COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – A local artist has her newest creation displayed in a big way.

Make that a Walmart-sized way!

The company is selecting artists across the country to create community murals for its stores.

And what’s really cool is a Colorado Springs store selected one of its own customers for this job!

“I think that it’s awesome that a corporation is willing to showcase a small illustrator.”

April Lavely-Robinson was born and raised in Colorado Springs.

She also shops at the 8th Street Walmart.

“I was contacted by Walmart at the beginning of the year, and they were like, ‘Are you interested in doing a mural’ for this series that they’re doing called ‘Community Murals.’ Walmart is trying to bring in more local artisans and artists, and they wanted to showcase community through art.

“So they contacted me and asked if I would be interested, and as an illustrator, I was like, ‘Yes, I am interested!’”

The company actually approached her first to do a mural for its Lamar store.

“I was really honored they wanted me to do Colorado. So I did Lamar, and they loved it.”

So much, that her own Walmart came calling next.

“I actually emailed them when I was done and was like, ‘Just so you know, I’m really close to 8th Street Walmart, so if you need an artist for that …’ and it was just a couple of weeks later they emailed and asked if I would do the Walmart on 8th Street.”

In person, this mural looks like a beautiful, intricate painting. I was blown away to learn it wasn’t a painting at all!

“So I did the entire mural on my tablet,” April told me. “I can create some pretty amazing textures and make it look like a real painting.”

Walmart had asked for the mural to be done digitally — perfect for April, who is a digital artist!

“I’m a traditional painter. I’ve always painted my entire life. But after I had children, I needed a way I could still do art but also, you know, be a mom. So I picked up digital art with my iPad, and you can still paint, you can still use a stylist, it’s very much like painting. It’s different, but a very awesome creative outlet for me as a mom because I can just close my tablet and go change a diaper or take care of a baby. So I got really good at it.”

She described the process of making the mural.

“It was a really large DPI because they needed to blow it up very large. All of the locations, the mural sizes were the size of a wall. So I needed to use a really high DPI, which gave me very little layers to work with, which was a challenge and I had to very strategic where to put everything and how to incorporate everything. But it was really fun.”

As a native, thinking of everything to include was the hardest part.

“I was doing lots of thumbnail sketches, and I was getting frustrated because I didn’t know how to incorporate everything, so I went to bed, and I was just about to drift off and I saw exactly what I needed to do. The layout, how it has a very symmetric shape to it. I just saw it. So I got out of bed, I grabbed my tablet, I sketched it all out, and it just came that way. It was very organic, which is the best way art can come out.”

It took 20-30 hours to complete the mural. She then sent the file to Walmart, and they took it from there.

“I sent it to Walmart for approval, and from there they use a heated wrap to adhere it to the wall. And what I love about it is it actually looks like it’s painted, which is really fun, like I painted it on the wall.”

From the Broadmoor to the Air Force Academy and everything in between, her finished result celebrates Colorado Springs. It just went up at the store, and customer can now see it as they enter and exit the building.She described to me why she incorporated everything that she did.

“I have the Thunderbirds,” she said, gesturing up to the upper right corner of the wall. “When I was a kid, we would go and see the Thunderbirds. I remember that as a child, going and seeing that, and how loud they were and the roar of it, I really wanted to showcase that.

“And then we also have the Black Hawk over here representing the Colorado Springs military,” she said, gesturing the upper left.

“We live really close to Manitou, and my kids go to Manitou schools, so I wanted to make sure we put in the Manitou ‘M’ as well. … Also, the Incline. I’ve never done the Incline, but I will draw it all day.

“And then also the Shrine of the Sun. I’ve been staring at that ever since I was a kid, and it’s so beautiful. And I have gone up that one!”

I told her I loved that she had the Army aircraft on the south side and the Academy jets on the north.

“What I actually did was I tried to create where everything is, so Broadmoor being on the south side of Colorado Springs, the Shrine of the Sun being on the south side, and then we go more central to downtown, and then into Manitou … and then further north we have Garden of the Gods, and then very far north, we have the Air Force chapel and then the Thunderbirds. I really wanted to make sure everything was geologically correct.

“And then I also put in the Colorado state flower.

“I would definitely say my favorite part is the mountain because it took me so long to do. I redid the mountains over and over at least five times because I really wanted to capture Pikes Peak, which was really challenging. So that’s the thing I’m most proud of, because it was so challenging. I‘s just so iconic, and it’s just the key of Colorado Springs. So I really wanted to capture an organic thing with a digital medium. Challenging, but I think I did it.”

She also hid two Easter eggs in the mural for her kids. She showed me where they are, but asked me not to tell, so that shoppers can have fun looking for them!

Since completing the mural, April has been asked to do murals for the Walmart in Lakewood, and was honored by a Walmart 1,400 miles away in Delmont, Pennsylvania, which asked her to create its mural!

