Grant allows children to create lacrosse exhibit

HOGANSBURG — Lacrosse is more than a game on the St. Regis Mohawk reservation, and the Akwesasne Museum is going to show it, with help from some local children.

The museum received a $49,000 federal grant to start a youth group that will design and build an exhibit about the significance of lacrosse to native cultures.

"It's actually in our creation story. It goes back to the beginning of us as a people," said Sue Ellen Herne, the museum's program coordinator.

About a dozen children of all ages will begin meeting next month to learn about lacrosse and design the exhibit. They will go to Onondaga to watch the Iroquois Nationals, who play against American and Canadian teams. They will hear from guest speakers, including lacrosse players and coaches from the reservation and possibly the curator of the Museum of the American Indian.

"We're hoping that some of the youth will look into (museums) as a career when they get to be adults," Ms. Herne said.

The exhibit will be designed entirely by the children in the group; the only specification the museum has is one of size. The exhibit will be 12 feet by 18 feet when it is finished next year, to make it easier to transport if groups want to rent it as part of an event.

In 2005, a similar exhibit was completed titled "We Are From Akwesasne." It was funded mainly through the same grant program, which is from the Institute of Museums and Library Services. The first exhibit, which showcases Akwesasne culture and history through art, is so large it requires a 20-foot truck to transport, making it impractical to rent out for anything less than a few months, according to Ms. Herne. The lacrosse exhibit, in contrast, will be able to go out for day- or weekend-long events, she said.

"Many non-native lacrosse players don't know that lacrosse is a native game or understand its cultural tie to the Mohawk people and other Rotinonshonni (Iroquois Confederacy) nations," Chief Monica Jacobs said in a statement.

Lacrosse, or Tewaa:rathon in Mohawk, was given to the people by the Creator to bind communities and nations together, according to Mohawk legend. It also was used to resolve disputes between nations. The field could be anywhere from 100 yards to two miles long and involve five to 1,000 players, according to the Iroquois Nationals' Web site.

"From a traditional perspective, Tewaa:rathon is a way of giving thanks," Ms. Herne said in a statement. "By sharing their best effort through training and playing the game, the players show their thanks for the gifts of strength, speed and strategy."