Native American Presentation

NMCC to mark Native American Heritage Month
with presentation on Traditional Native American Culture
and Spirituality

The community is invited to join in a presentation on Traditional Native American Culture and Spirituality on Tuesday, November 24, at 12:00 noon in the E. Perrin Edmunds Library on the Northern Maine Community College campus.

The discussion, led by Joseph Davis, the cultural advisor and traditional ceremonial leader to the Wesget Sipu Tribe, is being coordinated by NMCC to mark National Native American Heritage Month. Davis will speak about the spiritual values of Native life found in tribes across the country.

In his presentation, Davis will address the universal importance of the environment to Native peoples and also discuss the differences that emanated from geography. For example he will speak about the importance the Plains Indians placed over generations on the buffalo, and how comparatively ancestors of the Wesget Sipu Tribe looked to the caribou and moose.

“Essentially the traditions of Native American culture and spirituality are based on the same basic tenets. Some of the traditions vary depending on the geography and climate of where the tribes are located across the country. However, we are all defined by our geography and the environment, and many of the traditions come from these two,” said Davis.

Davis, who also serves on Council for the Wesget Sipu Tribe in northern Aroostook County, was born in Louisiana and grew up in Niagara Falls, New York before joining the U.S. Military. When he returned from his service in the Army, he lived in Buffalo, New York for a while before relocating to Chicago. While in Chicago, he was a frequent guest lecturer on Native American culture and history at several colleges and universities. He relocated to the St. John Valley three years ago.

“It’s an honor and a pleasure to be asked and to come to Northern Maine Community College to help celebrate Native American Heritage Month. I look forward to speaking about a topic that is very important to both me personally and to this region,” said Davis.