By BROOKLYN BROWN
One Feather Reporter
CHEROKEE, N.C. – The second Tsalagi Aniwonisgi Didanvdadisdi (Cherokee Speakers Memorial Day) event was held on the morning of Tuesday, Nov. 25 at the Kalvgviditsa Tsalagi Aniwonisgi Tsunatsohisdihi (Cherokee Speakers Place), located adjacent to the New Kituwah Academy in Cherokee, N.C.
Bo Lossiah, manager of the Kituwah Preservation Education Program (KPEP), rings the memorial bell for the six speakers who passed in 2025 during the second Tsalagi Aniwonisgi Didanvdadisdi (Cherokee Speakers Memorial Day) event was held on the morning of Tuesday, Nov. 25 at the Kalvgviditsa Tsalagi Aniwonisgi Tsunatsohisdihi (Cherokee Speakers Place). (BROOKLYN BROWN/One Feather photos)
During the event, the following Cherokee Speakers who passed in 2025 were honored and memorialized: ᎢᏃᎵ Wiggins Blackfox, ᏣᏂ ᎦᏅᎯᏓ John Long, ᏯᏂ ᏌᎶᎵ Yahnie Squirrel, ᏲᎾ ᎶᏏ Ramona Lossie, ᏣᎵ ᏍᎩᎵ ᎡᏆ Charlie Bigwitch, ᎹᏰᏂ ᎦᎦᎹ Mianna Cucumber Luther.
Dinilawigi (Tribal Council) passed Res. No. 212 (2024) last June, making Tsalagi Aniwonisgi Didanvdadisdi an official EBCI tribal holiday that will be observed each year on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. The resolution was submitted by Scarlett “Gigage” Guy, adult language education coordinator for the Cherokee Language Master Apprentice Program (CLMAP), after receiving approval from the Cherokee Speakers Council. The first memorial event was held on Nov. 26, 2024.
In her remarks at the Nov. 25 event, Guy said, “I am grateful to the Cherokee speakers and to the council for helping me, and I am glad that you all supported the resolution, and that the Tribal Council passed the resolution, and adopted this day as a tribal holiday in order for us to honor those who have impacted our community and our lives in immeasurable ways.”
Roger Smoker, Cherokee fluent speaker and chairman of the Cherokee Speakers Council, also gave remarks. “We have speakers who are still present with us this morning. Those are the ones we have to rely on, especially for the learners who are coming up. If you see a speaker, sit down and talk to them.”
Ugvwiyuhi (Principal Chief) Michell Hicks gave his remarks, stating “We all have a responsibility…This land, this building, our language, every little one that’s coming up, do we respect them enough to teach them the right way as to how to be Tsalagi. Prayers lifted for all the families, for the loved ones we lost this year.”
Students in the Cherokee Language Master Apprentice Program (CLMAP) sing three songs in Cherokee language to honor the speakers who passed.