April hopes customers will get as much joy from the mural as she did creating it.

“I just want when people to walk in to see and be proud of Colorado Springs. To be proud of living here or just be grateful that they visited.”

But the reviews from her most important critics are already in!

April’s dad joined her for our interview, getting to see the mural for the first time! He kept telling me how proud he was of her, and how talented she was. Father and daughter spent time going through the mural together.

April’s son and daughter were blown away when they saw it with their mom for the first time.

“I had my daughter take a video of us walking in, and my son just kept saying, ‘You did that, Mom? You did that?’ And I got to point out my signature. I was like, ‘Yeah, I did that!’ He was like, ‘Wow, Mom, good job!’ And I was like [touches heart] so good. It’s like food for my heart.

“They’re really proud of me. And I’m proud of myself because they’re proud of me.”

_________________________

In a statement to our newsroom, Walmart said the following of its mural program:

“The Walmart’s new mural reflects the diversity and local cultures of Colorado Spring and is part of Walmart’s ‘Community Mural Program,’ the largest public-facing art installation celebrating communities across America. Walmart’s Community Mural Program is an important part of each store transformation and furthers Walmart’s commitment to the local community.”

Copyright 2023 KKTV. All rights reserved.

Despite a (very disappointing) failed referendum in October that would have given Indigenous peoples greater political representation, Australia hasn’t completely turned its back on the world’s oldest living cultures. Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders have been on the continent for more than 65,000 years, a lasting heritage represented by 250 distinct language groups. Thankfully, Indigenous tourism is alive and well and actively promoted by Tourism Australia, a government agency. Its curated list includes some 168 experiences offered by 45 businesses, a mix of tour operators, storytellers, activities, guides, and accommodations in every region. How to choose?

We know AFAR readers seek meaningful connections to places and people. They want to authentically engage with Indigenous cultures, listen to their stories, and view the world through their eyes. So two of our most frequent Australia travelers reviewed the tourism board’s list, and cross-referenced it with our own, to surface 12 of the best Indigenous-owned, -operated, and
-acknowledged experiences in Australia. Here’s how to enjoy ancient rock-art safaris, bush tucker, Dreaming (creation) stories, desert stargazing, and more.

Northern Territory

1. Check into Cicada Lodge and explore with Nitmulik Tours

Owned and operated by Jawoyn Traditional Custodians, Cicada Lodge, about 215 miles southeast of Darwin in the Northern Territory’s Top End (far north), makes the perfect base for exploring Nitmiluk National Park. The Jawoyn-owned park is an Edenic land of waterfalls, river systems, millennia-old rock paintings, secluded water holes, and 13 gorges. The park’s most famous, Nitmiluk Gorge (formerly known as Katherine Gorge), is marked by towering cliffs and a river wide and deep enough to cruise. The eco-lodge’s 18 rooms have polished timber floors and balconies—some with panoramic views of the sandstone landscape above Nitmiluk Gorge—and also feature paintings and carved works by local Aboriginal artists. There’s an outdoor pool for splashing around after a sweaty day adventuring in the Outback with its sister company Nitmiluk Tours, which offers guided gorge exploration.

2. See ancient rock art with Lords Arnhem Land and Kakadu Safaris

Best known for its beauty, isolation, and outstanding rock art, Arnhem Land (a vast wilderness area in the Northern Territory) is one of the largest Indigenous-owned reserves in Australia. It’s perhaps one of the last few places in Australia where Indigenous culture is still dominant. Like Arnhem Land next door, the UNESCO World Heritage–listed Kakadu National Park is also a place of immense cultural, religious, and social significance to the local Aboriginal people.

The terrain in the Top End switches from floodplains and rock escarpments to woodlands, waterfalls, and vine-filled monsoonal rain forests—and the diversity of wildlife is extraordinary. (To wit: Visitors can encounter wallabies, wallaroos, quolls, dingoes, bats, goannas, frogs, pythons, saltwater crocodiles, and 280 species of birds.)

Sab Lord, owner and expert guide at Lords Arnhem Land and Kakadu Safaris, based in Darwin, provides some of the best tours of this culturally rich destination thanks in part to his strong working relationship with local Indigenous groups. At Injalak Hill, for instance, Lord employs Aboriginal guides who originally hail from the area. The small outfitter offers three-, four-, and five-day private safaris to Arnhem Land and Kakadu National Park. Guests will encounter wildlife—even crocs—up close, discover a pristine waterfall, swim in crystalline water surrounded by towering rock walls, visit an Aboriginal sacred site, and gaze at rock art estimated to be between 6,000 and 9,400 years old, engraved on overhangs and inside caves.

Depending on the length of the safari, accommodations range from glamping tents at an exclusive, permanent bush camp to comfortable private tent-cabins at a luxury safari lodge. All itineraries are bespoke, with prices available on request.

