L-R: Cherokee Nation Community & Cultural Outreach Director Kevin Stretch; Kansas Cherokee Community Organization Board Member Shelby Mefford; Kansas Cherokee Community Organization Board Member Brittany Stovall; Cherokee Nation Veterans Center Director Barbara Foreman; Deputy Chief Bryan Warner; Kansas Cherokee Community Organization Board Member Michele Summerfield; Kansas Cherokee Community Organization Board Member Jennifer Barnett; Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.; Kansas Cherokee Community Organization President Brittney Mason; Council Speaker Mike Shambaugh; and Cherokee Nation Senior Advisor for Community Engagement Canaan Duncan.
KANSAS, OK – Leaders from the Cherokee Nation and Kansas Cherokee Community Organization (KCCO) gathered recently to cut the ribbon on a new community building in Kansas, OK.
The building was constructed through the Cherokee Nation Respond, Recover and Rebuild COVID-19 plan with an investment of approximately $2 million that covered the building, parking lot and a nearby helipad to assist community first responders.
“For many Cherokees, their greatest source of connection to our tribe is through local Cherokee community organizations and this building is going to be so vital to the Kansas community,” said Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. “The Cherokee Nation is dedicated to supporting grassroots and the hard work of community groups like the Kansas Cherokee Community Organization. This building and the hard work of the organization and community members will help serve this area for many years to come.”
The new building is approximately 4,000 sq. ft. The project also included substantial infrastructure improvements to the property, which will support future building expansion and overall growth of the site. The new community building, located at 1328 E. Tulsa Ave., is adjacent to property owned by the Town of Kansas, which will be developed into a new local police headquarters.
“There is a long-standing desire…