Fond du Lac Ojibwe Band Citizen Thomas House shares his talent with the community
Dan Ningham
Especially for ICT
Thomas House's traditional wooden artworks are not man-made or to collect dust on the wall.
House creates decorative wood from a variety of northern Minnesota trees, creating pieces that are not only tribal, but also fully functional. This includes a series of rocking tables or dikinaga that he created.
"Over the years, I've learned to do tree-plant things to support my family and community," said Thomas House. House makes lacrosse sticks, as well as griffins, tribal symbols for traditional funerals, drums, drums and snowshoes.
This type of artwork requires steam bent wooden rods and sheets.
Haus said he started making rocking chairs 13 years ago.
"My wife was pregnant with twins at the time, and we visited the birch canoe building project in Fond du Lac," House said. There he met Marvin Defoe, a member of the Red Cliffs Ojibwe Band, who led a canoe-building project and convinced Hawes to make the twins a pair of dikangas.
Do you like this story? Support our work today with a donation of $5 or $10. Support ICT non-profits.
Dickinagan was a team effort. With the help of other tribes who found old cedar, pine and maple wood and with folding techniques, House was able to create two dikinagins.
"After that, I was asked to do dikinaaganan for people from time to time and I did a big workshop to teach the technique to the Fond du Lac community," House said. "At home, I grew up wearing a Kiragan that my parents bought from someone in the Grand Portage area, and I always thought the curves were beautiful, so I cloned the shape for everything I wear today."
Thomas House, Eagle Clan of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, his wife Nashai, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, and their family live in the historic town of Fond du Lac, southwest of Duluth, Minnesota. He works for the Fond du Lac Band as the Director of the Natural Resources Program.
© In Indian Country Today , Fond du Lac team member and Dean Thomas House. (Photo: Thomas House)In addition to crib boards, Haus makes lacrosse sticks. He has never played, but he visited Bas du Lac to attend a game for a local Twin Cities lacrosse team to learn about forest management. House said he quickly fell in love with lacrosse.
"There were no golfers around us and certainly no clubbers, and especially Fond du Lac," he said. “I thought it would be great if our communities would revive the game of bagaadowewin and know that we need sticks.
House's core values determined how he built his woodworking projects and how he and others built and traditionally used them.
"I believe in our people and I believe in the power of the natural world," House said. "I think they will make our children stronger and more observant. Part of the energy comes from the trees and the soil they grew from, which fueled their growth from the water and the sun."
Also, he said, lacrosse sticks help maintain a connection between people and the spirit of the sport.
"Bagaadowin and our wild animals have a lot to teach us about health and community," House said. "I strongly believe in the spirit of the game and in these times we need that spirit for indigenous peoples to lead the modern world. Bagaadowin covers and strengthens all aspects of our mind, spirit and body.
© Courtesy of Indian Country Today Ojibwe wooden sticks, baaga'adowaanan, made from Thomas House's Drunk Below Bag design. (Photo by Thomas House)Like many woodworkers, House had models to look at and play with. He found a bat that his brother William Hawis remembered admiring. The home team also won the game in their second game.
"Our traditional game makes us better people who can serve our community," House said. “Baaga'adowewin is really revitalizing when I thought it was important. The challenges we face with our collective physical and mental health are many and I believe that bagaadowin manadug (spirits) are the tools we want to use.
The timing of lacrosse's renaissance and the desire to improve the art of carpentry is no coincidence, he said. "Every time there's a game, I feel like our communities are stronger because of it," House said. "Our collective identity is being rebuilt in a small way by collecting wood again."
Sign up for the free ICT newsletter.
It's the same with the bikini. House said strong communities start with every child. A traditional bed should be the first accessory a child sees in his life.
"If it were up to me, everyone would live in their homes (bikinyagan) and these children would grow up watching their families play bagaadowewi, hunting, fishing, chasing fish, speaking their language and living a healthy life. Mani eye for us," said House.
Twin Cities Native Lacrosse founder and director John Hunter, a Winnebago/White Ears Ojibwe, met House and helped connect House to the game.
"He's done a lot of work with the forest and the tribes around Manomi," Hunter said. Hunter House said he knows how important different tree species are to the Anishinaabe and how climate change can affect tree growth. House also had difficulty winning canoe races at language camp, Hunter said.
“Enjoying competition and understanding how to use forest knowledge are good qualities to learn about Bagadowewin. So it was great to have an interest in lacrosse,” Hunter said.
"I found out later that he made kiaraaginans or rocking chairs, which was cool because he knew how to work with water and trees to make curved wood," Hunter said. "Now I see how much fun it is. It's taught me the things I love most about running clubs and teaching others the game. There's a lot of generosity and the gift is sharing."
© Presented by India TodayIKT is a non-profit news organization. Do you support our work? All our content is free. There are no subscriptions or fees. And last year, we hired more local journalists than any other news organization, and with your help, we'll continue to grow and build career paths for our people. ICT support only $10. Sign up for the free ICT newsletter.
