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We look forward to seeing you TONIGHT at the Monday, April 7, 2025, evening Culture class. The class will be at the Pembroke Boys & Girls Club.

You are invited to the District 10 Community Meeting on Tuesday, April 15, 2025 at 6:30 pm at the Rennert Fire Department located at 9896 Rennert Rd. Shannon, NC. The event is hosted by Councilman Bobby Emanuel. The meeting will offer information about tribal services and community information. Dinner will be served.

The Qualified Bidders List is NOW OPEN! Apply Today! The Lumbee Tribe Rehabilitation Housing Program is accepting new contractor applications for the following trades: Plumbing, Electrical, Septic, and HVAC. The Rehabilitation Program accepts applications for new contractors twice a year ONLY. Any American Indian contractor who would like to place their name/business on the Qualified Bidders List for the Lumbee Tribe Rehabilitation Housing Program must submit an application by mail or by the drop off box at the Tribal Housing Complex located at 6984 NC 711 in Pembroke, NC 28372. Address submissions to the attention of Jessica Jones. The deadline for applications is Wednesday, April 30, 2025 by 3 pm. For applications or additional questions, contact Jessica Jones at 910.522.5466 or jljones@lumbeetribe.com

Chairman Lowery's Monthly report for February 2025. Dear Lumbee People, February 2nd is an official Lumbee Holiday, recognizing when our people came together to adopt the name Lumbee as our tribal name, which is our sovereign right. Our leaders took this necessary step on February 2, 1952, to stop the continuous mislabeling of our people by the State of North Carolina. By naming ourselves we took back our rights and recognized ourselves as the Lumbee people. This move, to take our name after the Lumbee River that we call ours, was much welcomed. There were 2,169 people voting for the measure with only a few dozen voting against the name. Here in North Carolina, the Sappony Tribe changed their name from the Indians of Person County in 2003, finally ending the state's practice of mis-naming Indian nations. Exercising our inherent sovereignty and reclaiming our naming rights solidified our ties to the River and the Land and it ended the State's ability to change our name when they saw fit. Recently, I submitted Ronnette Sutton and Emily Deese to the Tribal Council for appointment to the Lumbee Tribe Supreme Court. The Lumbee Tribal Council approved the two new justices during their February Business Meeting. Ms. Sutton is a practicing attorney with a law degree (JD) from UNC School of Law. Ms. Deese is an Energy Service Specialist with a master's in business administration (MBA) from UNC-Pembroke. These two individuals will hear cases that come before the court and will make rulings along with the other three members. I am proud of their continued commitment to our Tribe and community. Included in President Trump's Presidential Memorandum about full federal recognition for the Lumbee people, was a requirement that the Department of Interior (DOI) consult with Tribe as they prepared their report to the President. Tribal Officials and the DOI have moved forward quickly, holding our first consultation on February 11th. The meeting was very productive, and I felt like the DOI officials properly listened to our comments and asked appropriate questions. DOI has an April 23rd deadline to have a report sent to the White House and they are working to have this completed ahead of time. I love you all and I am thankful for the opportunity to serve as Chairman of our great Tribal Nation.

In accordance with Rule .1618(c)(6) of Title 15A Subchapter 13B of the North Carolina Solid Waste Management Regulations, Robeson County Solid Waste Department is holding a public meeting at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, May 19, 2025, at the Robeson County Commissioners’ Chambers situated in the Robeson County Managers Office Building located at 550 North Chestnut Street, Lumberton, NC 28358.

The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina had the opportunity to host Duke Energy and share with them all the good work that is currently taking place at the Lumbee Tribe Cultural Center. Duke Energy had an opportunity to see the new amphitheater under construction as well as hear about the upcoming activities that will take place at the Culture Center such as the Dance of the Harvest Moon Pow Wow that is scheduled for September 26-29 and the Annual Fish Fry October 4, 2025.   Chairman Lowery thanked Duke Energy for their contributions to the Cultural Center and expressed support for future collaborations.

Thank you to Open Space Institute (OSI), Ducks Unlimited, and the other funders for the donation of Camp Island ,a 1,382-acre property, in Robeson County! Camp Island is rich with cultural significance and natural resources, in which Indigenous artifacts have been found. The Camp Island project represents the opportunity to receive substantial preserved areas that the tribe can maintain indefinitely for all tribal citizens to enjoy. Because of the generous donation of Camp Island to the Lumbee Tribe, the Tribe will now be able to utilize these lands for the wildlife conservation, forest management, environmental studies, outdoor recreation and tribal game lands. The Lumbee Tribe will begin to assess and evaluate the lands to ensure sustainability and proper land stewardship for the generations of our community and tribal people.

