MaryAnn Bearheels

MaryAnn (Ta Oyate Waste Wi—Her Good Nation Women) a Ceremonial Prayer Woman of the Sicangu Lakota from Rosebud, South Dakota. “Our Lakota way of life starts with our creation stories and oral traditions that have been handed down over 500 years. We are creating awareness about our Indigenous environmental issues through our teachings of the water, buffalo, and bear teachings. Re-vitalizing our spiritual and physical being as Lakota women is vitally important to our future generations. Lakota community genetics is an overall look at how we are able to re-birth our nation utilizing our sovereignty and inherent rights to protect our ceremonies and women. We are the backbone to our nation and the umbilical cord to our earth.”