Rotareminder
Rotary Club of Kent
August 29, 2023
Meeting opening:
President Asad Khan opened the meeting and welcomed Rotarians and guests. Audio booth volunteers were Mark Pennell and Adam Alderson. Todd Kamenash took photos at the meeting. David Dix played the piano and the patriotic song was America the Beautiful. President Asad led us in the Pledge of Allegiance. Kathy Myers offered the invocation. The second song was R-O-T-A-R-Y.
Visiting Rotarians and Guests:
Our visiting Rotarian was Kaleena Gharky from the Aurora Rotary Club.
Bill Childers introduced Omara Kazadi-abe, his guest for today.
Our speaker had several guests including her spouse, Michael Maloy, plus Kathy Dennis and Jerry and Kathy Young.
Announcements:
Stacy Richardson told us that the auction committee will begin meeting on September 12th. Anyone interested in helping with next year’s auction is welcome to attend the meeting.
Randy Smith thanked the club for moving several of our meetings off-site due to the church’s rummage sale. He said the sale went well and proceeds support the mission work of the church.
Roberta O’Keefe needs volunteers to offer invocations. She circulated a sign-up sheet.
Kathy Myers announced the fundraiser for Coleman Health Services to be held on September 14th.
Happy Bucks:
Rebecca Wright-Kulis, Jeff Roeger, Rachel Kerns, Kathy Myers and Asad Khan all contributed “happy bucks” for the club’s literacy projects.
Program:
Amanda Senn introduced our speaker for today. Robin Lash is a Kent resident who currently works remotely as the General Counsel for the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma.
Robin Lash introduced us to the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma by telling us key historical happenings. She showed us the large territory originally held by the tribe that encompassed several states in the Midwest. Interactions with Europeans occurred in the early 1600’s. The tribe was peaceful at first. Then multiple treaties were developed over time from 1795 to 1857. Treaties were not upheld. There were times of violence.
In 1846 the Miami were removed from their homeland and resettled into an area near Kansas. Later they were moved again to a reservation area in Oklahoma along with many other tribes. The tribe has worked to preserve its language and cultural heritage in spite of government efforts to erase the tribe’s identity. She talked about the children being forced to attend boarding schools that only taught English.
Robin brought display materials showing the Miami language and arts and crafts unique to the tribe.
More recently there has been legislation designed to support the work of the Indian Tribes. In 1968 the Indian Civil Rights Act passed. In 1988 legislation set the stage for gaming and other initiatives to support the tribes. The Miami tribe has developed companies that work to enhance cultural preservation including its original language. More recently Robin hailed the US Supreme Court decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma, which upheld the jurisdiction of the Tribe in carrying out tribal actions and court proceedings.
Robin has worked for over 20 years with the Miami Tribe. Her work is complex and comprehensive. Her work is so valued that she was made an honorary member of the Tribe.
At the end of Robin’s talk, she answered numerous questions. It was clear that Rotarians were interested in how tribal law works. Robin’s passion for Indian law came through in her talk. It is also clear that the Miami Tribe values Robin’s expertise.
Response:
John Flynn thanked Robin for coming today to talk about her legal work with the Miami Tribe in Oklahoma. He recalled seeing her as a young girl with pigtails riding her horse and babysitting his children. He noted that now she has returned to her Kent home and is able to work remotely.
The meeting ended with reciting the Four Way Test.
Respectfully submitted.
Sue Hetrick
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