE RESOLUTION, they are making claim to. SEEMS
TO BE THEY ARE TEETERING ON THE EDGE OF ONCE AGAIN ATTEMPTING TO STEAL OUR
CORPORATION. Last I heard was that we
are the ONLY GROUP WITH THESE DOCUMENTS AND THEREFORE IF ANY GROUP HAS THE RIGHT TO CLAIM STATE RECOGNITION, IT
IS US.
The seal this group is using is one that was designed by Richard Craker
and who presented it to the tribal council at our meeting in Fairplay, MO, for
our consideration. However, after
discussion we voted to continue with our original seal with the leaning
feather. Our seal is the first and
original, and our constitution and by-laws were created in 1978-79, which we continue
to use.
I recently read that this group is seeking federal recognition. Don’t be fooled by this either.
In order to gain Federal Recognition, a
group must meet
seven criteria. Due to limited space, I
won’t list them all here, but I will list only two which will keep this group
from being able to achieve this.
1-The petitioner has been identified as an American
Indian
entity since 1900.
The other
group cannot meet this criterion because their existence began after the
illegal election in 1990. The only
way
they can meet this criteria is to steal our corporation, which they are
currently doing by making claim to state recognition and showing these
documents as evidence.
We can
meet this
criterion.
2-A predominant portion of the petitioning group
comprises a
distinct community.
From what
I have read, they cannot meet this criterion either. I remember
that a few years ago, this group did petition for federal
recognition after the illegal election and was turned down. Reason being was
they were enrolling any and everybody who wanted to join their group. The new regulation also states: It
excludes “An entity that previously petitioned and was denied federal
acknowledgment under these regulations or under previous regulations in part 83
of this title (including reconstituted, splinter, spin-off or component group s
that were once part of a previously denied petitioner).”
I should include that we did send in our
petition but was not turned down. Rather, we were advised to get our enrollment
process in better condition and then resubmit our petition. At the request of the Acknowledgment Dept. I made a trip to Washington, DC, with several copies of our enrollment forms to present how we
did our enrollment process, which evidently satisfied the viewers. I was told to work on our enrollments and then
again present our petition.
We can meet this criterion
I think I have written enough about federal
recognition to
show the other group cannot gain recognition.
I conclude that WE ARE THE ONLY GROUP IN MISSOURI WHO CAN ACHIEVE THIS
BECAUSE WE CAN MEET ALL THE CRITERIA
I have laid out the facts and it is up to you
who read this to do what you want. Keep
in mind that in order to enroll with us, you must be able to show you have a
Cherokee ancestor who came west of the Mississippi; i.e., The Old Louisiana
Territory. We do meet this criterion
by
adhering to our Enrollment Ordinance.
You may
wonder, if we can meet each criterion, then why have we not gotten federal
recognition. The answer is, we did
submit
a petition; however as mentioned earlier, because we had some discrepancies in
our enrollment; i.e., duplicate roll numbers and those who viewed what we had,
felt that the way we had our members in Family Tree Maker would make it harder
for them to understand, they requested that we put this information into an
Access Program, which we are currently doing.
But, that has not been our biggest problem.
Every time we get close to crossing that goal
line, here comes some who want to start their own tribe, usually for self gain,
which then throws us back. We make
one
step forward and are pushed back two. I
think we have now learned how to deal with these troublemakers by sending them
down the road. It’s time for
us to come
together as one people and make this happen.
I have
repeatedly told you that I will do my best to help make recognition a reality,
but this can’t happen until the current problem is resolved and our citizens
come to join us as one people all going in the same direction.
It is up to you. We also invite the other group who likes to
use our name to join us and come under our government.
However, all those who they have enrolled
may not qualify for enrollment with us.
But, we will do our best to help with their genealogy to see if they can
meet criteria.
What is
something you can do?
Council
Representatives: If you are interested in being on our council to represent
the district you live in, contact us at the address on this newsletter.
You could be chosen to be a representative
for your district who will sit on the Main Tribal Council.
VERY
IMPORTANT: In order to correct our enrollment, we
have
begun the process of creating and updating our Official Tribal
Roll. Those
members who have kept us informed of a proper address will be placed on this
roll. Eventually, you will receive another ID Card that will not have
“Temporary Roll”. However,
keep in mind
that an official ID card “Certified Degree of Indian Blood” can only come after
federal recognition. If you have
moved
and have not sent us your updated information, you will not be placed on our
Official Roll. Rather you will be
kept
on the current roll, which will enable you to get on our Official Roll at the
time you submit your correct updated information. This information must reach the tribal office
and, it is important for you to contact your Representative and give them your
up to date information. Remember,
the
Representative is there to represent you and to bring your ideas, concerns and
complaints to the Council Table.
NEWSLETTER
Like everything else, we must increase
the fee for our
newsletter due to the expense of printing and postage. We
will now charge a fee of $15 per
year. Those who send in donations
of $20
or more a month will not have to pay extra for their letter.
The only funding we receive are donations
that a faithful
few send. We are very grateful
NORTHERN
CHEROKEE
REUNION
Each year since 1983, we have held our
annual Northern
Cherokee Day celebration. Unfortunately,
we have been pretty lax on this lately.
We realize that many like to attend pow wows and to see the dancers and
hear the music. However, the tradition
of OUR Cherokee People has been FAMILY REUNIONS. We will be in the planning stage of holding
another reunion in the coming months. If
we can acquire the funding, we could also include dancers for this event.
TRIBAL
GOVERNMENT:
Beverly
Baker Northup, Principal Chief
Glinda
“Pitter” Seabaugh, Deputy Chief, Ncnolt7@yahoo.com
Web
Site ncnolt.net
Eric
Lancaster, Representative, galaginausdi@yahoo.com
Sharon
Morris, Representative, morrissharon7755@gmail.com
Connie
Ballard, Kansas Representative, cmballard@aol.com
Northern Cherokee Nation of the
Old Louisiana Territory
3305 Clark Lane PMB 242
Columbia, MO 65202
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