At the request of Open Space Institution (OSI), today's land ceremony will be closed to the public. Pictures will be released at a later date. Press Release EMBARGOED UNTIL MARCH 31, 2025 Contact: Open Space Institute: Siobhan Gallagher Kent - (845) 576-8186; sgallagherkent@osiny.org Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina: Tasha Oxendine - (910) 522-5185; taoxendine@lumbeetribe.com Open Space Institute and Partners Return Almost 1,400 Acres of Land to Lumbee Tribe; Tribe will Protect and Steward Land in Robeson County Project Secures Critical Cultural and Natural Resources Along the Lumber River ROBESON COUNTY, N.C. (March 31, 2025) – The Open Space Institute (OSI) and Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina have announced the acquisition of the 1,382-acre Camp Island property near North Carolina’s southeastern border. OSI acquired the property with funding support from a private family foundation and a North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grant facilitated by Ducks Unlimited (DU). OSI has donated the property, rich with cultural significance and natural resources, to the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, who will steward the forested property in perpetuity as a natural and cultural resource for the Tribe. OSI and the Lumbee Tribe will celebrate the acquisition in a ceremony on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, at 3:30 pm. The Camp Island project represents the first opportunity to establish a large, protected natural area under the stewardship of the state’s Lumbee Tribe. “Properties like Camp Island play a vital role not only in the health of ecosystems, but also in the lives of the people tied to the land itself,” said Dr. Maria Whitehead, OSI’s Senior Vice President of Land for the Southeast. “OSI is honored to be part of this effort to preserve culturally significant land, and thanks to our partners, we have the incredible opportunity to return it to tribal stewardship and care.” “We are excited to reconnect with this land, which we’ve not been able to access for a very long time,” said John Lowery, Lumbee Tribal Chairman. “Our people are outdoors people, and the ability to steward this land for Lumbee and visitors alike is truly special. We are proud to preserve Camp Island for many years to come.” The Camp Island property is especially important to the Lumbee Tribe as a cultural site where significant Indigenous artifacts have been found. The Lumbee Tribe operates several camps where participants engage in preservation and restoration activities, while deepening an understanding of their cultural heritage. Protecting Camp Island is a critical step toward imparting these values to future generations.“This gift will give our youth an opportunity to learn about native plants, trees, birds, and local wildlife,” said Homer Fields, Lumbee Tribal Council Representative (District 14), who represents the Allenton Community where Camp Island is located. “We’re thrilled about this project.” “We are truly grateful that OSI is cultivating community through their cultural sensitivities to address our reconnection to Mother Earth,” said Wendy Moore, Former Lumbee Tribal Council Representative and Former Chair of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. The benefits of the Camp Island project extend beyond the Lumbee Tribe. The property, which was once managed for wood products, will now be stewarded for forest and species conservation by the Tribe, and protected in perpetuity by the NAWCA grant agreement and other deed restrictions. It will become part of a larger network of protected properties in a “green corridor” between the Lumber and Cape Fear river basins. Primarily forested wetland, the Camp Island property contains a vast matrix of blackwater swamps that drain directly into the Lumber River, a state-designated Scenic River that is considered one of North Carolina’s most pristine recreational assets and home to fish species like the Broadtail Madtom and Ironcolor Shiner. The Lumber River is known traditionally as the Lumbee River; its name was changed by state lawmakers in 1809 to reflect its use in timbering operations, but it is still known by the Lumbee People as the Lumbee River. With abundant intact forested wetlands, the tract is within a designated Atlantic Coast Joint Venture Waterfowl Focus Area and Audubon Important Bird Area boasting, among other bird species, Yellow- throated Warblers, Great Blue and Green Herons, Swallow-tailed Kites, and Wood Storks. "We're excited to join forces with OSI and the Lumbee Tribe to fund a project that holds tremendous value for wetlands, wildlife and the community," said Emily Purcell, DU Director, Conservation Programs Southeast. "Collaboration drives conservation forward, and we're honored to play a role in safeguarding Camp Island for future generations of the Lumbee Tribe to connect with their ancestral lands." In addition to being an important site for American Indian history and culture, in addition to natural resources, the Camp Island property has a long and storied history as a colonial-era British loyalist encampment, purportedly attacked by a group of the Camden District Regiment militia. In the 1850s, enslaved people who had escaped established a small community on the property with livestock and cultivated crops. About the Open Space Institute Founded in 1974, the Open Space Institute (OSI) has been a partner in the protection of more than 2.5 million acres along the eastern seaboard from Quebec to Florida. OSI’s Southeast office, established in Charleston in 2014, has been a partner in the protection of more than 130,000 acres across the Southeastern United States, the vast majority of which will be open to the public. Visit OSI online at openspaceinstitute.org/southeast . About the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, also known as the “People of the Dark Water,” have their homeland in Southeastern, North Carolina, along the dark waters of the Lumbee river. The ancestors of the Lumbee have lived here for thousands of years. The Lumbee Tribe Housing complex is located in Pembroke, NorthCarolina. The tribal territory and service area of the Lumbee People includes four counties: Robeson, Scotland, Hoke, and Cumberland. The Lumbee Tribe is the largest American Indian Tribe east of the Mississippi River.

