Hosted by the Community Senior Center of Richmond – Bolton – Huntington
Wednesday: January 27 – 7pm
Google Meet link to attend: meet.google.com/ery-uyeb-jnn
More information or assistance connecting, email: martha@cscvt.org
Don Stevens, Chief of Vermont’s Nulhegan Band of the Abenaki, is well-versed in the difficulties, prejudices and land losses that are recorded in his people’s history as far back as 1712. He has also been instrumental in changing things for the better over the past two decades.
Join him as he discusses the history, art and traditions of the Nulhegan Abenaki of northern Vermont in a special online program on January 27 at 7:00 PM. He will also show Abenaki artifacts, and provide ample time for viewers’ questions.
Indigenous to the Northeast Kingdom, the Nulhegan Abenaki selected Don as Chief in 2010. He led the effort to secure Vermont’s official recognition for the Nulhegan as a tribe in 2011, and helped restore its territorial boundaries and permanent hunting and fishing rights.
For many years, the Nulhegan Abenaki had no land they could define as their own. Don helped change that. He secured grants to purchase 68 forested acres in the Northeast Kingdom. According to Don, “We have a place where we can go to do prayers and gather as a group. We can pick up the soil and know that our ancestors walked on that land.”
His leadership also is helping broaden awareness of Abenaki traditions and history. Don’s initiatives include Nulheganaki, a weekend-long celebration of Abenaki culture held annually since 2011; the Abenaki Cultural and Historical Exhibit in place at Burlington International Airport since 2019, and the Abenaki Land Link Program, a partnership with public organizations and private landowners to establish a seed bank to grow rare indigenous crops.
