Winter Stories: An exploration of Effigy Mounds National Monument through film and story being held through March
Effigy Mounds National Monument announces a series of special events celebrating the American Indian tradition of storytelling in winter. Winter Stories will occur Saturday and Sunday afternoons through the end of March. Activities will take place in the Effigy Mounds National Monument Visitor Center located at 151 Highway 76, Harpers Ferry.
Presentations span multiple genres of storytelling including traditional storytelling, cinematography and art. This weekend’s presentation is scheduled for Saturday, February 29 from 1-3 p.m. and will feature Bill Quakenbush, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer, Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin speaking on “Ho-Chunk Oral Stories: Are They Still Relevant Today?”
William “Nąąwącekǧize” Quackenbush, Ho-Chunk Deer Clan Tribal Member serves as the Tribal Historic Preservation Officer (THPO) and Cultural Resources Division Manager for the Ho-Chunk Nation. As the Ho-Chunk Nation Tribal Historian, he has presented extensively on Ho-Chunk history and culture. In his role as the Ho-Chunk Nation THPO, Quackenbush consults regularly with the management team at Effigy Mounds National Monument.
Storytelling is a critical component of American Indian culture. It is through story that community history and values are passed on forging vital connections between the past and present as well as charting a course for the future. Storytelling is a fundamental human activity grounding people to place and culture. It reminds us of those inextricable ties to the land and a person’s own wild nature and of who those people are as individuals and communities.
Winter Stories at Effigy Mounds National Monument is an exploration of American Indian storytelling rooted in the tradition that stories are told after the first frost and before the first thunder. Winter is a quiet time for reflection and remembering; storytelling opens the door. Winter Stories is funded by BeWildReWild, a project of the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation.
BeWildReWild is a loosely-knit group of volunteers with a passion for wild things. It is also a special fund within Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation for the purpose of exploring three questions: What do you/we mean by wild? What lifestyle changes are needed for us to live within the bounds of sustainability? How can we create a wilder, more beautiful, more biologically diverse, and a more enduring Mississippi River Watershed? And at bewildrewild.org it is a place for visioning, debating, storytelling, teaching and learning.
The event will feature the following additional presentations:
• March 14, 1-3 p.m.: Reuben Ironhorse-Kent, Artist, Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska - Ioway Images Then and Now
• March 15, 1-3 p.m.: Reuben Ironhorse-Kent, Artist, Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska - Ioway Images Then and Now
• March 21, 1-3 p.m.: Thunder Revolution Studios, Justin Deegan - Honoring Tribal Legacies
• March 22, 1-3 p.m.: Lance Foster, Vice-Chairman Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska - Ioway Storytelling
• March 28, 1 p.m.: Jack Meggars, filmmaker.
All events will take place in the visitor center auditorium. For more information contact Effigy Mounds National Monument at 563-873-3491.
