Seminoles, Santa Deliver Holiday Cheer to Hospital
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Billie Swamp Safari growth spurt Immokalee Boys & Girls Club Ethan Cypress making best includes baby critters, views uses federal grant for fi tness of senior year on the court COMMUNITY 3A EDUCATION 1B SPORTS 1C www.seminoletribune.org Volume XXXIX • Number 12 December 31, 2015 Chairman, Seminoles, Santa deliver governor reach compact holiday cheer to hospital agreement BY BEVERLY BIDNEY Staff Reporter BY BEVERLY BIDNEY HOLLYWOOD — President Mitchell Staff Reporter Cypress, with help from Santa Claus, brought much-needed Christmas cheer to Chairman James E. Billie and Gov. Rick young patients Dec. 8 at Joe DiMaggio Scott signed a gaming compact Dec. 7 that Children’s Hospital. will give the Tribe the exclusive right to After collecting more than 900 toys operate blackjack and add craps and roulette during a three-day toy drive, President at its seven Florida casinos. Cypress distributed gifts to children who In exchange, the Tribe will pay $3 might not be home for the holidays. billion to the state over a seven-year period “What most children want is to be beginning in 2017. normal and not be in the hospital,” said The compact must be ratifi ed by the Don Eachus, director of development at Joe Florida Legislature. The 2016 session runs DiMaggio Children’s Hospital Foundation. Jan. 12 through March 11. “It’s a semblance of normalcy when people Chairman Billie said in a statement that bring presents. It brings them a smile and the compact will “serve Florida well for takes their minds off what they are going years to come.” through for a little bit.” He said there is nothing more important The toys were donated Dec. 3-5 by than investing in Florida’s economy and generous passersby at the corner of Stirling continuing to grow the workforce. The Road and U.S. 441 in Hollywood. agreement, he said, will save 3,500 jobs and Local radio stations, nighttime klieg allow the Tribe to create thousands more. lights and Santa Claus helped draw attention “The Seminole Tribe of Florida’s to the collection event, where inside a compact with the state has been one of cheerfully decorated tent, unwrapped gifts ‘promises made and promises kept,’” fi lled boxes labeled by gender and age. Chairman Billie said. The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & The 20-year compact also allows for the Casino Hollywood also showed generosity addition of slot machines at one additional by donating an additional 1,200 toys for pari-mutuel facility in Palm Beach County sharing with other children. and another in Miami-Dade, if approved Several days later, a Seminole Tribe by countywide vote. Also included is a Fire Rescue fi re truck substituted as Santa’s provision for adding limited blackjack tables sleigh to transport jolly St. Nick and his to existing pari-mutuels in Miami-Dade and fi refi ghter elves to the Hollywood hospital. Broward counties, with voter approval. President Cypress followed with vehicles In a letter to legislative leaders Dec. fi lled with toys. Beverly Bidney 7, Scott wrote the compact “represents an “I always like to see the smiles on their President Mitchell Cypress and Santa Claus deliver a toy to a baby in the intensive care unit Dec. 8 at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood. unprecedented level of cooperation between faces,” President Cypress said. “This is the President Cypress hosted a three-day toy drive prior to the delivery. the state of Florida and the Seminole Tribe biggest joy I get from working all year long.” of Florida.” President Cypress hosted his fi rst toy Scott wrote that the compact will result drive and drop off in 2007 when he was Inspiration for the event comes from his church at Christmas: “I thought that was he aims to help as many needy children as in a more than $1.8 billion capital investment Chairman and carried on the tradition childhood Christmas memories. He said he something,” he said. possible during the holidays. by the Tribe and more than 4,800 new direct through his term. He decided to relaunch the remembers how much he looked forward President Cypress credits the community and indirect jobs with an additional 14,500 event this year as President, he said. to the fruit that missionaries brought to the for the success of the Tribe’s casinos, so See TOY DRIVE on page 8A direct and indirect construction jobs. The previous agreement, signed by former Gov. Charlie Crist in 2010, gave the Florida Seminole history explored See COMPACT on page 5A at annual Tallahassee celebration Brighton casino marks BY PETER B. GALLAGHER Mission San Luis de Apalachee, a restored Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum Director Paul Southeastern Indian culture. Other attendees Special Projects Reporter 1633 Spanish Franciscan