{"id":28580,"date":"2023-10-05T09:58:14","date_gmt":"2023-10-05T13:58:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=28580"},"modified":"2023-10-05T09:58:15","modified_gmt":"2023-10-05T13:58:15","slug":"choctaw-nation-and-irish-government-reveal-plans-for-eternal-heart-in%e2%80%88oklahoma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=28580","title":{"rendered":"Choctaw Nation And Irish Government Reveal Plans For Eternal Heart In\u2008Oklahoma"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Eternal Heart is funded jointly by the Choctaw Nation and the Government of Ireland (Render by Samuel Stitt)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Barry Coughlan<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those traveling east from Cork city to Waterford can not escape the view on the left hand side approaching the eastbound roundabout from Midleton, a sculpture that clearly harks back towards the USA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sculpture perfectly describes the longstanding relationship between the people of Ireland and the first nations of what is now the USA. The stories of how that bond came about are many and varied but none is surely more poignant than the gesture of solidarity by a group of oppressed, impoverished people 5,000 miles away with the people of Ireland in their time of need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than 175 years ago, when the Irish were suffering through the great famine in 1847 they were gifted with $170 (a considerable sum at that time) by the Chocktaw people of what would become the state of Oklahoma, in the heartlands of the emerging USA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aim of the Choctaws was simply to ease the suffering of fellow human beings, whose grinding poverty had struck a chord with the tribe. All the more remarkable, since they had just completed a grueling forced march along the notorious Trail of Tears from their original lands in the south to US government reservations in the heartlands of the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recorded on a brass plaque in the grand Entrance Hall of the Lord Mayor of Dublin\u2019s Mansion House, the Choctaw peoples\u2019 generosity has become more widely known in recent years, and in June 2017 Kindred Spirits was erected in Midleton, and dedicated at a moving and widely-attended ceremony by Chief of the Choctaw Nation Gary Batton.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2022, a Choctaw delegation once again made the journey to Midleton to view it, as do an increasing number of Irish and international visitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now Kindred Spirits \u2013 nine huge steel feathers in the shape of a cup that\u2019s set amid the greenery of Bailick Park in the town \u2013 is to have a companion installation, across the Atlantic in Tuskahoma, Oklahoma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Choctaw Nation and Irish Government have revealed their plans for Eternal Heart, soon to be installed on Choctaw Capitol ground in Tuskahoma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Samuel Stitt, a member of the Choctaw Nation, submitted the winning design, combining a heart shape and a Celtic trinity cross. The heart will be specifically located to face toward Ireland, representing the eternal bond between the peoples of the two Nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Choctaw Nation \u2013 with more than 220,000 tribal members and associates, the third-largest Indian Nation in the US, can trace their origins back more than 13,000 years and today \u2013 nearly 200 years after their grueling journey along the Trail of Tears \u2013 they are a thriving community with a recently opened and impressive, interactive Cultural Center in their headquarters town of Durant\/Calera, Oklahoma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For international visitors\u2019 young and old \u2013 not least those from Ireland \u2013 the Center is a \u2018must-visit\u2019 stop on any Oklahoma road trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oklahoma is at the \u2018heart\u2019 of the USA on the Great Plains \u2013 the wide grasslands between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, offering a large range of very special natural and cultural experiences plus warm hospitality. People are welcoming, caring and witty at the same time, and cowboys and Native American Indians are not a tourist attraction, but part of everyday life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oklahomma’ \u2013 \u2018Red People\u2019 \u2013 is what the Choctaw Indians originally called the native population and it\u2019s the name given to the area when it became America\u2019s 46th state in 1907. Prior, in 1803, Oklahoma had been declared \u2018Indian Territory\u2019 by US President Thomas Jefferson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traveling in Oklahoma provides an introduction to the authentic culture of the Native American Indians and cowboys, but you\u2019ll also get to know pioneers and oil magnates and to explore a variety of ecosystems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The major natural feature is the prairie, but the landscape ranges from grassland and mountains to lakes and woods. Historically and culturally the region is colorful with a broad range of fascinating events and exciting chapters of history. Travelers interested in the Santa Fe Trail, the Oregon\/California Trail, Route 66, the Trail of Tears or the Chisholm Trail can delve into the subject to make it all come alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the largest urban area \u2013 Oklahoma City, through the mid-size city \u2013 Tulsa, to smallest towns \u2013 like Sulphur, OK, \u2013 the atmosphere is vibrant, warm and welcoming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s about farm to plate food; art and culture; live music and sport \u2013 all of these are easily accessible in Oklahoma.
Visitors are very welcome and are likely to be endlessly surprised and delighted! <\/p>\n

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