DESERT WIND
Lipan Apache Newsletter
Volume 1, Issue 1
05-07
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLICATIONS
It has been a privilege to serve as your Second Vice Chairman for the last six years.
Recently I was moved to the position of First Vice Chairman of the Lipan Apache Band
of Texas, Inc. One of my responsibilities is to develop better communication with
the members of the Lipan Apache Band of Texas to promote a better sense of community
within our tribe. One way will be through a quarterly newsletter. So now I pass on
to you the first newsletter of our tribe. For now we will call it "Desert Wind."
We hope that this will be the first step to bring us together as Lipan Apache people.
Thank you; I am here to serve you.
Robert Soto
First Vice Chairman
CHAIRMAN'S CORNER
Greetings to all. I am excited to be able to address the N'de. As many of you are aware,
The Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc. held its first quarterly meeting in Robstown,
Texas on April 27, 2007. Many exciting decisions came from that meeting. Before addressing
this I would like to thank all tribal members who attended. Many traveled from all over
Texas to make the meeting. We also had out of state members from Louisiana, and Minnesota.
Again many thanks to all who attended.
Decisions that were made were that The Lipan Apache band of Texas, Inc. General Council
showed a true commitment to all tribal members regardless of which Tribal clan they
are members of. We committed ourselves to an open and accountable Tribal government.
We decided that Robstown will be the home of the corporate offices and from there we
hope to serve the N'de with honor and truth.
During that meeting we welcomed our new General Council member and Tribal Curator,
Rey Salazar. Rey's warrior spirit and commitment to our people really came through
when he spoke with such passion on his war against diabetes and the need for educating
our young on proper nutrition. His passion came forth with such force of commitment
that it touched my heart. Again, we welcome Rey to the Council.
There was also great enthusiasm showed by members to seek a way to be able to
contribute to the Tribe. During the meeting I said their Tribe would call upon
them. One way of helping is with monetary contributions. Currently we are in the
process of securing a bank to do business with. Until then I ask for any help
that can be offered to the Tribe. Please make any checks payable to Juan Soliz
General Council Treasurer. Send all contributions to General Council Vice-Chairman
Robert Soto at 1913 Camellia, McAllen, TX 78501. For those members who do not have
access to e-mail who wish to receive this newsletter by regular mail, please send
four self-addressed, stamped envelopes so that the newsletter can be sent to you.
We will reimburse you for postage as soon as funds are secured.
Other decisions of great impact to our tribe are that we wish to build good
relations with other nations. The new relations will enable us to gain through
networking valuable information and knowledge to help further us in our quest
for federal recognition. We hope to renew relations with Nations who might have
lost touch with us for various reasons. For these, we will be sending delegations
to make peace and take offerings for renewal of trust and friendship. To any
Nation that we may have offended we will beg their pardon and ask them to accept
our peace offerings. We will do this with great sincerity of heart and show them
our commitment to doing things the right way. We will show them our commitment
to be an accountable Tribe responsible for our actions.
This brings me to a sad point:
XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX has served the Lipan and has been involuntarily
retired by the General Council on April 27.2007. Investigations are
continuing at this time and the General Council, myself included, will
make no comment on this matter. Updates on this matter will be issued
as quickly as the facts can be ascertained.
xxxxx xxxxx has also served the Lipan and also has been retired
involuntarily by the General Council on April 27, 2007. Investigations
are continuing at this time and as above, no comments on this matter
will be made by any General Council member. Updates on this matter will
also be disseminated as quickly as the facts are ascertained.
As General Council Chairman I encourage all members to keep their hearts
strong and keep their faith that the long road to federal recognition is
well within reach. Our friends, the Great People of the Chickasaw Nation,
had some very strong advice. They told us: "Act Like a Nation" and this
is what we will do. Please tell all your friends and family of the great
progress made by the Lipan Apache Band of Texas. Tell them that the N'de
are alive and well and need their support and help. Any contributions
that are made will receive receipts. These will be issued in accordance
with the rules governing federal 501(c)3's. Financial records will be
made available for review.
Once again thank you for your attendance, and many heartfelt thanks
for your confidence in the General Council.
Bernard F. Barcena Jr.
General Council Chairman
STATE OF THE LIPAN NATION
(Address by Bernard F. Barcena Jr., General Council Chairman on April 27, 2007)
Good evening and welcome to all.
