How can today’s Flint Hills ranchers and residents find guidance for the future from cultures who have lived here for millennia? Pioneer Bluffs will focus on Native Heritage in the Flint Hills in their annual Fall Roundup on Saturday, October 12 , from 2:00 to 4:30 in the historic 1915 barn.

2:00 Welcome and the Year in Review

The afternoon will begin with a welcome and brief presentation reviewing the past year of Prairie Talks and activities.

2:10 Prairie Talk – “Native Heritage and Place in the Flint Hills”

Presented by celebrated Native American speaker and songwriter Elexa Dawson, this talk will explore themes of Native traditional knowledge, and philosophy of kinship with the land. Dawson will discuss how Indigenous ways of viewing the land – the plants, creatures and bounty of the Earth – can lead us forward. She will share about her work in community gardening with the Goodway Gardens program in Emporia. A member of the Citizen Band Potawatomi Nation, Dawson will explain the origins and culture of the Potawatomi, and how today they are a vibrant and living people with sovereign nations and current relevance in modern society.

3:00 Break

Refreshments will be provided downstairs.

3:20 Concert by Weda Skirts

The Weda Skirts are one of the Flint Hills’ most successful bands, headlining on the main stage at the national Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield again this year. This special concert will focus on Elexa Dawson’s original Native-themed songs. Deeply connected to land, her lyrics speak of the earth, community, and celebrating all relationships – with family, friends, children and nature.

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Visitors are invited to come early to tour the grounds and see updated displays in the historic 1908 ranch house at Pioneer Bluffs. A National Register Historic District, Pioneer Bluffs is located fourteen miles south of Cottonwood Falls or one mile north of Matfield Green on Flint Hills National Scenic Byway K-177 – 695 Kansas Highway 177.