Last Wednesday, Lumbee Tribal Chairman John Lowery, Tribal Council Speaker Alex Baker, Vice-Chair Bobby Emanuel, Harold Smith, Chair of Federal Recognition Committee, Councilman Gerald Goolsby, and Councilwoman Chocajuana Oxendine , along with staff and legal representatives, met with Department of Interior (DOI) officials to hold a consultation meeting regarding President Trump's Presidential Memorandum.  The meeting was the third consultation, reflecting DOI's commitment to having direct communication with the Lumbee Tribe concerning the Memorandum. These historic meetings are a continuation of communication with Lumbee leaders and DOI.  Tribal leaders first began communicating with the DOI in the 1880s, seeking education funding for our children.  Chairman Lowery, Vice-Chair Bobby Emanuel, and Councilmember Gerald Goolsby also met with a delegation of lawmakers and staff members during their time in Washington, D.C., as Tribal leadership continues to advocate for the passage of the Lumbee Fairness Act.

The Lumbee Tribe Cords of Honor Ceremony will be held on Monday, April 28, 2025. Students, there are TWO (2) weeks left to complete and submit your application. All applications must be submitted by April 11th as the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina prepares to honor all Lumbee High School and College Students, who are potential 2025 graduates in the Lumbee Cords of Honor Ceremony. Applications are now being accepted for graduates to apply. These cords represent this important milestone in the life of our Lumbee Students. The cords comprise the colors of the Lumbee Tribal Seal and the Medicine Wheel. This symbolism represents the four directions, four seasons, as well as our sacred path in life. The application (see below) must be fully completed, signed by a school counselor or college advisor, and returned by April 11 , 2025 by 5:00 pm to the Lumbee Tribe of N.C. Please email or hand deliver your application to the Lumbee Tribe of N.C. Housing Complex at 6984 NC Hwy 711 West in Pembroke. (Attn: Cords of Honor) Or Email to : cordsofhonor@lumbeetribe.com . Students must be actively enrolled. Enrollment Office information - 910.668.6099 or 910.521.7861 or email the Enrollment office at enrollment@lumbeetribe.com **Please note: Students that graduate(d) in Fall 2024, Spring 2025, and Fall 2025 may apply for a Cord of Honor. Due to the limited seating available, this will be a ticketed event and graduates MUST RSVP to attend. Each graduate may bring (2) two guests and show their tickets at the door to be scanned. As your life moves into future directions, we wish you success and honor your accomplishments. Education is a core value of the Lumbee People. We know it is our path to success. You crossed this milestone. We want to celebrate your journey. Click here for the application:   https://www.lumbeetribe.com/.../6ca8af ...

Due to potential inclement weather, the Lumbee Tribe of N.C. Enrollment Department will close at 5 pm today, Monday, March 31, 2025. Our tribal offices will resume normal operations tomorrow, April 1, 2025.

What an exciting way to wrap up an amazing week. Former Professional baseball player and world renowned Artist Gene Locklear was celebrated and honored at the University of North Carolina Pembroke powwow. Lumbee Tribal Chairman John Lowery and Nancy Chavis, Director and Curator of the Museum of the Southeast American Indian, honored Gene during a blanket ceremony this afternoon. There was also a Chicken Dance special during the Powwow in honor of Gene, who is a citizen of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. Gene Locklear grew up in the Union Chapel Community in the Lumbee Tribal Territory. He was a Major League Player with the Padres, Yankees, and Reds and also played overseas in the Japan's leagues. He is also well known for his Sport Paintings which are on display through the U.S. Locally his paintings celebrate Lumbee history, culture and community and our hero Henry Berry Lowrie. Gene is also a Vietnam Veteran. This week, the University of North Carolina at Pembroke honored Gene as the Museum of the Southeast American Indian established the Lloyd Oxendine Artist-in-Residence program. The residency featured Gene and opened his exhibition called “From the Pitcher’s Mound to the Easel: The Life and Career of Athlete and Artist Gene Locklear." Gene has produced works of all sizes in oils, acrylics and pencil. Locklear’s styles include realism, impressionism and abstract, with subjects that include Native American and Western figures and landscapes, professional athletes from countless sports and animals.