3. Try high-end bush tucker at Ayers Rock Resort

“Bush tucker” is an Aussie term that refers to native foods and medicinal plants that Indigenous peoples in Australia have been eating and using for 60,000 years. Long disparaged by European settlers, dishes made of bush tomatoes, lemon myrtle, kakadu plums, desert lime, quandong, green ants, crocodile, emu, and kangaroo now take center stage in fine-dining establishments across the country. In particular, Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock, has been earning a reputation in foodie circles as the bush tucker gastronomy capital of Australia.
Ayers Rock Resort, adjacent to Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, offers gourmet bush tucker dinner experiences paired with modern retellings of the Dreaming stories.

The Wintjiri Wiru Sunset Dinner takes place in an open-air theater atop a dune overlooking Uluru and the many domes of Kata Tjuta, a group of rock formations formerly known at the Olgas. It’s an apt name since Wintjiri Wiru means “beautiful view out to the horizon” in the local Pitjantjatjara language. Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia created this experience in consultation with Indigenous chefs. The makers acknowledge that “as custodians of the land, the Anangu hold the Mala story from Kaltukatjara to Uluru. To share their story from Kaltukatjara to Uluru, RAMUS designed and produced an artistic platform using drones, light, and sound to create an immersive storytelling experience.”

During the dinner, guests arrive to cocktails with bush-tucker infusions of lemon myrtle, desert lime, or mulga berries and sit down to a gourmet dinner hamper filled with foods like smoked emu with saltbush chili crust. Once the sun drops over the rocks, it’s time for the show: Wintjiri Wiru is a new state-of-the-art sound-and-light show that tells the ancient story of the Mala (rufous hare-wallaby) people who came to Uluru, with choreographed drones, lasers, and projections creating an immersive and contemporary rendition of the spiritual story.

Western Australia

4. Go on a guided walk-and-talk with Karrke Cultural Experience and Tours

A three-hour drive from Uluru takes you to the magnificent red rock formations of Kings Canyon and Watarrka National Park, parts of which are sacred for the local Indigenous peoples. Established in 2014, Indigenous-owned and -operated Karrkke Cultural Experience and Tours, on the southeastern fringes of the park, offers one-hour guided walk-and-talks about bush tucker foods, dot painting, and Indigenous artifacts. Owners Peter Abbott, his partner Christine Breaden, and his sister Natasha Abbott sit with participants in a shaded area to talk about native foods—edible tree seeds and grass seeds, witchetty grub (moth larva) and honey ants—in addition to medicinal plants and how they’re used by the local Luritja and Pertame peoples of Central Australia. They also explain the cultural significance of the patterns in dot art and show off local crafts made of wood or seeds, such as music sticks, clap sticks, seed necklaces, bracelets, and weapons.

5. Learn about the Dreaming with Wula Gura Nyinda Eco Cultural Adventures

Owned and operated by Darren “Capes” Capewell, a descendant of the Nhanda and Malgana people, Wula Gura Nyinda Eco Cultural Adventures is based in idyllic Shark Bay, 500 miles north of Perth. Translation: It’s a two-hour flight, or an eight-hour drive up National Route 1, or a slightly longer scenic ride along State Route 60, which hugs the Indian Ocean coastline up to the Coral Coast. The “Coral Coast Highway” is said to be one of the most beautiful drives on earth.

Capewell, who also works as a guide, runs a range of outdoor tours: kayaking and wildlife, standup paddle boarding, camping, and an evening experience. The “Didgeridoo Dreaming Night Tour” combines Dreaming stories of how Earth and life on the planet came to be, and the ancient tribal tones of the didgeridoo under a blanket of stars, accompanied by tastings of seafood and bush tucker. (Note that in some Indigenous cultures, only men play the didgeridoo; women and children are offered a traditional conch shell to play.)

6. See the night sky with Wooramulla Eco Cultural Journeys

Wooramulla Eco Cultural Journeys, owned by Yinggarda guide Rennee, is located in Carnarvon, 550 miles from Perth, or a little beyond Shark Bay. Rennee provides a variety of fun, educational tours aimed at sharing Yinggarda culture and customs. One shows visitors how hidden claypans erupt in the spring with the crazed mating of burrowing bees. Another tells the Ant Dreaming story at the spiritually significant Honeycomb Gorge (Mingah Munda), where she also points out hidden petroglyphs and other traces of her ancestors. During her Murroo Nungnah (Go See the Night) experience, she shares Yinggarda Dreaming stories of the night sky accompanied by Billy tea—a traditional Aussie campfire tea blended with Kooloo red leaf tea—and damper, a simple but classic bread.

