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Delaware Tribe of Indians to Hold Job Fair April 9, 2024
The Delaware Tribe of Indians will hold a Job Fair on April 9, 2024 from 2 – 6 P.M. at Forsythe Hall in Bartlesville, OK, with an additional event to be held at a later date in Chelsea, OK.
Lenape Language Report January 2024
Notice: The Delaware Indian calendar for 2024 is now available on the tribal website https://delawaretribe.org/ or at this address:
https://delawaretribe.org/blog/2023/12/01/download-a-2024-lenape-calendar/
You can download your copy and print all the pages at once or print one month at a time as needed. For a wall calendar we suggest using 8.5 x 14 inch (legal size) paper.
Revived: The Lenape Word-a-Day calendar is a monthly calendar of Lenape names for different things. The downloadable calendar is also posted on the Tribal website https://delawaretribe.org/ and it will continue to be posted at the beginning of each month. There are sound files for each of these words which are in the Lenape Talking Dictionary: https://www.talk-lenape.org/.
What’s New – Going to the Moon
In the TV news recently they said that in the year 2024 America will once again send people to or around the moon. It might be of interest to readers of the Delaware Indian News to know that according to tribal legend there were two Lenape men who went to the moon many centuries ago. In the Lenape language the Sun and Moon have the same name, Kishux, and they are considered as Elder Brothers. There are also some special names for the Moon if you need to let people know you are talking about him exclusively. The two men had a purpose for going there and what follows is the basic story telling the reason. There are several variants of this story that had them going to the sun, or first to the sun who sent them to the moon.
Tùkwsi Kishux òk Kitahikàn
Full Moon and Ocean
Here is a brief version of the story:
There was a monster that lived in a lake and he was killing Lenape children. Two young men said that they knew a way to kill the monster and they would have to go to the sun to get some of his ashes to put in the lake. (A version of this story can be heard in the Lenape Taking Dictionary at this address: https://www.talk-lenape.org/stories?id=41.
The two men found some sunbeams and they climbed on them to get to the sun. In one version of the story they got ashes from him and in another version the sun told them to go to the moon because his ashes would cause the Earth to burn up.
So they went to the moon and got some ashes and returned to Earth and threw them in the Lake and the water began to boil and the monster was killed. But before he died he told them, “You have killed me for nothing because there are many of my children in other large bodies of water.”
(In the tale told by Willie Longbone in 1939 a young woman gave birth to a male child that was half fish and she threw it into a lake. It grew large and began to kill children so two young men went to the sun for fire but the sun refused them saying the heat would burn the whole Earth. He told them to go to the ‘night sun’ (the moon) who gave them some ashes. They threw the ashes into the lake where the monster lived and the lake boiled and the monster was killed.)
Lenape names for the Sun and Moon and their phases:
The Sun
Kishux: Sun; Moon; Month
wipèkw / wipëko: Sunbeam / Sunbeams
Wsike: Sunset; The Sun is setting
Winkpèkw: The Sun is drawing water (What the sunbeams do)
Kwtai Kishux: Eclipse (Sun or Moon)
The Moon
Kishux: Sun; Moon; month
Piskewëni kishux: Moon
Nipahàm: Moon (an older word)
Nipaii kishux: Moon (an older word)
Mësëtchèsu kishux: Full Moon
Tùkwsi kishux: Full Moon
Wëski kishux: New Moon
Òxehëmu: Moonlight
Jacob Parks, Delaware Artist, about 1930
From the January 2024 issue of the Delaware Indian News. For more from this issue, as well as a full archive of past issues, click here.
59th Annual Delaware Pow Wow: May 24-26, 2024
The 59th Annual Delaware Pow Wow will be held at Fall Leaf Family Memorial Pow Wow Grounds May 24-26, 2024. Please see the flyer below for details.
Calling All Veterans to Register For Lenape Warriors Medal of Freedom!
The Veterans Committee is calling all veterans to come and register for the new Lenape Warriors Medal of Freedom. The Medal will be presented at the monthly Tribal Council meetings. Those that want to receive the honor before the Tribal Council can attend the appointed Tribal Council meeting to receive it. Those that cannot or that want to wait for the Pow Wow or General Council meeting, please indicate your choice on the application. Please download the application and complete the application below and send it to the Veterans Service Center at the address below, or email it to Steve Donnell at 1lenapeila@gmail.com.
Delaware Tribe of Indians
Attn: Veterans Service Center
5100 Tuxedo Blvd
Bartlesville, Ok 74006
2024 Tax Season Tips from Delaware Tribe CFO Kendall Reith
Happy New Year! As 2023 closes, we look forward to what the new year holds and to setting new goals. It is also a time to plan for filing 2023 tax returns! I hope the below information will assist you and your family when filing your tax returns this year.
