The Tsalagi Anitsvyasdi (Cherokee Braves) played Daniel Boone High School (Tenn.) in the Coaches vs Cancer event held at TC Roberson High School on Saturday, Dec. 13. Shown, left to right, back row -Traelin Carey, Kaden Stephens, Zayden Crowe, Brandon Blankenship, Mack Burgess, Tayvin Bark, Utsela Saunooke, Drallen Ledford, Tsula Howlingcrane; front row – Kaden Cucumber, Dalton Yates, Natalie Grant, Matix Stamper, Dillon Beam, Samuel “Koga” Hernandez, and Jordan “LJ” Panther. Not pictured: Head Coach: James “Jimmy” Cleaveland, Assistant Coaches, Josiah Fourkiller-Lossiah, Jace Wolfe, and Damion Ledford. (Photo courtesy of Cherokee Central Schools
Special to the One Feather
The Tsalagi Anitsvyasdi (Cherokee Braves) played Daniel Boone High School (Tenn.) in the Coaches vs Cancer event held at TC Roberson High School on Saturday, Dec. 13. The team chose to play for (SUIT UP FOR) Natalie Grant. She recently battled cancer and beat it.
Mrs. Natalie Grant
Mrs. Natalie Grant, a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, has been with Cherokee Central Schools for 15 years teaching the Cherokee Language. She spent the first nine years in the elementary school as a language immersion instructor and is now in her sixth year working in the 8th grade. She is the mother of three, but if you were to ask any former or current student they will tell you that they are one of her kids, too.
In the early morning hours of Aug. 2, 2024, she was seen in the ER for excruciating back pain. A CT scan was taken with the speculation of a kidney stone. After a 4-hour wait, at 7:30 a.m., she went home to rest and await scan results. By 8:30 she received a call to report back to the ER immediately. In her mind, she was thinking it was “appendicitis and emergency surgery is needed.” The scan confirmed a kidney stone but also revealed a suspicious mass on her left kidney. She was referred to a urologist who confirmed a renal cell carcinoma on the left kidney. On Oct. 28, 2024, a 2″ cancerous mass was cut away from the kidney, and on Oct. 30, she made her way home to begin the healing process.
Each cancer survivor story varies. No one wants or asks for cancer. She is thankful her story resulted in an easier remedy but that is not always the case. Continue to pray for those battling all sicknesses and diseases. Get those yearly checkups.
Natalie is a great example of Every Day Every Brave, this is one of Cherokee central schools’ mottos.
“Every day, every brave” refers to the concept of “everyday bravery”: the idea that courage is not just about grand, heroic gestures, but also about the many small, daily acts of facing challenges, anxieties, and fears in one’s personal life. All of our students and staff, here at Cherokee Central Schools, are so thankful to God that Mrs. Natalie’s fight with cancer was a victory and that she is still with us and is keeping our Cherokee language alive within our students and the classroom. Go Braves!
