POSTPONED – TA to co-host Nolumbeka Project’s “River Stories”
February 27, 2020
EVENT POSTPONED – We regret to share the news that this event has been canceled to mitigate community health concerns. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.
Thetford Academy and the Dartmouth College Native American Studies Department will co-host the Nolumbeka Project event “Nisnol Siboal/Two Rivers: Celebrating the Waters of Ndakinna (Our Land)” on March 14, 2020, in TA’s Martha Jane Rich Theater. This event is the second of 12 in the series “River Stories 2020: Recovering Indigenous Voices of the Connecticut River Valley.”
The “River Stories” series coincides with the Plymouth 400, a year-long celebration commemorating the historic landing of the Mayflower in 1620. Through this series, Nolumbeka explores how this infamous event affected the tribes who lived along the Kwenitegok (Connecticut) River, an historical narrative not often known or taught by mainstream educators.
“River Stories” tells us about these tribes and how they survived systemic genocide, massacre, epidemic, removal, and forced sterilization through persistence and resilience. We hear the voices of their surviving descendants; from representatives of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk-Abenaki Nation, from Chief Don Stevens, Joseph and Jesse Bruchac, and singer-songwriter Bryan Blanchette.
Saturday, March 14, (snow date March 15), 1-4 p.m., Martha Jane Rich Theater, Thetford Academy, 304 Academy Rd, Thetford, VT. All welcome. Free. Donations appreciated. www.nolumbekaproject.org
The Nolumbeka Project is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the history of Native Americans/American Indians of New England through educational programs, art, history, music, heritage seed preservation and cultural events. The Project is actively building, maintaining, and expanding an historical archive research library for use by the Tribes and Educators of the Northeast and beyond.
Chief Don Stevens is an award-winning leader, businessman, writer, and lecturer. He was appointed to the Vermont Commission on Native American Affairs by Governor Douglas in 2006 for two terms where he served as Chair in his second term. He helped lead the fight to obtain legal recognition for the Abenaki People in Vermont who were recognized by the Vermont Legislature in 2011.
For over forty years Joseph Bruchac has been creating literature and music that reflect his Indigenous heritage and traditions and is the author of more than 120 books. He has shared traditional tales of the Native peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands widely in Europe and throughout the United States
Jesse Bowman Bruchac is a traditional storyteller, musician, and Abenaki language instructor. He works as co-director of his family run education center Ndakinna. He has also acted as consultant, translator, composer, and language coach for programs on AMC, National Geographic, and PBS.
Bryan Blanchette is an Abenaki singer/songwriter, and Berklee College of Music alumni who has been singing on the North East Powwow drum circuit for over twenty years with his drum group the Black Hawk Singers.
This event is sponsored by the Nolumbeka Project, Mascoma Bank, The Babson 2020 Fund of the Peace Development Fund, Thetford Academy, the Dartmouth College Native American Studies Department, The Lyme Inn, Great River Hydro, and the Connecticut River Conservancy.