Deadlines to keep in mind
Form W-2, W3, 1099 NEC, 1099-MISC: January 31, 2024
Fourth quarter estimated payments due for the tax year 2023: January 16, 2024
Form 1065 (for Partnerships): March 15, 2024
Form 1120S (for S-corporations): March 15, 2024
Form 1040 (for Individuals): April 15, 2024
Form 1041 (for Trusts and Estates- Calendar Year): April 15, 2024
Form 1120 (for C-Corporations): April 15, 2024
Form 990 (for Tax-Exempt Organizations- Calendar Year): April 15, 2024
If you need to file an extension, see the due dates below:
Form 1065 (Partnership) Extension: September 16, 2024
Form 1120S (S-corporations) Extension: September 16, 2024
Form 1120 (C-corporation) Extension: October 15, 2024
Form 1040 (Individuals) Extension: October 15, 2024
Other key changes:
The maximum Earned Income Tax Credit amount is $7,430 for qualifying children of 3 or more.
The standard deduction for married couples filing jointly for tax year 2023 rises to $27,700 up $1,800 from the prior year. For single taxpayers and married individuals filing separately, the standard deduction rises to $13,850 for 2023 (up $900), and for heads of households, the standard deduction will be $20,800 for tax year 2023, up $1,400 from the amount for tax year 2022.
OH NO! What if you file your 2023 tax return and unexpectedly owe more tax than you anticipated? Let’s plan for 2024 tax returns! The IRS has provided a step by step calculator (link below) for your use in estimating your federal income tax withholding. See how your refund, take-home pay or tax due are affected by withholding amount and from there you will be able to adjust your W4 form with your employer accordingly.
https://irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator
Wanishi! Cheers to 2024!
From the January 2024 issue of the Delaware Indian News. For more from this issue, as well as a full archive of past issues, click here.
Lenape Veterans Committee Opens New Service Center
The Lenape Veterans Committee has opened a new Veterans Service Center in the Lenape Wellness Center. The center will be run by tribal member Steven Donnell (Navy Veteran and American Legion Service Officer). We will perform VA claim filing through the American Legion. We will provide services for all veterans, tribal and non-tribal alike. We will have emergency services for veterans and families of veterans in distress. The center is connected to several programs and groups within the state of Oklahoma, ranging from financial and housing to women’s and men’s counseling and sobriety, along with intimate partner violence services.
Organizations we are connected with include: OKDVA-Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs, Tulsa Vets Center for counseling, OK developmental disabilities council, OK DHS, Delaware prevention support services (sobriety service).
The center will be open on Tuesdays from 10-5. The center is located at the Tribal Complex at 170 Barbara St. Bartlesville, OK in the Tribal Wellness Center.
To contact us:
Email: 1lenapeila@gmail.com
Phone: (918) 337-6590 ext. Steve.
Emergency phone: (760) 401-2056 cell
Please come by and check out the center and visit. Wanishi!
Steve Donnell, head of the Veterans Service Center
Come to Our Spring Gathering on March 23, 2024!
Come to our Spring Gathering on March 23, 2024. We will have various events for all ages throughout the day. Please see the flyer below for more details, and click on the link for a volunteer form for the event. Completed forms can be dropped off at the front desk or emailed to either enrollment@delawaretribe.org or tribe@delawaretribe.org. We hope to see you there!
2023: A Banner Year for the Lenape Early Learning Center
By Gina Berry
As the end of the year rapidly approaches, we spend a lot of time reflecting on the year that was and dreaming of the year to come. As a new program, being only two years old, we have had a unique perspective when it comes to designing our program in a way that would be something that the Delaware Tribe of Indians could see and proclaim with pride, “That’s ours! Look at that!” When I think back to when I came on board with the tribe in 2021, a specific day comes to mind. Several members of our support staff team along with tribal leadership had been meeting all morning discussing various stages of planning and what we hoped to accomplish. It was at lunch that day, that we found ourselves in conversation with Chief Kills Crow about his vision for the center. He gave us some sound advice that we have carried with us the past two years. He said, and I’m loosely quoting him here, “Lets serve our people—I mean really, truly serve them.” There is something so simple in that message, but I know I have referred to it many times over the past couple of years.
So that is what we’ve tried to do, as often as we can, as far as we can, with whatever we can, and people are starting to take notice. Lenape Early Learning Center was voted 2nd Best Child Care in Bartlesville this year, being narrowly passed by Tri-County Tech’s Learning Lab, a teaching childcare center- if you have to take second place that’s not a bad place to land. We currently serve 38 families and 51 children, with 84% of our students being Native, 34% Delaware children and 80% of them using childcare subsidies.
