
Contributing Writer for The Commuter April, 28, 2010
Is the Great Spirit calling you? Could be. The Native American Student Union (NASU) is ramping up and looking for new members and position holders. Jay Cavazos, spiritnamed “Bear” and President of NASU, invites students to attend the first 2010 meeting at 3 p.m., April 28 at the Diversity Achievement Center in room F-220.
“There are positions open.” Cavazos announced. He said the positions open included vice president, secretary, treasurer, and note taker.
NASU is open to all and will meet twice each month. “This club is open to everybody,” Cavazos said. “You don’t have to be part of a tribe or be Native American to join.” In fact, Cavazos commented that a familial attitude is encouraged in the club. “We encourage members to bring their children if they like,” said Cavazos. “They just have to bring themselves and want to learn and be community oriented.”
The NASU seeks to offer opportunities for sharing the Native American culture with hands-on experiences, historical teachings and cultural crafts. “We do genealogy studies and learn how to make fry bread. We do moccasin work, beading work and learn to make dream catchers,” said Cavazos. “A lot of people like to do their genealogy. You can do this activity even if you are not of Native American descent,” he added.
The NASU hosts on-campus pow wows. These ceremonies include tribal dancing, music and the passing of the chanupa, a pipe used in tribal ceremonies. “Often there is a misconception about the chanupa that makes people think of pot because the ceremonial tobacco is a green color,” said Cavazos. According to Cavazos, the tobacco is created from a unique blend of tobacco, sweet grass, sage, and other herbal medicines that many Native Americans believe hold healing properties. “It is a ceremonial tradition,” Cavazos said.
In addition to the cultural experiences, the NASU highly encourages community involvement. “We do food drives, clothing drives, and we have elder days. We have garbage days where we remove all the garbage on campus. Last year there was over 8-10 garbage bags that were collected and removed,” said Cavazos.
There are many off-campus opportunities and field trips available to NASU members, including pow wows and other native gatherings. Members are invited to attend field trips where they will meet Chief Bill Stann, spiritnamed Blue Eyes, to learn cultural histories, crafts and ceremonies. This summer some of the members are traveling to North Carolina to attend the Strong Sun Festival Pow Wow. The cultural experiences in this event include Native American traditional dancers, Native American music, tribal chiefs from across the south, storytelling, fire starting and craft demonstrations. “They’re flying me there to make fry bread,” Cavazos said.

*** An article for The Commuter: Linn-Benton Community College, Spring 2010
Is the Great Spirit calling you? Could be. The Native American Student Union (NASU) is ramping up and looking for new members and position holders. Jay Cavazos, spiritnamed “Bear” and President of NASU, invites students to attend the first 2010 meeting at 3 p.m., April 28 at the Diversity Achievement Center in room F-220.
“There are positions open.” Cavazos announced. He said the positions open included vice president, secretary, treasurer, and note taker.
NASU is open to all and will meet twice each month. “This club is open to everybody,” Cavazos said. “You don’t have to be part of a tribe or be Native American to join.” In fact, Cavazos commented that a familial attitude is encouraged in the club. “We encourage members to bring their children if they like,” said Cavazos. “They just have to bring themselves and want to learn and be community oriented.”
The NASU seeks to offer opportunities for sharing the Native American culture with hands-on experiences, historical teachings and cultural crafts. “We do genealogy studies and learn how to make fry bread. We do moccasin work, beading work and learn to make dream catchers,” said Cavazos. “A lot of people like to do their genealogy. You can do this activity even if you are not of Native American descent,” he added.
The NASU hosts on-campus pow wows. These ceremonies include tribal dancing, music and the passing of the chanupa, a pipe used in tribal ceremonies. “Often there is a misconception about the chanupa that makes people think of pot because the ceremonial tobacco is a green color,” said Cavazos. According to Cavazos, the tobacco is created from a unique blend of tobacco, sweet grass, sage, and other herbal medicines that many Native Americans believe hold healing properties. “It is a ceremonial tradition,” Cavazos said.
In addition to the cultural experiences, the NASU highly encourages community involvement. “We do food drives, clothing drives, and we have elder days. We have garbage days where we remove all the garbage on campus. Last year there was over 8-10 garbage bags that were collected and removed,” said Cavazos.
There are many off-campus opportunities and field trips available to NASU members, including pow wows and other native gatherings. Members are invited to attend field trips where they will meet Chief Bill Stann, spiritnamed Blue Eyes, to learn cultural histories, crafts and ceremonies. This summer some of the members are traveling to North Carolina to attend the Strong Sun Festival Pow Wow. The cultural experiences in this event include Native American traditional dancers, Native American music, tribal chiefs from across the south, storytelling, fire starting and craft demonstrations. “They’re flying me there to make fry bread,” Cavazos said.

*** An article for The Commuter: Linn-Benton Community College, Spring 2010