Tonight is a special moment in time for the Lipan. We have been in retreat for too
long; we have been living in the shadows; we have been sleeping with our moccasins on.
Tonight is the night we turn as a Nation. We will stand as one; we will come together
as a unified people where all families are welcome.
This Council you see before you is a group of people who have dedicated themselves
to creating an open and accountable government. This is the first step in the process
of becoming a federally acknowledged people. It is true that we must file paperwork and
leap over hurdles, but our first task is to set our own house in order.
This Council has voted unanimously to retain the services of Robert Gonzalez
as Tribal Counselor and William Larew as Tribal Administrator. Earlier this
year I dispatched Robert Gonzalez and William Larew as emissaries to the
Chickasaw Nation to initiate a tribal relationship and to ask for guidance.
Their words are strong and true; their message to me and to every Lipan is
to “Act Like a Nation.”
To be a Nation you must trust your leaders and your leaders must be
held to account before the People. We are gathered here tonight so that
we may hold those who have failed us to account. This we shall do without
anger or animosity, but according to the laws under which we operate and
have sworn to uphold.
Our efforts on the path to acknowledgment and protection as a Sovereign
Nation began some time ago, but have never really been prosecuted with
vigor and determination.
Along this path will be difficulties and setbacks. The Lipan People have
500 years of experience with hard times. It is this generation that will
gather itself as one; it is this generation that will finally find that Homeland
that we can all call our own. It is this generation that will honor our ancestors
by answering their call to preserve and protect that which is Lipan.
Rey Salazar sits on the Council and is the tribal Curator. It is his charge to
develop a department that will house our artifacts, preserve and teach our
language, and preserve and teach our customs and traditions. His work is
what will be the touchstone for our culture.
Some of the work we must attend to tonight is hard, but it is the way of
the warrior and the statesman. We will speak of an accounting of our
Leadership, and we will address these matters in open Council for all to
hear.
When the past is passed, we will look to the future. Tonight is the time f
or the Lipan to begin building the dream of coming together as one. We
have all had difficulties in understanding one another, some trespasses
have been valid and some trespasses have been imagined. Whether these
hurts are real or imagined does not matter - they still create pain and distrust.
Tonight, let me be the first to offer apologies to those I may have hurt.
If we are to be the Children of our Creator, let us call on Him to open
our hearts to healing, to open our minds to new ways of communicating,
to allow our spirits to come together as one so we may together, openly
and honestly, build a new homeland for all of our families.
This is the seventh generation since President Lamar of the Republic
of Texas ordered our extermination or expulsion. We have not died off
nor have we left. We will stand as a sovereign Nation where our ancestors
once roamed. We will honor our heritage, and we will do these things
together as one.
I will call on you for your help. Tell other Lipans to heed the call. We
will no longer be known as a scattered People. And I know these words
to be true because we will stand as one and we will no longer be known
as a defeated people. My words are words of life.
A WORD FROM GENEALOGY AND ENROLLMENT DEPARTMENT
Hello to all,
My name is Victor Cornejo; I am the new nominee for the Clerk
of the Nation / Head of Genealogy and Enrollment Department,
a General Council position, for the Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc.
I am currently working with General Council on set policies and
procedures for tribal enrollment, along with having a centralized
office located in Texas. Within the office all applications of enrollment
and family genealogy will be stored and held in complete confidentiality.
Lipan history and documents will also be stored within this location
(open to the public). If you have any questions or concerns with
enrollment or you just simply want to chat, feel free to contact me
at (612) 991-4119 or email me at tindi.investigationsinc@gmail.com.
Thank you.
A FEW THOUGHTS FROM REY SALAZAR (Curator/Tribal Horticulturist)
We cannot enjoy the future if our people and our families are all ill and suffering from the
effects of Obesity, which leads to Diabetes and Heart Disease. Change today will insure
a better future. This we do for the seven generations that follow.
With this in mind we ask all the people to consider looking at what we are
eating and slowly changing the way we eat, by supporting local growers,
eating more native foods, walking and talking with our families about making
small changes for the future of our next seven generations.
