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"Heartbeat of Native America" T-Shirt

Now in its 12th year of creating contemporary clothing with traditional messages and imagery, Native Threads is leading the way down a new, more challenging path: To help raise awareness of Native peoples in need and giving others an opportunity to assist them. The company's recent connection with the Northern Cheyenne tribe in Busby, Montana, is prime example of this new vision and direction.

When Northern Cheyenne traditional tribal elder, Leonard Elkshoulder asked tribal member Dave Bailey to help solicit donations of clothing for the tribe's 200 school children, Bailey immediately thought of Native Threads. Bailey, a longtime mail order customer of Native Threads, wrote a letter to company owner, Rudy Rojas, asking if his company would be willing to sell clothing to the tribe at discounted prices. But Rojas recognized an opportunity for his company and his loyal customers to do much more.

"Placing the needs of the community ahead of the needs of individuals has always been a strong tradition throughout Native America," Rojas added. "Helping these children is just one example of how we can all keep that tradition alive. When these children grow older, the ones that are able to can pay the tradition forward by helping others in need."

In the next Native Threads catalog, scheduled to be printed in the spring, Rojas, decided to pledge a generous portion of the proceeds from a newly designed "Heartbeat of Native America," T-shirt to benefit the Northern Cheyenne children. "We recently sold a special edition T-shirt to raise funds for the victims and families of the September 11 terrorist attacks, so I'm very confident that this new T-shirt program will get the desired results."

"Without our family of Native American customers, we wouldn't be in business today," Rojas reflects. "So we feel compelled to pursue new ways in which we can use our brand and our company as a vehicle for rallying support for Native peoples. I believe our customers share this vision, and they will feel even better about purchasing Native Threads products when they know that their purchases are actually making a difference."

As a child, Rojas and his family experienced the hardships of life on a reservation. "In the 1960s, life in the Ysleta Del Sur was really a struggle for us. It is always a challenge for proud people trying to earn a living with very limited opportunities. Although my family moved from the reservation when I was very young, I grew up understanding the cultural and economic hardships that so many contemporary Native Americans face," Rojas added.

As an Indian-owned and operated company, Native Threads is connected both culturally and spiritually to the Native American Community. This connection is clearly visible in both its products and business philosophy. For more information about Native Threads and its unique products, visit their website or you can reach them by phone: 1-800-335-5855, or via FAX: 1-800-989-5855.