Copyright © 2005 NLThomas
All Rights Reserved

Cherokee Nation, OK, Principal Chief Chad "Corntassel" Smith

TAHLEQUAH, OKLAHOMA - Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, has made a firm commitment to help build strong Cherokee communities. Luckily, some Cherokee youth share his vision and are doing their part to ensure that their communities will be around for a while.

The youth from the communities of Dry Creek and Greasy have formed community youth organizations and are meeting regularly and making sure their voices are heard. The Cherokee Nation recently rewarded all of their hard work with a trip to Denver, Colorado.

"We try to teach leadership development all the time, and we have two communities where their organizations are very active," said Sharon Dry, director of community youth development for the Cherokee Nation. "They are at Dry Creek and Greasy, and the youth groups there have been working together on projects to help improve the recreation for their communities."

The groups originally formed several years ago when the Cherokee Nation gave them $5,000 to spend on supplies for their community buildings. The kids were allowed to use the money on things like recreation equipment, basketball courts, TV’s for indoor activities like "movie night," and games like pool tables and foosball tables, as long as they could all agree on what the money should be used for. The two groups from Greasy and Dry Creek have continued to work together and have used their groups to accomplish many other tasks in the community.

Ten kids from each youth group traveled to Denver, Colorado, with Dry, who organized the trip. They not only got to see sights they had never seen before, they also used some of their leisure time to help out others along the way.

"This helps us in our effort in leadership development, because by getting the youth involved like this, it helps them become stronger leaders and helps build a stronger community for the future," Dry said. "The trip helped expose the children to opportunities they have never had before, some of them had never been away from home for that long before."

While in Denver, the kids, ages 8 to 15, donated their time to help the local citizens plant flowers and plants including a medicinal herb garden.

"It was fun," said Talia Poafpybitty, 10, of Dry Creek.

For more information on Cherokee Nation community youth projects contact Sharon Dry, phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2483).

Related Cherokee Nation contact information:

Mike Miller, Cherokee Nation Director of Communications Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2210) Fax: 918-458-5580 E-mail: Communications@cherokee.org Larry Daugherty, Advertising Manager Cherokee Nation - Public Affairs Phone 918-456-0671 (Ex.2324) E-mail: ldaugherty@cherokee.org

Steven Swogger, Agriculture Liaison Natural Resources Department Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2546) FAX: 918-458-7673 E-mail: sswogger@cherokee.org Bradley D. Peak, Cherokee Nation Natural Resources Specialist Phone: 918-456-0671 (ex.2843) E-mail: bpeak@cherokee.org