- March 6, 2025
Giovanni Littlebird helps Cody Boettner with the Native American Hoop Dance at the Native American Festival on Saturday, Feb. 27. Photos by Anastasia Pagello
Cody Boettner performs the Native American Hoop Dance.
Harry Little Bird IV dances with his elders while honoring the veterans that are present in the crowd.
Harry Littlebird III dancing during the intertribal showcase.
Jody Gaskin, Harry Littlebird III and Harry Littlebird IV dance together for the inter-tribal dancing showcase.
The Native American descendants honored veterans in the gathered crowd.
Brooklyn Hoenie helps Jim Sawgrass to make corn meal.
Jim Sawgrass, of Deep Forest Native American Programs, rode around the Princess Place grounds and educated the visitors on Native American heritage.
Sunshine, of Deep Forest Native American Programs, demonstrates cooking on a stone stove.
Aubrey Davison with traditional eagle feather face paint.
Jim Sawgrass educates visitors on Native American heritage.
“This festival helps us keep our heritage alive and to educate the upcoming generations about our ancestors way of life.”
JIM SAWGRASS, of Deep Forest Native American Programs
The second-annual Native American Festival was held at Princess Place Preserve on Saturday, Feb. 27, and Sunday, Feb. 28. Both days offered a full schedule of demonstrations and dance performances.
The festival included activities for the kids such as pony and train rides, a rock climbing wall, face painting and a chance to meet Thunder the bald eagle. A special performance from Cody Boettner, a nationally recognized Native American hoop dancer, continuously gathered a large group of awed spectators in the festivals center arena throughout the weekend.
Many Native American descendants took the opportunity to wear northern traditional clothing, bells and headdresses. Spread throughout the various vendors, those dressed in traditional attire could be found in makeshift encampments and educating visitors on their ancestors way of life.
Many of the descendants agreed that maintaining their heritage and educating the younger generations is of utmost importance.
“When we lose our heritage we lose our hope,” said Cathy Tallacksen, or better known as Rainbow Woman of Medicine, a descendant of the Timucua Indians. “To me hope is faith. If we are to lose faith then we lose everything. Children are our hope and future; we need to teach our past to the next generation so our heritage will remain and they may continue our traditions.”
For some, the festival is a way for Native Americans to reconnect with old friends and make acquaintance with different tribes through song and dance.
“Many of us relocate to various places across the country, and we may not have the opportunity to practice traditional dances with our own tribes,” said White Horse, a descendant from the Kiona Indians of Benton County, Washington. “So through these gatherings we have intertribal dances in which we can gather together and, in a sense, pray as each of our ancestral tribes once did for their men to return home safely from a hunt or battle.”
