. Both bills are now headed to the President for enactment. We have not stopped working for Indian Country and will continue to work to advance tribal priorities during this lame-duck session.

left to right: Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Mike Johanns (R-NE), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Jon Tester (D-MT) and Al Franken (D-MN). Senators Daniel Inouye (D-HI), John Hoeven (R-ND) and Tom Udall (D-NM) not pictured.

commitment to excellence and have shown us all that it is possible to succeed despite seemingly insurmountable odds.

Today, we would like to recognize our honorees one more time. Thank you to: the Chairmen of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, Billy Frank, Jr., Charlie Hill, Kateri Tekakwitha, Edward K. Thomas, Duke Kahanamoku, Richard Milanovich, Suzan Shown Harjo, Hattie Kauffman, the Black Lodge Singers, Sam Bradford, Lori Ann Piestewa, Bruce “Two Dogs” Bozsum, Shoni and Jude Schimmel, Mary Golda Ross, Russell Means, Jana Mashonee, Israel “IZ” Kamakawiwoʻole, Mary Kim Titla, Sherman Joseph Alexie, Jr., Earl Barbry, Irene Bedard, Oren R. Lyons, Kyle Lohse, Chris Eyre, Maria Martinez, N. Scott Momaday, the Iroquois Nationals, the Native American Ballerinas, and Floyd Red Crow Westerman. You have inspired all of us.

sterman began his career as a successful country music artist. He has collaborated with artists including: Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt, Joni Mitchell, and Buffy Sainte-Marie. In 1989 Mr. Westerman decided to pursue acting. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of the Sioux leader Ten Bears in Dances with Wolves. Throughout his acting career, Mr. Westerman appeared in over 50 movies and television shows, including Hidalgo, Swing Vote, and Walker Texas Ranger. He dedicated much of his life to advocate for American Indian rights and environmental causes. His advocacy work includes the American Indian Movement (AIM), touring with Sting to publicize the decimation of rain forests and their residents, and serving as founder and executive director of the Eyapaha Institute, a non-profit corporation devoted to address racism, discrimination, depredation and genocide of indigenous peoples throughout the world. His many accolades include a Congressional Certificate of Special Recognition, Award for Generosity by the Americans for Indian Opportunity and Celebrity of the Year by the American Indian Exposition in 2000. He passed away on December 13, 2007.

de Monte Carlo and Grand Ballet de Marquis de Cuevas stages in the 1940s.

Maria Tallchief, Osage, was the first Native American to become a prima ballerina and danced with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo from 1942 to 1947. She helped create the New York City Ballet and helped found the Chicago Ballet in 1981.

Marjorie Tallchief, Osage, was the first American Indian to be "première danseuse étoile" of the Paris Opera Ballet and performed with the Grand Ballet du Marquis de Cuevas. She has performed for many notable public figures including President Kennedy, Charles de Gaulle, and President Lyndon B. Johnson. Ms. Tallchief became the Artistic Director of the Dallas Ballet.

Moscelyne Larkin, Shawnee-Peoria, joined the Wassily de Basil’s Original Ballet Russe at the age of fifteen before joining the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. In the 1950s she founded the Tulsa Civic Ballet and School. In 1978 she was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.

Yvonne Chouteau, Shawnee-Cherokee, joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo at the age of fourteen and was the youngest dancer ever accepted. She was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 1947 at the age of eighteen, the youngest member ever inducted. In 1960 she helped develop the University of Oklahoma’s dance program, which was the first fully accredited dance program in the United States.

Rosella Hightower, Choctaw, danced for the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, before joining the American Ballet Theatre in New York City. Ms. Hightower opened the Centre de Danse Classique in 1962 in Cannes, which became one of Europe’s most prestigious ballet schools.