7. Visit the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area with Baiyungu Dreaming

The Ningaloo Coast, 800 miles north of Perth, is the site of the UNESCO-listed Ningaloo Reef, the world’s largest fringing coral reef, as well as the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area. It’s a place of impossible beauty and stark contrasts between the parched, rugged landscape of Cape Range National Park’s gorges and escarpments, the white-sand beaches of the coastline, and the clear, highlighter-blue waters of Ningaloo Reef. Home to whales, dolphins, manta rays, orcas, sharks, turtles, tuna, and more, it is also a place of immense biodiversity.

With Hazel Walgar’s tour company Baiyungu Dreaming, visitors to Ningaloo can see the coast through an Aboriginal lens. Launched in 2020, Baiyungu is the first Indigenous tourism operator on the Ningaloo Coast. Having worked on the Ningaloo archaeological project, excavating Indigenous artifacts found in the Western Australian desert, Hazel takes visitors to Coral Bay and into Cape Range National Park to see a shell midden littered with signs of early Aboriginal occupation. She also teaches her clients how to dig for fresh drinking water in the sand dunes, takes them to a sheltered turtle nursery, and tells the Dreaming story of the octopus and how Five Finger Reef was formed. During her Coral Bay sunset tour, guests sit around the campfire sipping Billy tea and munching freshly baked damper (bread) as Hazel recounts Dreaming stories and talks about her work on the Ningaloo archaeological project.

8. Forage for fresh oysters with Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm

The traditional custodians of the Dampier Peninsula, the Bardi (land) and Jawi (island) peoples, have been working with their natural environment for tens of thousands of years, using sustainable hunting techniques, fishing practices, and bush tucker for both food and medicinal purposes. Here, about two hours north of Broome, you can combine a cultural experience with world-class seafood.

Cygnet Bay Pearl Farm’s Borrgoron’s Coast to Creek Tour will open your eyes to the local culture that revolves around the land and sea. A two-hour walking tour (some level of fitness required) takes you through mangroves and over the rocks of King Sound at low tide, where you’ll be able to put your learnings to practice as you forage for fresh oysters. Pair this with a pearl discovery tour, “sea safari,” or sunset dinner cruise.

Tasmania

9. Hike Tasmania’s rugged coast on the wukalina Walk

“Completely owned and operated by Tasmania’s Indigenous palawa community, the four-day, three-night wukalina Walk is a unique way to explore the island’s rugged northeast coast and gain insight into Australia’s Aboriginal heritage,” writes AFAR contributor Eric Rosen. (Note: The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre has reconstructed an Indigenous language, now called palawa kani, using only lowercase.) “My journey began with a hike to the peak of wukalina (aka Mount William). Six fellow travelers and I enjoyed a picnic lunch with views stretching from the Furneaux Islands in the north to the Bay of Fires in the south. A few hours later, we tramped into Krakani Lumi, a secluded camp a few hundred feet from the shore. Eco-chalets were inspired by traditional palawa huts, with pitch-black walls and domed interiors. The next morning, we walked along the white-sand beach to shell middens where ancient clans came to feast.

“Before a final goodbye back in Launceston, I spoke to Clyde Mansell, the community elder who spent over 15 years setting up the wukalina walk. ‘The experience and scenery are just beautiful packaging,’ he said. ‘The real purpose of the walk is to keep the community’s young people engaged with our culture and provide them with jobs in hospitality.’”

Queensland

10. Snorkel the Great Barrier Reef with Dreamtime Dive and Snorkel

• Location: Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel Wharf, Reef Fleet Terminal, 1 Spence St., Cairns City, Queensland | Find on Google Maps
• Book now: $140 adult, $90 children, age three and under free. dreamtimedive.com

“Some 70 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups have a continuing connection to the world’s largest coral reef system, and in 2018, Dreamtime Dive and Snorkel launched trips led by Indigenous Sea Rangers who share cultural knowledge passed down from their ancestors,” writes AFAR contributor Sarah Reid. During the day trips from Cairns to the Outer Barrier Reef, “guests listen to evocative creation stories about how the reef came to be, and learn about hunting practices, such as seasonal harvesting, that have safeguarded the reef’s biodiversity for millennia.” This adventure acknowledges the Gimuy Walubara Yidinji, Mandingalbay Yidinji, Yirrganydji, and Gunggandji cultures.

Victoria

11. Go inside Tower Hill volcano with an Indigenous guide

Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve sits inside a 30,000-year-old dormant volcano about 170 miles southwest of Melbourne, just north of the Great Ocean Road and the iconic Twelve Apostles, a collection of limestone stacks jutting out of the water. The verdant reserve, once a denuded wasteland thanks to the devastation caused by early settlers, is a haven for Australia’s most iconic species: emus, koalas, kangaroos, wallabies, echidnas. Many of the 200-plus kangaroos and koalas live around the visitor parking lot, so they’re not hard to spot. The parks’ boardwalks, nesting boxes, and bird hides make it easy for bird-watchers to get a glimpse of birds like chestnut teals, musk ducks, and spoonbills.

