129th Encampment Calls People Home
by Heather Sarles
For more than a century the Otoe-Missouria people have been gathering the third week of July to dance, laugh, sing, cook, eat, pray, remember and celebrate their Otoe-Missouria ways. For many tribal members, the gathering held July 15-18 calls them home to Red Rock to catch up with old friends and distant family. Encampment Committee Chairman Hank Childs says that the most important part of the four day event is the people. “I was told years ago that this encampment is the one time when the most Otoe people are located in one place,” Childs says. “It’s the time when we get together to enjoy the fellowship of each other. People plan their vacations to come home that weekend to be with family—to meet new nieces and nephews. I want to invite everyone to come home, dance and enjoy themselves.”
» Read the complete article on NativeTimes.com.
» UPDATE: See photos from the Ponca City News published July 16 and more on July 18.