To learn more about the ballerinas:
http://bcove.me/s0vu3vvs

Seneca, Tuscarora and Cayuga). The Iroquois people are known for creating the sport of lacrosse itself and it is central to their social, spiritual and cultural heritage. In 1990 the Iroquois Nationals were admitted to the International Lacrosse Federation and have been competing in the World Indoor Lacrosse Championship since it first began in 2003. The games, held every four years, have given the team the opportunity to travel around the world to compete against nations including Australia and Canada. They have competed in all three of the games medaling in each. Most recently they took silver in the 2011 Prague games. They have also qualified to play in the World Lacrosse Championship since 1998, taking fourth each time. In 2012 they traveled to Finland for the World Championship and came in third, despite beating England and the USA. In 2006 the Iroquois Nationals partnered with Nike who is sponsoring programs to promote wellness-and-fitness activities in Native American communities throughout the region, as well as provide lacrosse equipment and sportswear for the team. The Iroquois Nationals program has had a significant impact on Native youth throughout the country as their triumphs have provided an international showcase of indigenous talent and culture.

To view the Iroquois Nationals defeat team USA in the 2012 World Lacrosse Championship:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWBBJqZUyy8

father and Cherokee mother in Lawton, Oklahoma. Mr. Momaday’s first novel House Made of Dawn was published in 1969 and earned the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The book is based on his experiences while living at the Jemez Pueblo and is considered a classic in Native American literature. He has written more than fifteen books and his recent titles include The Ancient Child, In the Presence of the Sun, and The Native Americans: Indian Country. He is featured as a commentator on a documentary about the American old west tilted “The West,” which was produced by Ken Burns, and is featured on the PBS documentary The American Experience: Last Stand at Little Bighorn discussing boarding schools and the Battle of Little Bighorn. He is the founder of Rainy Mountain Foundation and Buffalo Trust, a non-profit organization that works to preserve Native cultures. In 1992 he became the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Native Writers’ Circle of America and he was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President George W. Bush in 2007. He is currently a professor of English at the University of Arizona.

To listen to Mr. Momaday give a reading at the National Museum of the American Indian’s 2008 Native Writers Series: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypr3x8uBFgA

nd was from the San Ildefonso Pueblo, a community just outside of Santa Fe. At an early age, she learned pottery skills from her aunt. Traditional pottery making techniques were being lost, but Martinez and her family experimented with different techniques and helped preserve the cultural art. In 1908 an excavation in New Mexico led to the discovery of Pueblo pottery from the 1600s. Ms. Martinez was hired to re-create the once-lost style and she did so with great success. For years she perfected her craft and she created a style that would become world famous - pottery with a combination of a matte finish and a glossy jet-black surface. Ms. Martinez won many awards for her work and received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to fund a Martinez pottery workshop in 1973. She passed on her knowledge and skill to many others in her community providing them with a means of artistic expression and the ability to carry on a traditional part of the pueblo way of life. Ms. Martinez’s artwork and lessons helped revitalize her pueblo’s economy and today her pottery sells for as much as $20,000.

To learn more about Ms. Martinez:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AhX1MhvAG8

ahoma. He received his big break in 1998 with his directorial debut of Smoke Signals, the first feature-length film directed by a Native American to receive national theatrical release by a major distributor - Miramax Films. Smoke Signals became one the highest-grossing independent films of the year and it won the Audience award at the Sundance Film Festival. Mr. Eyre has continued to captivate audiences with his depictions of life for Native Americans. Mr. Eyre’s won a Directors Guild of American Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement for his 2004 film Edge of America and in 2007 he was selected for two prestigious artist awards – the United States Artists Fellowship and the Bush Foundation Artists Fellowship in Film/Media for his work. Recently, he has directed A Thousand Roads for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, three episodes for the PBS miniseries We Shall Remain and select episodes of Friday Night Lights and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. In February of 2012, Mr. Eyre was appointed chair of the Santa Fe University of Art and Design’s Moving Image Arts Department.

To view the Smoke Signals preview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4GthKmraXQ