Worn Gundidj, an Aboriginal social enterprise working in partnership with Tower Hill, offers a two-hour interactive tour. Guides lead visitors around the animals’ natural habitat while providing insight into Indigenous traditions like how to identify edible and medicinal plants and how to properly throw a boomerang.

South Australia

12. Experience a “Welcome to our Country” at Wilpena Pound

To the local Adnyamathanha people, Ikara, known as Wilpena Pound in English, is a sacred site. A crater-like elevated basin in the remote desert wilderness of South Australia’s Ikara-Flinders Ranges, Ikara is not as well known or instantly recognizable as Uluru, even within Australia, but it’s arguably just as spiritually moving. And at 800 million years old, it’s 250 million years more ancient than Uluru .
Ikara is remote—not near any major city or airport, about 275 miles north or a five-hour drive from Adelaide. Once there, getting around is a challenge without a four-wheel drive. It’s also possible to travel by small plane from Adelaide, but it may be necessary to change planes in Port Augusta.

Wilpena Pound Resort, located in South Australia’s Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park, is the only accommodation within the park. While not Indigenous-owned, the resort falls under the aegis of the Traditional Custodians, the Adnyamathanha, who offer guided walks and cultural experiences like a complimentary “Welcome to our Country” ceremony. It is normally performed by an Aboriginal Traditional Owner for people visiting their land; visitors may experience a welcome speech, traditional dance, and a smoking ceremony. Other activities include a rock art tour, a tour of Sacred Canyon, or a sunset storytelling experience.

Read Before You Go

Celebrated Australian Indigenous lawyer and author Larissa Behrendt is brilliant at creating engaging, accessible stories with social justice issues at their core. One of her latest novels, After Story (2021), doesn’t even take place in Australia; it follows an Indigenous lawyer and her mother on a rare vacation together, hitting England’s great literary sites. As their trip unfolds and painful memories come to light, we witness Australia’s worst prejudices—and a funny, hopeful outlook on the future of Indigenous culture.

Jenee Fleenor remembers driving around the roads of Northwest Arkansas as a teenager, dreaming that she might someday hear her fiddle on radio stations like the one playing in her car.

“It still takes my breath away when I hear my fiddle on the radio,” she says, just a couple of weeks after winning the Musician of the Year Award at the CMAs. “To see the dream come alive is sometimes overwhelming.”

On Nov. 8, Fleenor won Musician of the Year from the Country Music Association for the fifth time. She was the first woman ever nominated for the award in 2019, and that year, she became the first fiddle player to receive the award since 1996.

“I can hardly believe I have won one of these awards, much less five in a row,” the Springdale native says. “Honestly, every year is a surprise to me. Every musician in this category deserves this award; they’re all my heroes and friends and play on countless hit records.

“My dream of moving to Nashville was never fueled by having awards on my mantle — though I am obviously humbled and honored! I just had a dream of being a session musician in Nashville someday and maybe hearing my fiddle on the radio.”

Fleenor — then Jenee Keener — started her journey with Suzuki classical violin lessons. She left Springdale in 2001 and quickly became a sought-after session musician, playing on hits like Jon Pardi’s “Your Heart or Mine,” “Heartache Medication” and “Dirt On My Boots;” Cody Johnson’s “‘Til You Can’t” and “Human;” and Carly Pearce’s “29: Written in Stone.” And she’s toured with Blake Shelton, Steven Tyler (Aerosmith), Terri Clark, Martina McBride, Don Williams, Jimmy Fortune and Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time.

On the day she answered questions for her hometown newspaper, Fleenor had “a writing appointment” and was playing fiddle on a couple of sessions.

“I never get tired of session work,” she enthuses. “It’s just so fun for me to be in a room with such amazing musicians, all pushing each other to be better players. And now most sessions I am on are people I’ve worked with for years, so it’s just so awesome to get to do what I love day in and day out with people I enjoy being around.

“My life is filled with so much of what I love!”

Fleenor admits her industry recognitions — she was also named Specialty Instrument Player of the Year at the American Country Music Awards in April — have had an impact on her career.

“For example, I recently signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell,” she says. “I’ve been a songwriter for many years now, and it was a dream of mine years ago to have a [publication] deal — and it kind of just fell in my lap this past year. I don’t think it would have happened without this beautiful journey I’ve been on.

“I also have a lot of artists and musicians asking me for career advice these days, which I am always happy to give. I certainly don’t know it all, and there has never been a straight line for me to get from point A to point B of achieving my goals, but I think it’s important to share as much information as you can.

“I realize I am in a spot now to cheer other people on and encourage people along with their dreams,” she muses. “I look back to all the people that helped me along my way, and I am forever grateful! I recently heard Tanya Tucker say at her Country Music Hall Of Fame induction, ‘If you see a turtle on a stump, you know he didn’t get there by himself!’ And that is certainly the way I feel!”

