Wesget Sipu Heritage Project update

To the editor:
    The Wesget Sipu, Inc. continues to make progress with the our project, “The Preservation of the Ancestral and Cultural Heritage of the Maliseet and Micmac People known as the Wesget Sipu of the St. John Valley, Maine”. Our focuses for this grant are cultural preservation activities, economic development, cultural heritage, and social development.
    The cultural preservation activities concentrate on electronically preserving our ancestral heritage and genealogy as Maliseet and Micmac People who represent the members of the Wesget Sipu Tribe in the St. John Valley. Oral records of our Tribal Elders are being archived and documents of our history are being collected to be placed in the archives at the University of Maine at Fort Kent.
    Gail Gagnon, our Project Genealogist reports: “about 70-plus genealogies have been examined and verified thus far for the ANA/SEDS Heritage project. There are many more tribal member family files to review. It all takes time and is a very interesting endeavor. So far my findings show how our tribal families migrated back and forth from their native homes on both sides of the Canadian/American borders throughout history. It is also very interesting to see how the families in the tribe are so closely related.”
    Tony Gagnon, our Historian, and other Project staff members, attended an Archival Workshop in Bangor on April 9. This workshop was offered by Bill Cook, the local History/Special Collections librarian at the Bangor Public Library. The workshop was invaluable in regards to caring for the tribal historical records. Articles and family photos are continuing to be gathered for preservation.
    For economic development, the grant is creating economic opportunities by developing partnerships with local organizations: Northern Maine Development Corp., the Aroostook County Rural Conservation and Development Council, and the Elders of the Aroostook Band of Mi’Kmaq, Presque Isle, and Geapegiag, Que. Members have received training on budget and financial management relating to Native American tribal economic development. We have begun increasing cultural economic opportunities by capitalizing on our Native American skills: snowshoe making, basketry, and woodland crafts-tool making.
    The cultural heritage and social development projects have included council leadership training, helping people work on regalia, attending cultural events such as the Bear Feast at Spruce Haven, and working with the Tribal Elders to learn traditions (Youth/Elder program).
    Brian Theriault and Joseph Davis organized wonderful activities for the Youth/Elder project during April. Davis reported: “We started off with making dreamcatchers and the teaching of dreamcatchers. It was a very exciting and a fun morning.”
    Elder Joan Theriault and her daughter Louise Latvis worked with the youths using red willow sapling branches to make the outer rings of the dreamcatchers. And, on April 19th and 20th, they helped the youths make beaded bracelets.
    During the Beadwork class, Edmond Theriault had lots of help from the youths to put a green snowshoe frame onto a snowshoe mold. His comment was, “I never had so much help before.”
    Our Native American flute lessons continue on Friday afternoons. There are three students at this time, and we are looking forward to our class growing. These past two Saturday’s, Edmond Theriault and Joseph Davis demonstrated Flintknapping; the making of arrowheads, spear points and other stone tools.
    On April 14th, Joseph Davis, Danielle Leblanc and Louise Latvis had the Honor to talk to an assembly of students at East Grand School in Danforth on Native American culture. The activities included drumming, trading beads, and storytelling. Grades preK-12 attended and participated in the assembly.
    Tammy Nadeau, our Financial Manager states we continue to remain below our projected budget requirements. This month, we have purchased Heirloom seeds for our gardening activity is scheduled to begin May 29. For more information on any of these activities please call our office at 207-834-9040. Leave a message, and we will return your call.
    This project is funded by HHS, ACF, Administration for Native Americans (ANA)-Social Economic Development Strategies (SEDS) Grant program.