Manataba Messenger

Page 19 CRIT Media-June 22, 2022 2:21PM MOHAVE-Creation The Great Spirit Matavilya (sp) was born from the earth and sky. Our people sprang from Avi kwa' ame, the great moun- tain. Although Matavilya was killed by his sis- ter, Frog Woman, before he could teach the people how to live, his Little brother Mastamho took charge, and with a willow stick, he drew a line in the sand, and the line became the river. With the river came the ducks and the fish, and Mastamho scraped the mud from the banks of the river and made the moun- tains. AHA MACAV The people knew nothing, and remembering his teaching from Matavilya, Mastamho showed the people every- thing, like what was the day as opposed to night, to plant, to build a fire and a house for shelter. He showed them how to hunt and fish, how to count, and the four direc- tions for prayer, and when the people learned to do these things, he gave them all he had created. The river and everything along it is THEIRS; they are the Aha Macav, the people who LIVE along the water. THE COLORADO RIVER Their life centered around the river. They relied on annual overflow to irrigate their crops of melon, corn, pumpkin, and beans. They would gather mesquite beans and other wild seeds and roots to grind for flour. They would use traps and nets to take game and fish from the river. They were traders and would follow the trails as far as the Pacific coast to obtain items that were not available to them in the desert. They could defend their territory with great ferocity. They were brave in battle. War parties could travel hundreds of miles, living on chia seeds and water. They fought with clubs, hitting the tops of their enemy's heads, driving them down, then swinging up to crush their jaws. They would take scalps and prisoners. Captives would later be sacrificed to serve fallen warriors in heaven. They would follow the warrior master's spirit up Avi kwa' ame, the way to heaven, the Spirit Mountain. They would purify themselves before returning home, so that dark spirits would be lost and not follow them. Photos courtesy of Pinterest some story excerpts were taken from :http://mojavedesert.net/mojave-indians/ CRIT Media-June 9, 2022 7:49PM On June 1, Colorado River Indian Tribes and Central Arizona Project leadership toured the Mark Wilmer Pumping Plant near Lake Havasu. INTERESTING FACTS: The pumping plant contains six 60,000 horsepower pumps, each capable of moving 278,256 gallons per minute, or 16.7 million gallons per hour. Water is pumped out of the Colorado River and lifted 824 feet to Buckskin Mountain, where it is released into the seven-mile-long Buckskin Mountain Tunnel. Once water leaves the tunnel, it is carried 336 miles through central Arizona to the southern boundary of the San Xavier Indian Reservation southwest of Tucson. www.watereducation.org Photo L-R: Mark Taylor, CAWD Board of Directors Vice President; Amelia Flores, CRIT Chairwoman; Patrick Dent, CAP Asst. Gen. Mgr.; Alexander Arboleda, CAWCD Board of Directors Secretary, Terry Goddard, CAWCD Board of Directors President; CRIT Tribal Council Member Robert Page; CRIT Attorney General Rebecca Loudbear, CRIT Vice-Chairman Dwight Lomayesva; Dale Thompson, CAP Mark Wilmer Pumping Plant Supervisor; Darrin Francom, CAP Asst. Gen. Mgr.; Brenda Burman, CAP Executive Strategy Advisor; Richard Weissinger, CAP Director of Field Maintenance; Ted Cook, CAP Gen. Mgr.; Steven Romero, CAP Maintenance West Mgr.; Laura Grignano, CAGRD Mgr. CRIT Media-June 9, 2022 10:48PM OUR THROWBACK THURSDAY FEATURE: Before social media became prevalent, softball pitcher Nicole M. Pete played her game in the 1990s. Nicole is a CRIT tribal member of Navajo descent. Her parents are Estelle S. Pete (a CRIT member) and Roy H. Pete (a member of the Navajo tribe). Nicole's maternal grandparents are the Late John Scott, Sr. (creator of the CRIT tribal seal) and the Late Gladys Scott (former CRIT tribal council member), who resided in Parker Valley. Nicole began playing softball in the 2nd grade and contin- ued into her first year of college. During grade school, Nicole participated in the city softball league, where she won many league championships and Most Valuable Player awards for her pitching and batting skills. Nicole was one of two pitchers for her high school softball team. During her senior year in high school, Nicole was recruited as a pitcher for California State University's soft- ball team in Hayward, CA. Her college softball experience began in the Fall of 1999. As a college freshman, Nicole was nominated for the national pitcher of the week by an opposing college coach, who she impressed by shutting down his team's batting lineup. In addition to being a pitcher, Nicole also played first base. During high school, Nicole played for travel ball teams that traveled to many places to participate in softball tour- naments -- Las Vegas, NV, Spokane, WA, Augusta, ME, and Normal, IL. After 12 years of playing softball and completing one year of college softball, Nicole decided to hang up her cleats and put away her glove. She transferred to California State University in Fullerton, CA, where she graduated with a degree in Business with an emphasis in Computer Networking. Nicole works and lives in Southern California. A word of encouragement to student-athletes: Participation in any sport teaches discipline, responsibili- ty, and sportsmanship. Any time a student-athlete com- petes, they compete against themself to do better than before. Information & photos provided by Estelle Pete. CRIT Media-June 3, 2022 11:33AM This morning I talked with Alex Kalinowski, CRIT Fish & Game Wildlife Biologist and Game Warden. We spoke of the recent brush fire along the river and how that might have affected the wildlife. Years ago, seeing an animal like the Desert Tortoise was common, or catching a glimpse of the ever sly coyote was pretty usual. It makes you wonder where they run to when they've been dis- placed. According to Alex, usually, they try to return to their home or not too far from it, waiting for the foliage to grow back. Snakes especially, because they don't like to travel a long distance. Larger animals, like the Mule Deer, are the first to flee. They prefer to stay around the water and hide in the brush, so most likely, they will not run up into the mountains because their main predator lives there—the Mountain Lion. People who live near the area of the fire might see an influx of wildlife that has been displaced. Please be respectful and let them be in peace. Alex also adds that if you encounter an injured animal, please call CRIT Fish and Game at 928-669-9285. Do not try and help the animal. They don't know you're trying to help. They perceive a threat in their time of weakness. CRIT Media-June 9, 2022 10:48PM CRIT EMPLOYEE RECOGNITION The Colorado River Indian Tribal Council recognized two amazing, excellent, long-time employees this morning. Victor Robledo for 30 years of service to the tribe; he is cur- rently an employee at CRIT Auto and Adelita Torres for 20 years of service to the tribe; she is currently an employee of Colorado River Building Materials. Great job, and keep up the excellent work! CRIT Tribal Chairwoman Amelia Flores, Vice-Chairman Dwight Lomayesva, CRIT Tribal Council members: Robert Page, Woodrow Sharp, Josephine Tahbo, Jaymee Moore, and CRIT Tribal Council Treasurer Anissa Patch congratulated and were present for the presentation in chambers. https://www.facebook.com/COLORADORIVERINDIANTRIBES4 Submit your news, notices and updates to elizabeth.welsh- munoz@crit-nsn.gov for posting on CRIT Media Facebook website! Photo credit: CRIT Media Elizabeth Welsh-Munoz Photo credit: CRIT Media Elizabeth Welsh-Munoz