Storytelling, history, flute music part of COCC’s Native American Heritage Month

Wilson Wewa of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs — COCC

Published October 28, 2021 2:21 pm

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Central Oregon Community College is commemorating Native American Heritage Month with a lineup of virtual and in-person events in November, including at the Bend, Madras and Prineville campuses, all free and open to the public.

COVID-19 safety protocols will be in place for in-person events, with masks required. COCC strongly encourages in-person attendees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

“Our events are wide-ranging and focus on areas such as the hardships that our ancestors experienced, and the generational trauma that happened as a result, as well as oral traditions and the beauty of Native American flute music,” said Michelle Cary, Native American program coordinator and a member of the Seneca-Cayuga Nation.

Wilson Wewa of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs will present “Legends of the Northern Paiute,” stories handed down to Wewa by his elders, on two dates. The first presentation, including a light meal, is from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 3, at the COCC Prineville campus, 510 S.E. Lynn Blvd. The second presentation is from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at the Bend campus’s Coats Campus Center.

COCC world languages instructor Gabriann Hall, from the Klamath Tribes, presents “Truth, Reckoning and Healing: A Story of Indian Boarding Schools,” a talk on the atrocities that took place in these institutions in both the U.S. and Canada, on two dates. The first presentation is from noon to 1 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 4, at the Bend campus’s Coats Campus Center. The second is from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., with a light lunch provided, on Monday, Nov. 8, at the COCC Madras campus, 1170 E. Ashwood Road.

Award-winning musician James Greeley, from the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, will present a Native American flute concert from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 10, at the Bend campus’s Coats Campus Center.

Held via Zoom, the “History of the Seneca-Cayuga Nation of Oklahoma” is from noon to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 16. Presented by William Tarrant, culture and historic preservation director for the Seneca-Cayuga Nation, the talk will share a brief history of how the bands of the Seneca and Cayuga people came to be in the Oklahoma territory from the upper New York area.

Contact mcary@cocc.edu in advance for the Zoom link.

For specific information on these events, contact Michelle Cary, coordinator of the COCC Native American program, at 541-318-3782 or mcary@cocc.edu.

In advance of college events, persons needing accommodation or transportation because of a physical or mobility disability should contact Caitlyn Gardner at 541-383-7237. For accommodation because of other disability, such as hearing impairment, contact disability services at 541-383-7583.