The
Honoring Pole, at Shanksville, PA
For more information about the Healing Poles please contact Kurt Russo at 1-800-670-6252 or via email at frkvalues@aol.com.
News Release
For Immediate Release Contact: Lorette Ray, 425-744-3571, or
Date: August 26, 2004 Kurt Russo, Lummi Indian Nation, 360-961-4554
Media Invited to Send-Off Ceremony for 9-11
Liberty and Freedom Totem Poles
Representatives of the media are invited to a special ceremony on Wednesday, September 1, at 10 a.m. at Semiahmah, a historical Lummi village site near Blaine, Washington. The ceremony will be the official send-off of the Liberty and Freedom Totem Poles to the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. The totem poles, carved by Lummi master carver Jewell “Praying Wolf” James, will honor victims of the 9-11 terrorist attack, as well as past and present members of the United States armed forces.
The Liberty and Freedom Totem Poles will be accompanied by eleven Native Americans from Pacific Northwest Tribes on a 4,700-mile trip across the United States. During the course of the trip, the totem poles will be blessed in a traditional manner by Native American communities in Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, North Carolina, and at Gettysburg Battlefield National Park.
Upon their arrival in Washington DC, the Liberty and Freedom Poles will be dedicated at a ceremony at the Pentagon on September 19. They will then be displayed at the Chapel in the Historic Congressional Cemetery until the fall of 2005, at which time they will become part of a permanent 9-11 Memorial Grove on Kingman Island in Washington, DC.
The Liberty and Freedom Poles consists of two, 13-foot high totem poles each carved in the figure of bears, connected by a 34-foot cross beam carved with eagles, the moon, and sun designs. Jewell James described these massive totem poles as “a contribution from Native America to the healing of the American Nation and to those who lost loved ones in the attack on the Pentagon, and to all our Nation’s veterans.”
The Lummi Indian Nation has been engaged in this 9-11 commemoration effort since 2002, when it carved and placed the first Healing Pole at Arrow Park in the Sterling Forest in New York State, one-hour north of Manhattan. The Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest partnered with the Lummi Indian Nation in 2003 to provide the carving wood for the Honoring Pole, which was placed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, at the site of the 9-11 crash of United Flight 93. In April 2004, the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest provided two large Western redcedar poles for the Liberty and Freedom Poles.
According to Jon Vanderheyden, Mt. Baker District Ranger, “It is an honor and privilege for the U.S. Forest Service to partner with the Lummi. They have transformed these cedar trees into memorials of peace, strength, and honor.”
The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the nation’s largest and oldest American Indian and Alaska Native organization, strongly supports the endeavors of the Lummi. NCAI President Tex Hall said, “The NCAI is very proud to stand with the Lummi Nation during this historic dedication. These poles and the dedication ceremony at the Pentagon will be a lasting tribute to the victims of the 9-11 attacks and veterans of the armed forces who answered their country’s call by serving with pride and honor.”
For more information on the totem poles, please contact Kurt Russo at 360-961-4554.
Lummi Tribe - For thousands of years, the Lummi Tribe has lived in northwest Washington State. Many of their sacred lands are located in the ancient forests within and around Mt. Baker in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. (The Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest is located in Washington State and extends more than 140 miles along the western slopes of the Cascade Mountains from the Canadian border to the northern boundary of Mt. Rainier National Park.) The Native people are the original woodworkers of the Pacific Northwest.
Their most-used material was Western redcedar – prized because the wood is light, easily carved or split, and chemically resistant to decay. Canoes, longhouses, and totems were made from the wood. Even the inner bark of the cedar was utilized to produce clothing and baskets. The cedar was considered the “tree of life.” Its importance is reflected in the custom of reciting a prayer to the spirit of the tree before it or some part of it is taken.
According to Jewell “Praying Wolf” James, Head Carver of the House of Tears, “The Lummi People are Coast Salish, and are related to tribes throughout the Pacific Northwest. As Coast Salish, our traditions and spiritual knowledge teaches that the cedar tree is a part of our sacred understanding of creation. It gave all parts of itself, as a cedar tree, for the use and benefit of our people. However, we have to remember to honor its sacrifice and remember to share with others, in appreciation of this gift from creation.”
Memorial Grove on Kingman Island: The totem poles will be moved to Kingman Island in 2005 to be a centerpiece of the Washington D.C. Memorial Grove. This site is now being prepared and landscaped with a plan developed by Lee & Associates. Seed money for the September 11 Memorial Grove on Kingman Island was provided by the U.S. Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry Program, a part of State & Private Forestry. Because of the overwhelming desire by communities to honor and memorialize the tragic losses that occurred on September 11, 2001, the U.S. Forest Service was asked by the United States Congress to create the “Living Memorials Project.”
This initiative invokes the resonating power of trees to bring people together and create lasting, living memorials to the victims of terrorism, their families, communities, and the nation. Cost-share grants from the U.S. Forest Service help to support the design and development of community projects in the New York metropolitan area, SW Pennsylvania, and the Washington D.C. metropolitan area.
For more information, go to www.livingmemorialsproject.net.