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NATIVE FOODS
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Following is a list of NATIVE FOODS that are available right now to all Lipan in our State of Texas. |
| NOPALES (PRICKLY PEAR CACTUS) | CORN |
| VERDULAGA | MESQUITE PODS |
| DEER VENISON | TOMATOES |
| RABBIT DOMESTIC OR WILD | POTATOES |
| TURKEY & TURKEY EGGS | ALL BERRIES |
| WILD OR FERAL HOG | SORGHUM |
| SQUASH | FISH |
| BEANS | AMARANTH |
| CITRUS | FIGS |
| APPLES | WATERMELONS |
| MELONS | OKRA |
| BUFFALO MEAT | QUELITE |
| PECANS | ALL NUTS |
| PAPAYA | MANGOS |
| AVOCADOS | SUNFLOWERS |
| PEPPERS | LETTUCE/GREENS |
This is a small list of many NATIVE FOODS that are available to us; we suggest buying from
local growers or growing it yourself. Contact us for help or questions about native gardening or
about our fight with Diabetes and Heart Disease at xochicalli@hotmail.com. We are also on
LocalHarvest.com @ Xochicalli Gardens & Resource Center.
EXERCISE
All experts agree eating right alone, cannot stop these diseases; we have to move
and move forward! Whether it is just throwing a football with the kids, walking,
gardening, doing traditional dances and games, or hunting and fishing. The point is
action and doing things that can help us to be more fit and able to handle our
everyday activities. We ask our people, take a little time and move about, it can
buy us a little more time on this beautiful Mother Earth.
NEWS FROM THE PEOPLE
SOUTH TEXAS INDIAN DANCERS ASSOCIATION
The South Texas Indian Dancers Association is an organization started
by our family (the Soto Family) back in 1970 to help preserve our Native
culture. We wanted to make sure our people, the Lipan Apaches, stayed
alive through our dances and songs. Along with dancing and singing, our
family sponsors two pow wows a year - one on the fourth weekend of
October called The South Texas (Way South) Pow Wow, which is now
going on its 19th year; and in the spring we sponsor the Nde Daa Pow
Wow which means "The People Spring Pow Wow." Nde means the
People and Daa mean Spring. This pow wow happens the second
weekend of March. Along with our two annual pow wows the organization
does anywhere between forty and sixty presentations a year among our
schools and universities. In our presentations not only do we share the
meanings of our dances but we give a short history of our Lipan Apache
People. If you have any questions, feel free to call me (Robert Soto) at
956-686-6696 or email me at ROBTSOTO@AOL.COM.
POW WOW SCHEDULE
May 25-26 - Laredo Memorial Pow Wow, Laredo TX 210-359-7473
June 1-2 - 39th Annual Alabama-Coushatta Pow Wow, Livingston TX 936-563-1120
June 8-10 - 51st Annual TIHA Pow Wow, Burnet TX 936-653-3116
July 20-22 - Missouri State Pow Wow, Sedalia MO 660-826-5608
Sept. 15 - Gulf Coast Tia Piah Gourd Dance and Pow Wow, Pasadena TX 281-448-8435
Sept. 15 - Annual TIHA Fall Pow Wow, Burnet TX 956-653-3116
Sept. 22-23 - 15th Annual Four Winds Pow Wow, Killeen/Ft Hood TX 254-493-8835
Sept. 22-23 - 8th Annual Permian Basin Intertribal Pow Wow, Odessa TX 432-889-2693
October 13-14 - Tribal American Network’s Pow Wow, Belton TX 254-853-9223
Oct. 19-20 - Moving Waters 10th Annual Pow Wow, Canyon Lake TX 830-964-3613
Oct. 20 - Gulf Coast Tia Piah Gourd Dance and Pow Wow, Pasadena TX 281-448-8435
Oct. 26-27 - 18th Annual South Texas (Way South) Pow Wow, McAllen TX 956-686-6696
Lipan Apache Band of Texas, Inc.
General Council
Bernard F. Barcena Jr. - Chairman
Robert Soto - First Vice Chairman/ Department of Publications
Marcos Govea - Second Vice Chairman
Veronica Russell - Interim Secretary
Juan Soliz - Treasurer
Rey Salazar - Curator/Tribal Horticulturist
Rudy S. Perez - Council Member
Joanna Soliz - Council Member
Bill Larew - Tribal Administrator
Bobby Gonzalez - Tribal Counselor
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