Fleenor is also “over the moon excited” about her new all-star bluegrass band, the Wood Box Heroes. They’re “some dear, dear friends of mine and some of the best musicians in the business,” she says, including Barry Bales on bass, Seth Taylor on mandolin, Matt Menefee on banjo and Josh Martin, “one of the best singer-songwriters I’ve ever had the privilege of working with.”

“This is something I didn’t see coming down the pike, but I am so glad it has,” she says. “We made our Opry debut back in August and are planning on hitting the road some this next year.

“Wow — it’s been such an incredible journey,” Fleenor concludes. “Psalms 37:4 has really been ringing in my mind lately: ‘Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.’ That is exactly how I feel. I feel what I do is a gift from the Lord — and I feel so much joy getting to do what I love day in and day out!”

    “I hope when people see my journey — and maybe its a young girl sitting in school in Northwest Arkansas, dreaming big dreams of moving to Nashville someday — I hope it encourages them to lean into those dreams and make some leaps of faith,” says Jenee Fleenor. The Springdale native just won her fifth Musician of the Year Award at the CMAs. (Courtesy Photo/Jenee Fleenor)
  

The entire team in charge of selecting the leading avant-garde exhibition’s next curator has now resigned, putting the future of the 2027 edition in question.

November is Native American Heritage Month, dedicated to celebrating the enrichment of the culture, history, and traditions of Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and other affiliated Island groups in the United States. 

In America, this month is typically filled with Thanksgiving celebrations, often overshadowing the observance of Native American Heritage Month. What many people may not realize is that the day after Thanksgiving, commonly referred to as Black Friday, is Native American Heritage Day: the day of recognition that the Native Americans were the first people in this nation. The story of Thanksgiving commonly taught to Americans at home and in school is often presented with a positive and harmonious perspective. Many educators are encouraged to teach curriculums that emphasize a false narrative of amicable assistance between Native Americans and White settlers, which enabled them to establish a new life for themselves. Even though children are increasingly taught a more positive view of Native American culture, it is crucial to recognize and educate them about the actual historical occurrences as they mature, to guarantee their ongoing support of the culture and knowledge about proper history. 

Regardless of how this history is conveyed to the American public, it cannot erase the oppression and genocides that Native Americans endured upon the settlers’ arrival in the New World. Native American numbers began to decline after settlers arrived, with more than 80% dying within the first 100 years. Therefore, many Native Americans decide to not celebrate Thanksgiving and instead view it as a day of remembrance and mourning. Despite the violent events that occurred over 200 years ago, it wasn’t until 1990 that Native American Heritage Month was officially recognized. Yet, even through all of this violence and cruelty, some Native Americans do choose to embody the Native Heritage, and cultural contributions and make Thanksgiving into a positive commemoration. No matter how one chooses to celebrate, it should be acknowledged how the Native Americans were discriminated against when the settlers arrived. 

In November, Indigenous communities are honored not only through Native American Heritage Month but also through events, festivals, dances, art, and businesses that promote Native American-owned products are just some of the ways Native Americans are being represented during this month. That being said, if there are no such events in the vicinity, or events are not accessible, there are numerous other ways to show support for Native American communities; these methods can include supporting Native American art, artists, authors, literature, podcasts, and music. All of these activities can be completed in the comfort of your home and still make a significant impact on the Indigenous community. 

As stated in a previous article, Indigenous Peoples’ Day and the Native history of Geneseo, So, we here at The Lamron would just like to attribute a land acknowledgement for the land in which the college benefitted from. It exists due to the efforts against the rights inherent to all peoples that were stripped away from the Native people in favor of possession. We are receiving an education on top of land that was originally attributed to what is now known as the Seneca Nation of Indians and the Tonawanda Seneca Nation, who are now confined to living on eleven different reservations that are spread all throughout the Western New York region.

Thumbnail Photo of Haudenosaunee flag courtesy of WikiMedia Commons

Bailey grew up in Atlanta and his early inspirations included visits to the High Museum and classes at the Atlanta College of Art.

Colgate University

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The Longyear Museum of Anthropology, located within Alumni Hall, was originally founded by John Munro Longyear III, a Colgate University professor in the department of sociology and anthropology in the 1950s. Known for its iconic collections featuring cultural heritage materials from the Americas, Africa, Asia, Indonesia and Oceania, Longyear serves as a physical engagement with what it means to be human. 

Co-Director of University Museums and Curator of Longyear, Rebecca Mendelsohn, explained the significance of the museum and what students can learn from the various exhibits. 

“At its core, an anthropology museum is a museum about people. Because of this orientation, we see collections and exhibitions as an opportunity to engage with human experiences,” Mendelsohn said. “By learning about one another, we hope that students will be equipped to be engaged and empathetic citizens as they step out into the wider world.” 