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Mt. Baker Ranger Station 810 State Route 20 Sedro-Woolley, WA 98284 (360) 856-5700 or Fax (360) 856-1934 www.fs.fed.us/r6/mbs |
For Immediate Release Contact: Lorette Ray, 425-744-3571, or
Date: August 26, 2004 Kurt Russo, Lummi Indian Nation, 360-961-4554
Media Invited to Send-Off Ceremony for 9-11
Liberty and Freedom Totem Poles
Representatives of the media are invited to a special ceremony on Wednesday, September 1, at 10 a.m. at Semiahmah, a historical Lummi village site near Blaine, Washington. The ceremony will be the official send-off of the Liberty and Freedom Totem Poles to the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. The totem poles, carved by Lummi master carver Jewell “Praying Wolf” James, will honor victims of the 9-11 terrorist attack, as well as past and present members of the United States armed forces.
The Liberty and Freedom Totem Poles will be accompanied by eleven Native Americans from Pacific Northwest Tribes on a 4,700-mile trip across the United States. During the course of the trip, the totem poles will be blessed in a traditional manner by Native American communities in Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, North Carolina, and at Gettysburg Battlefield National Park.
Upon their arrival in Washington DC, the Liberty and Freedom Poles will be dedicated at a ceremony at the Pentagon on September 19. They will then be displayed at the Chapel in the Historic Congressional Cemetery until the fall of 2005, at which time they will become part of a permanent 9-11 Memorial Grove on Kingman Island in Washington, DC.
The Liberty and Freedom Poles consists of two, 13-foot high totem poles each carved in the figure of bears, connected by a 34-foot cross beam carved with eagles, the moon, and sun designs. Jewell James described these massive totem poles as “a contribution from Native America to the healing of the American Nation and to those who lost loved ones in the attack on the Pentagon, and to all our Nation’s veterans.”
The Lummi Indian Nation has been engaged in this 9-11 commemoration effort since 2002, when it carved and placed the first Healing Pole at Arrow Park in the Sterling Forest in New York State, one-hour north of Manhattan. The Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest partnered with the Lummi Indian Nation in 2003 to provide the carving wood for the Honoring Pole, which was placed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, at the site of the 9-11 crash of United Flight 93. In April 2004, the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest provided two large Western redcedar poles for the Liberty and Freedom Poles.
According to Jon Vanderheyden, Mt. Baker District Ranger, “It is an honor and privilege for the U.S. Forest Service to partner with the Lummi. They have transformed these cedar trees into memorials of peace, strength, and honor.”
The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the nation’s largest and oldest American Indian and Alaska Native organization, strongly supports the endeavors of the Lummi. NCAI President Tex Hall said, “The NCAI is very proud to stand with the Lummi Nation during this historic dedication. These poles and the dedication ceremony at the Pentagon will be a lasting tribute to the victims of the 9-11 attacks and veterans of the armed forces who answered their country’s call by serving with pride and honor.”
For more information on the totem poles, please contact Kurt Russo at 360-961-4554.
Lummi Tribe - For thousands of years, the Lummi Tribe has lived in northwest Washington State. Many of their sacred lands are located in the ancient forests within and around Mt. Baker in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. (The Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest is located in Washington State and extends more than 140 miles along the western slopes of the Cascade Mountains from the Canadian border to the northern boundary of Mt. Rainier National Park.) The Native people are the original woodworkers of the Pacific Northwest.
Their most-used material was Western redcedar – prized because the wood is light, easily carved or split, and chemically resistant to decay. Canoes, longhouses, and totems were made from the wood. Even the inner bark of the cedar was utilized to produce clothing and baskets. The cedar was considered the “tree of life.” Its importance is reflected in the custom of reciting a prayer to the spirit of the tree before it or some part of it is taken.
According to Jewell “Praying Wolf” James, Head Carver of the House of Tears, “The Lummi People are Coast Salish, and are related to tribes throughout the Pacific Northwest. As Coast Salish, our traditions and spiritual knowledge teaches that the cedar tree is a part of our sacred understanding of creation. It gave all parts of itself, as a cedar tree, for the use and benefit of our people. However, we have to remember to honor its sacrifice and remember to share with others, in appreciation of this gift from creation.”
Memorial Grove on Kingman Island: The totem poles will be moved to Kingman Island in 2005 to be a centerpiece of the Washington D.C. Memorial Grove. This site is now being prepared and landscaped with a plan developed by Lee & Associates. Seed money for the September 11 Memorial Grove on Kingman Island was provided by the U.S. Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry Program, a part of State & Private Forestry. Because of the overwhelming desire by communities to honor and memorialize the tragic losses that occurred on September 11, 2001, the U.S. Forest Service was asked by the United States Congress to create the “Living Memorials Project.”
This initiative invokes the resonating power of trees to bring people together and create lasting, living memorials to the victims of terrorism, their families, communities, and the nation. Cost-share grants from the U.S. Forest Service help to support the design and development of community projects in the New York metropolitan area, SW Pennsylvania, and the Washington D.C. metropolitan area.
For more information, go to www.livingmemorialsproject.net.