News and Press Archives

Session 7 of the PBPN language/cultural classes begins tonight and will run until February 23 in the Language Department at the Firekeepers Elder Center.

Mike Mills, Potawatomi Tribal Fire Department Chief, has announced that in the event of severe weather that causes long power outages or other events that cause relocation if necessary, community residents need to take shelter at the Boys & Girls Club and Elders (50 and older) should go to the Firekeeper Elders Center. 

A community workshop will be held on Dec. 7 from 9:30 a.m. to noon at the Bingo Hall to discuss the results from a study done on PBP women regarding  violence and abuse.  Participants must register for the workshop by Nov. 30 by calling 785.966.4034.

On Tuesday, October 27 a free H1N1 vaccination clinic will be held for residents of Jackson County who fall into certain target populations from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Senior Citizens Building in Holton, Kansas.

Six members of the PBPN Public Works Department traveled to Shabbona, Illinois the second week of October to help the Illinois Department of Natural Resources www.dnr.state.il.us develop a 5-acre fish-rearing pond that sits next to Shabbona Lake State Park.

With flu vaccines now trickling in, please, do your part by knowing the facts:  www.flu.gov  or  www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu or contacting the Prairie Band Health Center at 785.966.8200.

Charitable Contributions for the second quarter are listed from the Charitable Contributions Committee.

Rose Hale was sworn in as a new member of the Enrollment Committee this morning by Steve Ortiz, Tribal Chairman, in Council chambers.

Elizabeth Francis Belair, 19, a PBPN from Delia, Kan., Chris Albert Hernandez, 44, St. Marys, and Erick Charles Goslin, 17, of Topeka all died of injuries in a car crash yesterday and Sharon Belair, 42 was injured.  Elizabeth and Sharon Belair are PBPN.

PBPN staff and volunteers are in the final stages of getting ready for the Gathering that begins tomorrow and runs through Saturday.   Nine bands of Potawatomi will come together from across the United States and Canada for four days on the Prairie Band Potawatomi reservation. 

A Road Side Clean Up was held today in preparation for the Gathering scheduled for next week.

 Tribal members Charles Wakole and Robert Jackson said goodbye to their families and friends on July 22 to join approximately 80 other soldiers who are members of the 2nd Battalion, 130th Field Artillery Kansas National Guard.  The soldiers will be a part of a military tour to the Egyptian Sinai.  Many Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation tribal members attended the ceremony held at Holton High School and the We-Ta-Se American Legion Color Guard posted colors for the event.

The 2009 Prairie Band Potawatomi pow-wow will be held this weekend at Prairie Peoples Park.  The official grand entry begins Friday at 7 p.m. with the pow-wow running through Sunday.

Congratulations to PBPN graduates and don't forget to submit a photo for the graduation pages of the summer issue of the Potawatomi News.  Also, don't forget to get your applications in to the Education Department for college by July 1.  

Two PBPN were inducted into the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame last Saturday night at the Prairie Band Casino & Resort.  Jerry Tuckwin and Tony Coffin (deceased) were recognized for their achievements in athletics before a large crowd.

Marie Clement was crowned Ms. Wheelchair Kansas 2009 today at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Topeka, Kan.

Rencie Eteeyan and Ruth Vega-Harjo were sworn in as Ethics Commissioners this morning at the Bingo Hall.

John Wabaunsee, Francis Skenandore, and Joseph Young were sworn in this morning by Steve Ortiz, Tribal Council chairperson, as the Justices of the Court of Appeals for the PBPN.  

Steve Ortiz, tribal chairman, spoke at a Community Leadership Recognition Luncheon in Topeka in honor of Martin Luther King.

Read the profiles of Gaming Commission/Ethics Commission election candidates on this website.  Click News and Press and then scroll to Election News.  

Steve Ortiz, Tribal Chairman, represented the PBPN at a luncheon hosted by St. Francis Community Services in Atchison last Tuesday.  The luncheon was given to thank the PBPN for a past Charitable Contribution now being used to construct a Challenge Course on the grounds of the Lodge which is one of Saint Francis' facilities.    

Halloween has arrived a day early for children and the community with several activities planned for today.

 During the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) annual conference held in Phoenix last week, some PBPN triibal leaders had their picture taken with Secretary of the Department of Interior Dirk Kempthorne and Nedra Darling who is the Director of Public Affairs and also a tribal member.  

Some members of the Tribal Council and others are in Phoenix this week attending the 65th Annual National Congress of American Indians Convention and Tradeshow.

Some Tribal Council members and others are attending the 65th Annual National Congress of American Indians Convention and Tradeshow in Phoenix this week. The convention runs from October 19-24. 

October is full of commemorative and celebratory weeks and some of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation departments are gearing up with their own activities and events to be held at the local level.  Among them are Red Ribbon Week, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Domestic Violence Awareness Month that will be observed as part of  a 10-Year Anniversary Celebration of the Potawatomi Tribal Police Department.

The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation held a pow-wow that included other activities  in honor of American Indian Day at Prairie Peoples Park on September 27.

Steve Ortiz, Tribal Chairperson, The We-Ta-Se Color Guard, and some tribal elders particpated in the Native American Diplomacy Symposium on September 12 at the Dole Instiitute in Lawrence, Kan.  Actor Wes Studi was also a part of the symposium.

A farewell reception for outgoing Tribal Council members and a swearing-in ceremony for the new members was held this morning at the Bingo Hall.

Jim Potter, Tribal Council Secretary, testified for the PBPN at a hearing in Shawnee County District Court last Friday regarding an injunctive relief petition that the PBPN filed against Harrah's Entertainment Inc over a non-compete agreement. 

Joyce Guerrero, Chago Hale and Carrie O'Toole were declared the winners today in  the run-off election for Tribal Council held at the Bingo Hall.

Ryan Dyer was sworn in today as Tribal Council Treasurer during a short ceremony at the Bingo Hall.

On August 27 beginning at 9 a.m. mail-in-ballots will be counted in an open meeting for the tribal membership to determine three Tribal Council seats including the Vice-Chairperson and two Tribal Council members. 

This coming Saturday is the PBPN Annual General Council Meeting with the Tribal Council/Ethics Commission Election following on Saturday, July 26.  

The Prairie Band Potawatomi Health Center received word on May 30 that they are now an accredited health care facility as approved by the Joint Commission for the Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHO).

The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) is urging Congress to act swiftly on passage of a bill that will address the high rates of violent crime in Native American communities.
 

White Bison, Inc. is undertaking a cross-country journey to bring awareness about the Native American Boarding School era called the Wellbriety Journey for Forgiveness from May 16 to June 24.  One of the stops will be at Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kan. June 5.  

NIGA Chairman Ernie Stevens was part of a panel that discussed the, "State of the Industry: The Evolution of Global Gaming", at the 2008 Global Gaming Expo held at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada recently.

A Native American Diplomacy Symposium will be held September 12 at the Dole Institute in Lawrence, Kansas and is part of the National Lewis & Clark Bicentennial Commemoration.   The PBPN We-Ta-Se Color Guard will perform.

Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced up to $13.6 million in multi-year funding for new clean energy projects on tribal lands.  Thirty-six Native American tribes and Alaska villages have been selected to receive awards that will advance renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency and conservation projects on triballands and rural Alaska villages.