Go to Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | Go to the Newsletter Section
GroupImage
CONTENTS
 
A word from
the President
page 2
 
Let's get to business
page 2
 
CIRI non-profit news
page 3
 
Opportunity knocks
page 4
 
News you can use
page 5
 
A look back in history
page 5
 
CIRI spotlight
page 6
 
In touch
page 7
Record Attendance set for 16th Annual Friendshi
 
For the 16th year, CIRI hosted the Friendship Potlatch for shareholders and family members to join together in Anchorage for a celebration of culture and heritage. The annual event was held Saturday, Oct. 7 at Romig Middle School and was attended by some 800 people.
 

Shareholders young and old were joined by friends and relatives ranging from grandparents to grandchildren for a day of traditional foods, entertainment, and the sharing of arts and culture. This year's theme of Millennium Gathering: Family and Friends was communicated through the traditional Athabascan Memorial Cloth Ceremony celebrating

 

 

Sonya Kelliher - Combs, above, and other attendees of the 2000 Friendship Potlatch.

friendship, unity and cooperation. Following the invocation led by CIRI board member Debbie Fullenwider, friends and family formed a circle to remember those who have passed away.
 

The featured program included performances by Medicine

continued on page 6

potlatch - beads
potlatch - seniors potlatch - balloons
Line
Shareholder of the Year Bestowed Upon Well-Known
Line
Volume 25
Number 10
A true culture bearer, Daisy Demientieff was named the 2000 CIRI Shareholder of the Year at the 16th Annual Friendship Potlatch for her pride and preservation of Native culture.
 
Her culture is not a remnant of the past, for Demientieff it is what she considers to be a gift passed down by her mother. Originally from the Anvik area of Interior Alaska, she grew up in a log cabin with her family speaking De Hetan, the local Athabascan language. She was raised with traditional stories and ways of life. Each summer, she returns to fish camp to live the old way, catching and smoking fish in the traditional manner.
 
Today, she is also a renowned artist, specializing in traditional split-willow basket weaving and beading. She is one of a handful of Alaska women who know and practice the art of woven willow root trays, a style of basketry that originated in her home region.
 

Besides baskets, Demientieff creates fine skin and fur sewing, beadwork and music. She and her husband Mike perform regularly at the Athabascan Old-Time Fiddling Festival and other events with their group, the Alaska Fiddlers.

continued on page 6

shareholder of the year
Daisy Demientieff, CIRI's 2000 Shareholder of the Year.
October 2000