The founder’s mission was to develop a collection that could be used for teaching. After the birth of his idea, Longyear began assembling archaeological and ethnological (historical) collections. During the 1990s focus shifted to contemporary art by indigenous artists and makers. Today, Longyear’s goal continues to be upheld. The Longyear collections are a campus-wide resource. Many students engage with the collections during their classes and the museum offers deeper work with the collections through paid internships. In addition to outreach within the Colgate community, the museum invites schools and community groups from the broader Madison County to learn from their collection. Teachers and curators craft itineraries that complement their classroom teaching and add to a holistic learning experience. 

Unfortunately, the Longyear Museum is closed this semester. As Mendelsohn explained, the museum and its workers are spending time this semester focusing on repatriation projects, a task that is both difficult and time-consuming. 

“The sad truth is that we still have the remains of many people, including Indigenous ancestors, housed in the museum collections,” Mendelsohn said. “Getting these individuals, as well as other sacred items in our collections, returned to their communities of origin is our top priority right now.”

The repatriation undertaking is required by law for collections in the United States under the Native American Graves Protection or Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). The museum currently has 14 NAGPRA cases open and one international voluntary repatriation. NAGPRA is a human rights law that is approached in a way that prioritizes the wants and needs of sovereign nations.

Kelsey Olney-Wall, Longyear’s repatriation manager, explained the meaning behind repatriation. 

“At the Longyear Museum, we always want to make sure we rethink the concept of ‘ownership’ and ‘expertise’ when it comes to museum care of collections, policies and procedures,” Olney-Wall said.

Olney-Wall oversees all the outreach, consultation schedules and drafting of notices to return belongings to bands, nations and tribes across the country.

Just as the larger Colgate community struggles to come to terms with its past regarding indigenous heritage, Longyear is taking important steps during this time toward creating collections that they are proud to teach with and learn from.

Longyear collections are acquired through purchases by museum curators or gifts from individuals. Mendelsohn highlighted the recent acquisition of a painting by Brandon Lazore, a painter from Onondaga Nation. They were also gifted Peruvian textiles. In the spring, Mendelsohn looks forward to opening a new student-curated exhibition, in addition to creating opportunities for students to share their feedback on what they would like to see from Longyear as well as other University museums.

The Longyear Museum plays an important role on campus. As many students understand, Colgate was built on Oneida land. Longyear confronts this history and highlights the rich cultural heritage of the area by showcasing artifacts and engaging with the community. People can now browse many of the Longyear collections online at their website. This is a great way to explore what the museum holds while they are closed for the semester. Staff members and student museum ambassadors encourage students to reach out to them with questions or ideas.

OPB’s “Superabundant” explores the stories behind the foods of the Pacific Northwest with videos, articles and this weekly newsletter. To keep you sated between episodes, Heather Arndt Anderson, a Portland-based culinary historian, food writer and ecologist, highlights different aspects of the region’s food ecosystem. This week she offers a recipe for roasted kuri squash stuffed with apples, cranberries and other delicious autumn things.

This week, leading up to Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Day, we have a feast of Northwest food news. Next week we’ll be digesting our green bean casserole, but we’ll be back on Dec. 1 with fresh food finds and a cozy new recipe. To learn more about how to support Indigenous communities in Oregon, visit the Native American Youth and Family Center website.

Click here to subscribe. For previous stories, go here.

Oregon certainly didn’t invent the standard Thanksgiving dishes, but so many of our favorites come from Oregon ingredients or things that the Northwest does especially well. Green beans (we’re partial to the classic casserole), mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce all taste best when made from local crops, and you can wash it down with a pinot noir from Yamhill County or cider from any of the 60 or so Oregon cideries. No table is complete without a gooey pan of macaroni and cheese, and Oregon dairies produce some of the world’s best cheeses. Heck, even if you don’t eat turkey, two of America’s best-known veggie meat substitutes come from Oregon. Do you know what they are? Read on to find out!

‘Oregon Art Beat’ offers feasts for the senses, bringing back Indigenous fire ecology, a trio of food stories from Southern Oregon, a vintage year for apples, how beer bears a changing climate and good things in markets

Freshly picked morsels from the Pacific Northwest food universe:

When Güero chef and owner Megan Sanchez saw an empty restaurant space just blocks from her food cart, she never thought she’d be able to fill it — now her restaurant isn’t just one of the most loved torta spots in town, it’s also one of the prettiest dining spaces Portland has to offer. OPB’s Eric Slade shares her story on the latest “Oregon Art Beat.”

Portland food photographer Isabella Cassini embraces edible chaos in her latest photo series, “Splashes, Crashes, and Smashes.” OPB’s Steven Tonthat shares her beautiful mess on the latest “Oregon Art Beat.”

Before non-Native settlers arrived, Oregon’s oak savannah was meticulously managed by Kalapuyan peoples in what are now Lane and Linn counties. Using fire to clear underbrush and eradicate pests meant that useful plants and game animals would return year after year. A new federal grant will now support the return of these Indigenous practices, KLCC’s Brian Bull reports.

