The Awakening of Turtle Island: Portraits of Native Americans
Opening Night Friday, Oct 30 at 7 pm
Explore the beauty, sacredness, and spiritual re-awakening of people struggling to preserve their important history & immense gifts.
Register to attend the Opening Night Showcase event to enjoy hor d’oeuvres as photographer, Tracey Schmidt, shares her experience with native people. Registration closes Monday, October 26.
*Community Art Exhibit runs thru Nov 19 for Native American Heritage Month
Historical Perspective
We acknowledge, with humility, that the land where we gather was originally territory of Indigenous people, whom our ancestors have a history of mistreating.
During the 19th century through the mid-20th century, Methodists along with the federal government, forcibly removed Native American children from their families, placing them in boarding schools of abuse & poor conditions. Children were forced to change their appearance and abandon their native languages, practices & traditions in an effort to achieve forced assimilation and strip Indigenous children of their cultural identities.
Through recent initiatives, the denomination has launched projects to help fully uncover the history of these schools, issue formal acts of repentance, and support tribal healing programs.
This Art Exhibit is a way for us to learn and support the re-awakening of our Indigenous ancestors who are trying to re-build their lost culture & traditions.
Turtle Island is a cultural term used by many Indigenous people when referring to the continent of North America.