Delaware War Mothers are Strong and Active

The Delaware War Mothers have been busy this year with fundraising events and planning activities. They kicked off the year with a Garage & Bake Sale February 15th and plan on making this a yearly event so watch for details!

April 28th the Elders Committee, Veterans Committee and DWM held a re-dedication ceremony for the Veterans Honor Wall. If you submitted a photo to be displayed please be patient as each plaque is being redone which takes a great amount of time. This will be a continuing project until all plaques are finished.

Once again, the DWM participated in the grand entry during the Delaware Powwow in May. They also paraded in during the Oklahoma Indian Summer event in September.

On July 20th Rosetta Coffey passed away. During her wake the DWM stood before Rosetta’s family and read the following:

We, the Delaware War Mothers, stand here so you can see how many of us support her cause and will continue to carry on her legacy.

On behalf of the Delaware War Mothers, we express our deepest sympathy to the Jackson-Coffey family. As most of you know, Rosetta is the founder of the Delaware War Mothers, it was founded sometime in 1991 but was not established with the State of Oklahoma as an official organization until June 31, 1992. Records indicate that the club had three leaders and they were Rosetta, Bonnie Thaxton and Mary Watters. The thought of having a Club was inspired by the Persian Gulf War and was established to honor the veterans in the Delaware community.

Out of curiosity I looked up the meaning of Rosetta and Pearl and discovered the following:

Rosetta means Rose or Little Rose and we all know how beautiful she was just like a flower in bloom. I’m sure some of you felt the prick of her thorn when you got her upset or crossed her path.

The pearl is the oldest known gem and unlike any other gems is derived from a living creature. It was said in some early cultures that the pearl was born when a single drop of rain fell from the heavens and became the heart of the oyster. Pearls have been called the “teardrops of the moon”. Some believe that pearls were formed by the passage of angels through the clouds of heaven.

I came to the conclusion that Rosetta lived up to her name – not only was she as beautiful as a rose but she was unlike any other gem. She is the heart of our club because if it wasn’t for her motivation and determination there wouldn’t be a Delaware War Mothers Club.

Wanishi!

It is our understanding that Rosetta’s daughter, Paulette Tallchief, was the one who had the idea of organizing a group to represent our veterans. Without Paulette, Rosetta and the first club members who all took part in establishing this fine club we would not be here today.

October brought about the first Chili Cook-off between the War Mothers. It was an exciting day to see all who attended and the competition was tough. The winners were Pat Donnell, Barbara Wallace, and Mary Watters. This is another yearly event that the ladies would like to continue so watch for details around September!

Congratulations to Adam Anna from Ohio who won the Pendleton that was raffled off during General Council on November 8th! The War Mothers also had a silent auction and bake sale during the meeting and would like to express their gratitude to the Tribal Council for letting us do so.

On November 7th the DWM recognized the veterans who were in attendance at lunch by presenting them with a pin of thanks. A special thank you goes out to the Washington County Chapter #65 Disabled American Veterans who performed a ceremony for the POWs and MIAs. The new princess, Skye Scimeca, was crowned by outgoing princess, Hayden Griffith, who will be greatly missed! Hayden has done such a fine job representing the DWM since 2013 and we would like to wish her the best of luck as she pursues her goal of going to college. We welcome our new princess, Skye Scimeca, who is the daughter of Bill Scimeca and the late Sarah Johnson Scimeca.

This year the DWM presented our veterans with Christmas stockings which were full of miscellaneous items. All stockings and items were donations given by the members who attended the December meeting.

We always have fun as we work on our projects and feel we can never say “Thank You!” enough to all our veterans. So if you would like to become a member of this fun and wonderful group please contact any DWM member, write us at PO Box 74371 Bartlesville, OK 74006, email delawarewarmothers@yahoo.com or attend one of our meetings the third Monday of each month at 5:30 in the conference room of the Social Service Building. Wanishi!