Over the past week, our friends at Jefferson Public Radio shared a swath of food stories — here are the highlights:

• Roman Battaglia shares how one greengrocer is single-handedly bringing food waste collection to the Rogue Valley.
• Oregon is America’s third-largest producer of cranberries, and Ella Hutcherson reports on this year’s harvest on the South Coast.
• Ashland-based Rogue Food Unites celebrates one year of free farmers markets, Jane Vaughan reports.

For Northwest apple growers, 2023 wasn’t just a good year — it was one of the best in recent history. Anna King reports for Northwest News Network on what made this year’s “vintage crop.”

When it comes to brewing beer in Oregon, winter barley and better hops are just a couple of the strategies that researchers, farmers and brewers are using to weather a changing climate. Read about it here.

Most local farmers markets are winding it down for winter, so if that’s where you shop, now’s the time to score all the things you’ll need for the holiday table. Crucifers like cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and broccoli are at their peak; potatoes, carrots, and parsnips taste of sweet earth; and it is still very much decorative (and edible) gourd season. The squash, cranberries and apples for this week’s recipe are all from Oregon growers, as are the persimmons, quince and medlars that’ll go into next week’s pie and chutney. Our wild mushroom season continues to be a bounty — look out for chanterelles and matsutake (and at somewhat reasonable prices, at that!).

Stuffed roasted winter squash with apples, cranberries and blue cheese

Next week is Thanksgiving, which, suspiciously, happens to occur during World Vegan Month. Veg-friendly Oregon is the birthplace of two of the best-known vegetarian products in America — Gardenburger and Tofurky. (Gardenburgers are from Gresham and Tofurky was born in Forest Grove.) But if you’re not looking for another meat analog for your vegetarian centerpiece (believe us when we say frozen meatless chicken patties made for some sad Thanksgiving dinners back in the early ‘90s!), a stuffed squash has so much to offer. You can fill a kabocha with chestnut-studded rice pilaf, or you could go with spicy black beans, corn and quinoa in an acorn squash. We like a roasted kuri with a little of everything autumnal: nutty whole-grain bread, diced apples and dried cranberries, but we go off the vegan script and add a bit of chicken sausage and crumbled blue cheese. Serves 4-6 as a main course or more as a side.

Note: You can use a cup of chopped shiitake mushrooms instead of sausage, and sub the cheese with chopped nuts if you like. If you can’t eat gluten, you can use parboiled rice instead of bread.

1 winter squash (such as red kuri or turban), 5-7 lbs

2 tbsp cooking oil

Salt and pepper

½ lb bulk chicken sausage or 2 chicken sausage links, casings removed (or use vegetarian ground sausage like Gimme Lean)

½ cup diced onion or shallots

1 celery rib, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium-sized firm, tart apple (such as Braeburn or Gala), peeled, cored and diced

¼ cup dried cranberries

½ tsp dried sage

2 tbsp bourbon (optional)

1 cup chicken or vegetable broth

4 slices stale whole grain bread (heels are fine), torn or cut into ½-inch cubes (or 3 cups bread crumbs)

½ cup crumbled blue cheese or gorgonzola

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or foil.
2. Scrub the squash clean and pat it dry, then cut off the top 4 inches, leaving the stem intact to create a lid with a handle. Scoop the seeds and guts out of the squash (save the seeds for planting or eating if you like), and rub the inside and outside with 1 tsp of the oil. Sprinkle the inside with a couple pinches of salt and pepper and set aside.
3. Heat the remaining oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the sausage, breaking it into crumbles with a spoon as it cooks, until evenly browned, about 6-8 minutes. Scoop the cooked sausage into a large mixing bowl with a slotted spoon.
4. Add the onions, celery and garlic to the pan and saute until they begin to become translucent, about 3-5 minutes. Add the apples and saute until they begin to caramelize on the edges, about 3 minutes.
5. Add the bourbon (if using) and broth to the pan and scrape up the browned bits with your spoon or spatula, then add the cranberries, sage and a few more pinches of salt and pepper. Scrape the onion-apple mixture into the bowl with the cooked sausage and stir to combine.
6. Add the breadcrumbs to the bowl and stir until they sponge up the brothy sausage-apple mixture, then stir in ¼ cup of the blue cheese. (It’s OK if they’re still a little bit dry because the squash will release liquid as it cooks.)
7. Spoon the stuffing into the squash, put the lid on the squash (it might sit on top more like a little hat than a snug lid), and roast until it’s tender enough to be pierced with the tip of a knife, about 60-75 minutes. Take the lid off the pumpkin, gently fluff the stuffing with a fork, then sprinkle the remaining cheese on the stuffing. Return to the oven and roast until the top of the stuffing is toasty, another 15 minutes or so. To serve, slice the squash into wedges.

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