The Fifth Osage Nation Congress voted to adjourn its third special session on Dec. 6 after considering several legislative matters including a $10,000 appropriation to the Marine Corps League Detachment.
On Dec. 2, the Congress voted to pass bill ONCA 17-08 (sponsored by Congressman Ron Shaw), which is a supplemental appropriation bill adding $10,000 in tribal funds to the 2017 fiscal year budget for cultural donations. The Congress passed the cultural donations budget (ONCA 16-119) during the Tzi-Zho Session, but the Marine Corps League donation was inadvertently left out, prompting the filing of ONCA 17-08.
Shaw said the $10,000 is the same amount of donation money the Marine Corps League has received in each of the past three fiscal years from the Nation. The Marine Corps League Osage Detachment commandant is John Henry Mashunkashey who served during the Vietnam War while he was in the Marines Corps.
According to a Congressional fiscal analysis of ONCA 17-08, the Marine Corps League detachment comprises 73 members, including 40 Osages. Shaw said the Marine Corps League is a service-oriented organization for those who served in the Marines, which uses donated money for outreach events such as helping disabled veterans receive handicap equipment. In prior years, the Marine Corps League also participated in toy drives to provide Christmas presents to needy children and participated in veteran recognition events including parades.
Congresswoman Shannon Edwards noted the Marine Corps League donation is not specified for a single detachment and said there are other detachments including one at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. “that I know is a keeper of Osage culture and artifacts at their facility… We know that a contribution to them would be a contribution to helping preserve Osage culture, Osage history.”
ONCA 17-08 passed with an 11-1 vote with the “no” vote from Edwards. Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear signed the bill into law on Dec. 6.
The updated cultural donations budget for FY 2017 is now $84,500. Other military-oriented/ cultural entities receiving donations from this budget include the Harold Bigheart Smalley American Legion Post 198, the Hominy and Grayhorse War Mothers organizations and the three Osage district drumkeepers.
By
Benny Polacca
Original Publish Date: 2016-12-15 00:00:00