CHEROKEE, NC, April 16, 2008—Cherokee Preservation Foundation (CPFdn) will host its sixth annual Community Celebration event on Friday, May 9, for grantees, partners and anyone else who is interested in the work CPFdn’s grantees are doing. The event will take place at the Cherokee Youth Center located at 1570 Acquoni Road in Cherokee, from noon a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with the doors opening at 11:30. It will include a complimentary Indian dinner served at noon that will be prepared by the North American Indian Women’s Association (NAIWA).
The event will feature short presentations from several grantees about programs in which Cherokee youth are participating. Speakers include:
- Kathy Dugan and Tammara Cole of the Cherokee Extension Service, who will describe the upcoming experience of local teenagers who will be participating in an eco-study tour in Costa Rica. They will learn about a different culture in a country known for being environmentally conscious, and they will teach Costa Ricans about their culture.
- Alyne Stamper from Cherokee High School, who will show the baskets being made by students at Cherokee High School and talk about students’ participation in a prestigious competition held recently at the Heard Museum in Phoenix.
- Karina Bottchenbaugh of the Cherokee Youth Council, who will discuss the recycling education effort of CYC members and the Go Green Team activities involving local youth.
People involved in other projects and programs funded by Cherokee Preservation Foundation will be available at booths to discuss the work they are doing, including Cherokee Friends, the Snowbird Language Project, language revitalization efforts led by KPEP and its partners at Western Carolina University, the Southeastern Tribes Cultural Celebration, the arts exhibition of young Cherokee artists at the Grove Arcade ARTS and Heritage Gallery, the bears project, and the upcoming Cherokee Days at Stecoah.
Others will discuss Cherokee Day of Caring, the New Schools project, Qualla Financial Freedom, the Sequoyah Fund, Cherokee Bottled Water, Big Cove’s walking track and playground, the marketing effort targeting visitors interested in the Tribe’s cultural attractions, and Cherokee Chamber of Commerce activities.
Come join us!!!
About Cherokee Preservation Foundation
Cherokee Preservation Foundation (www.cpfdn.org) was established on November 14, 2000, as part of the Second Amendment to the Tribal-State Compact between the EBCI and the State of North Carolina. It is an independent nonprofit foundation funded by the EBCI from gaming revenues generated by the Tribe. CPFdn is not part of or associated with any for-profit gaming entity. Since CPFdn’s inception in 2000, it has made 447 grants totaling more than $37 million to EBCI and regional projects and programs that address cultural preservation, economic development and job creation, and environmental renewal and protection. Every dollar of CPFdn support has been matched by $1.38 in secured grants or other funding or in-kind resources, making CPFdn’s total contribution to the region more than $89 million.