How have we served them throughout the year:
We held a week-long celebration of reading and Dr Seuss’ birthday! Each day we hosted a mystery guest reader to read with the kids along with a coordinating activity.
Each family went home with a wellness kit to help with those pesky wintertime illnesses. Kits included a thermometer, illness supplies, cleaning supplies, and a first aid kit.
During Week of the Young Child, we hosted a family picnic! Each child invited their family to come and celebrate with them. We were able to bless each family with a brand-new high-quality car seat! Professional Car Seat Installation Technicians were available to make sure we got those seats installed correctly.
During Teacher Appreciation Week we hosted a whole slew of events to celebrate our amazing staff! There were flowers, gifts, food, and treats all week! The entire tribal complex took part in celebrating LELC staff!
We co-hosted a health fair with our friends in Title VI- Smokey the Bear, the Tooth Fairy, and several other key figures were in attendance. We had such a good time learning about all the services available and using healthy habits!
We participated in Tribe-wide Trick or Treating on Halloween and hosted a pumpkin patch for all of our families.
Each family at the center received a whole basket of goodies for Thanksgiving to cook a turkey dinner for the entire family. The basket included recipes and the teachers wrote notes to each child describing why they were thankful for that child. Our goal was to promote engagement and learning at home, while providing some support during a stressful time.
Santa and Mrs. Claus visited the center! Each child had time to visit with them and left with 3 gifts and a book!
We hosted family engagement activities for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, and Grandparent’s Day.
Dental supplies and learning materials are sent home throughout the year to encourage healthy habits.
Each child receives annual hearing and vision screenings at no cost to the family. We can now do those screenings in-house with the purchase of new screening equipment!
Developmental screenings happen at least twice per year for each child.
As you can see, we’ve had a very busy year! In addition to our program success, we’ve had three teachers complete their Child Development Associate (CDA), two complete Associate level degrees, and we currently have six (!!) teachers working to finish degree plans!
Life is good at LELC, we’re learning and growing! We are very much looking forward to another year of serving our people- the best way we know how… really, truly serving them.
Wanishi for a wonderful year!
From the January 2024 issue of the Delaware Indian News. For more from this issue, as well as a full archive of past issues, click here.
alt=”Group photo of Delaware LELC staff” />
Welcome to the Elders Circle!
kìkayàk (elders)
òkànkwèphatuwàk (group in a circle)
Wëli Newiyal! (Happy New Year!)
Welcome to The Elders Circle, a new forum of the Elders Committee for sharing information with our fellow tribal members.
If you are a senior citizen (55+) and a member of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, we invite you to join our monthly meetings at Tribal Headquarters or on Zoom.
Elders Committee
Meetings
The Elders Committee meets monthly on the first Tuesday at 1:00 P.M. in the Family & Children’s Services building, located at Tribal Headquarters, 5100 Tuxedo Blvd, Bartlesville, OK.
If you can’t make it in person, please join us on Zoom! To attend the meeting by Zoom, email your request to delawareeldercouncil2023@gmail.com and you will receive instructions on how to connect.
Elder Committee Activities
Donations
We appreciate donations to the Elders Committee. Donations benefit our elder community by providing opportunities to participate in activities as well as providing programs that help our elders. In January, be on the lookout to purchase raffle tickets to win a beautiful comforter set donated by Delaware Elder Beverly Chafin. In addition, Sondra Boone donated $500 for the elder community and Billie Jean Sheshey, another Delaware Elder, donated 48 sets of hat and gloves to distribute to Delaware Elders at the Christmas party.
Wanìshi ta (thank you very much) to everyone who donated!
Raffle
In January, don’t forget to buy raffle tickets to win this beautiful king size comforter set (pictured below)! Tickets can be purchased by contacting Elder Committee members or by emailing the Elder Committee at delawareeldercouncil2023@gmail.com
Trips
In December we explored the Woolaroc Museum & Wildlife Preserves’ Wonderland of Lights followed by a trip to Braums.
Interested in joining us on the next trip? Then join the Elders Committee! If you’re 55+ and a member of the Delaware Tribe of Indians, you’re eligible to attend our Elders Committee.
Contact Us
Senior (55+) Delaware tribal members can contact our committee by email at delawareeldercouncil2023@gmail.com or follow us on Facebook at dtieldercommittee.
We look forward to growing our elder community! Join us at our 2024 monthly meetings on Tuesdays: January 2, February 6, March 5, and April 9 at 1:00 P.M.
Elders Committee Officers:
Chair Beverly Hicks
Vice Chair Kay Anderson
Secretary Connie Falleaf
Treasurer Susan Cade
D5 Creation