Post by blackcrowheart on Oct 10, 2006 14:35:35 GMT -5
Tribe pledges $1 million for D.C. embassy
Jessica Coomes
The Arizona Republic
Oct. 4, 2006 12:00 AM
FORT MCDOWELL - The northeast Valley's small but wealthy Indian tribe has pledged $1 million toward a $20 million Washington, D.C., embassy building for the National Congress of American Indians, a lobbying organization for tribal governments.
The Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation made the donation to increase the political presence of Indian tribes in the nation's capital.
The Native American lobbying group is meeting for its annual convention this week in Sacramento, where Fort McDowell President Raphael Bear announced the tribe's donation.
"They've been great supporters of sovereignty and self-determination, and we want them to continue doing that," Fort McDowell General Manager Orlando Moreno said.
The National Congress of American Indians has lobbied members of Congress on behalf of Fort McDowell in the past, Moreno said.
Two years into its five-year fund-raising campaign, the National Congress of American Indians has raised $2.5 million, including the recent donation from Fort McDowell, for the building.
The group, founded in 1944, is based in Washington.
Reach the reporter at jessica.coomes@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-6848.
Jessica Coomes
The Arizona Republic
Oct. 4, 2006 12:00 AM
FORT MCDOWELL - The northeast Valley's small but wealthy Indian tribe has pledged $1 million toward a $20 million Washington, D.C., embassy building for the National Congress of American Indians, a lobbying organization for tribal governments.
The Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation made the donation to increase the political presence of Indian tribes in the nation's capital.
The Native American lobbying group is meeting for its annual convention this week in Sacramento, where Fort McDowell President Raphael Bear announced the tribe's donation.
"They've been great supporters of sovereignty and self-determination, and we want them to continue doing that," Fort McDowell General Manager Orlando Moreno said.
The National Congress of American Indians has lobbied members of Congress on behalf of Fort McDowell in the past, Moreno said.
Two years into its five-year fund-raising campaign, the National Congress of American Indians has raised $2.5 million, including the recent donation from Fort McDowell, for the building.
The group, founded in 1944, is based in Washington.
Reach the reporter at jessica.coomes@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-6848.