(L-R) Changing Spirits event coordinator also traditional jingle dancer Indian Voices writer Melissa; Reyna Salazar Paiute, Indian Voices' Yvonne Hawk; and Apache (Elder) model wearing ribbon skirts made by Yvonne Hawk for the fashion show
On September 29, Changing Spirits and the College of Southern Nevada (CSN) hosted a boarding school memorial and Indigenous showcase. The showcase included several Native American vendors, a beautiful fashion show and many speakers who reminisced about just how recent the tragedy of living in a boarding school was. The turnout was great with the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe, Moapa Band of Paiutes, Cherokee Nation and the Apache Tribe, to name a few, in attendance. Local politician Shelly Berkeley came to show her support as well. Yvonne Hawk was a big part of this fashion show and event.
“I am a Cheyenne elder who had a vision of different tribes coming together that blossom into a gathering for a memorial event on children who were taken away from their families and put into boarding schools across the Indian reservations. I prayed for a good outcome and especially for those who spoke of their stories. I attended a boarding school from the age of five until six when my grandma came and took me back to Oklahoma. I remember having my hair cutoff, wearing a uniform, taken to the dorm in the basement with different ages. We got up early and did our chores,” Yvonne Hawk said.
The Las Vegas community looks forward to more events hosted by Changing Spirits and CSN in the near future.
