Indigenous Peoples Celebration Recap
There’s something so beautiful about an event finally coming together after a year in the making. Last week, we celebrated Indigenous People’s Day at Rosebud Continuum with a limited edition field trip experience and a big community event.
We were working to organize this event last year, but Hurricane Milton had other plans. We had been planning this event with a friend of the farm, Kansas Middletent, as a way to spread knowledge about Indigenous culture and inspire our youth.
Kansas is an actor, model, and motivational speaker who founded an organization called Rising Stars, which focuses on empowering Indigenous youth and young people. Kansas is from the Lakota Sioux tribe in South Dakota, and brought two of his colleagues from Rising Stars with him. Richard “Bubba Smith, who is also Lakota, and Brook LaFloe, from the Turtle Island Mountains and Ojibwe tribe in Minnesota. Brook and Bubba are both educators, as well, and have spent much of their career sharing their culture, empowering the youth, and helping to create opportunities for others.
During the week, we welcomed two school groups, one from the Melanated Homeschool Cooperative and from North Tampa Christian Academy, for special field trips to hear from Kansas, Brook, and Bubba. We also welcomed Boy Scout Troops 3 and 33 for a fireside chat with Brook and Bubba so the Scouts could earn their Indigenous Badge.
Boy scout troops #3 and #33
Brook talking to the boyscouts about the Ojibwa tribe. In order for the boyscouts to earn their Indigenous Badge, they had to learn about Indigenous culture, religion/spirituality, history, foods, travel, housing, and language.
While the field trips were led by Kansas, Brook, and Bubba during the week, we were blessed to have Kansas’ family join us for the community event on Sunday. The field trip and the Sunday event included storytelling from our presenters, singing, dancing, sharing wisdom and busting myths about Indigenous culture and lifestyle, and lots of questions! On Sunday, we also raised the Tipis, and hosted a Make A Dreamcatcher and Jewelry Beading workshops.
While this event was a year in the making, we think it was well worth the wait. Our hearts are full from the experience and we are so grateful to everyone who came out and participated in the festivities, and we are most grateful to our Kansas and family, Brook, and Bubba for sharing their hearts, time, and knowledge with us. We can’t wait to do it again next year!
The whole Rosebud team and all of our Indigenous guests. From left to right Top row: Sonny, Maryann, Grandma Jo, Ericka, Brook, Seneca, baby Katala, Kansas, Nathan, TR, Bubba. Bottom row: Sage, Leal, Stacy, Teton, Michaela.