On Friday, November 10, the City of Reno celebrated it's first Native American Heritage Month Celebration in Midtown. It marked the first time the city has recognized this month through a proclamation. The event began with an elder giving a sacred blessing, which was not allowed to be filmed. An entire block of Tahoe Street was closed off, and Native-made vendors, traditional medicine, powwow dancers, and drums were present.

The theme of the event is to reclaim urban space for Native Americans in a positive and inclusive manner. Nellie Davis, the founder of Sawabe Muhano (Good Medicine), explained the importance of their vision. 

"What we're finding a lot through a lot of wellness studies within the Native American community is that the majority of the Native community is now living urban, but we don't always have access to traditional care or a sense of healthy and spiritual community so that's really what Sawabe Muhano and our vision was created to create the place of healing, and gathering, and community," explained Sawbe Muhano founder Nellie Davis.

A representative from the Governor's Office presented a cultural talk on the Stewart Indian School, a residential boarding school until the 1980's. However, now it has been converted into the Stewart Indian School Cultural Center and Museum, where alumni tell their stories of how the government tried to assimilate Native American children by forcing them to drop their own culture, language, and spirituality. 

Go to Nevada Urban Indians, INC to learn more about medical clinics and health wellness programs for Native Americans in our community. 

To learn more about Nellie Davis and her work with Sawabe Muhano, click here.Â