mission built in an Backhouse moderated the three-hour panel, included members of the Muscogee Nation, Apalachee Native area 2 miles west of the which was followed by a dinner for all Choctawhatchee Creek Indian Nation, the milestone TALLAHASSEE — Seminole Tribe Capitol building. participants and a special inter-tribal Stomp Lower Muskogee Creek Tribe of Georgia members and historians gathered at the Seminole Tribe members Marty Dance led by Seminole medicine man Henry. and the Santa Rosa County Creek Tribe. Florida capital Dec. 12-13 to defend the Bowers and Bobby Henry, author Dr. “Misinformation regarding the Tourists and Leon County locals of all birthday aboriginal ancestry of today’s Seminole Patricia Riles Wickman and Florida State Seminoles’ equity in the state comes up all ages joined the celebration of music, fi ne Indians during the annual Winter Solstice University history professor Dr. Andrew the time. Many people have believed the crafts and stomp dancing. Also on the agenda Celebration. Frank presented on Seminole history at the wrong history for so long; they can’t seem to were stickball, drum circles and gazing at the Hosted by the Florida Department invitation of Florida Secretary of State Ken embrace the truth,” Backhouse said. “That’s pre-solstice sun, stars and planets with the BY EILEEN SOLER of State, the celebration was held at the Detzner. why we decided to put on this event.” Mission’s powerful telescopes to observe Staff Reporter After errors related to the occasion of the “sun standing” at its Seminole ancestry appeared southernmost position. BRIGHTON — Thirty-fi ve years ago in a National Public Radio Opening the discussion was Wickman, Josiah Johns took a gamble when he added (NPR) story several months who began the fi rst Seminole Tribal bingo tables to the combined hardware store ago were traced back to Historic Preservation Offi ce (THPO) and and beauty parlor he owned and managed incorrect information is credited with developing the theory and out of a modest red barn on Brighton provided by the Department providing evidence that today’s Seminole Reservation. of State, which also had and Miccosukee Indians are the direct “At the same time, high stakes bingo confl icting information on descendants of Florida’s aboriginal people. was already popular at Classic Casino in its website, Detzner offered a Wickman revealed how, in reading Hollywood and my father was toughening primetime slot on the Winter a book on President Andrew Jackson by me for the real world,” said Marty Johns who Solstice agenda to explore historian Robert Remini, her theme was was then in his early 20s. the equity issue. NPR’s born: “He said that by the end of the fi rst Little did the younger Johns know that ombudsman also published quarter of the 19th century, all of the Indians he would take over the operation after the an examination of the story, of the Southeast were either transported to tragic death of his father three years later pointing out the failure of the West or buried under the ground.” and that on Nov. 23, 2015 he would lead the the reporter to reach anyone Wickman said as a result of the book’s Seminole Casino Brighton’s 35th anniversary with the Seminole Tribe. statement, she questioned the legitimacy of celebration as its longtime general manager. “Chairman (James E.) “every other thing that I have ever read about Johns said he never expected to be in Billie did not want to call these people.” charge – ever – or that the casino would grow names or get anyone in Wickman described reading and re- on his watch. trouble. He preferred for reading every book, document and article He was there in its humble beginning something good to come she could fi nd about the Florida Indians, when he helped put the roof on the 50-foot- out of the NPR story,” many in foreign languages: “What I had by-35-foot building with his own hands Backhouse said. “I think this fi nally concluded is that the image that we – but he didn’t pay much attention or even has been very positive.” had conjured in our history books today care about the business. It took a year of soul The Winter Solstice of the Seminoles and the Miccosukees of searching after his father’s passing for him Celebration drew several Florida – who aren’t really all one people, to realize that the best times of his life were hundred independent Native if anybody wants to hear that or not – that at his feet, thanks to his father, in his own Americans, who joined the image we have conjured of them is not backyard. members of the Seminole supported by the documents.” “I knew how the game was played, but Peter B. Gallagher Tribe of Florida, Miccosukee “If you read English documents, you I did not know the inner workings of casinos The Henry family, led by medicine man Bobby Henry, leads an inter-tribal Stomp Dance around a bon re Dec.