PAWHUSKA, Okla — The Osage Nation broke ground on its first ever funeral home and cemetery.
Community leaders say it’ll take about two years for everything to be set up and running, but they hope it’ll make it easier for tribal members to uphold their traditions.
Myron Red Eagle is the Chairperson for the Osage Mineral Council.
He said he’s had to put some of his loved ones to rest, and it can be difficult for many- emotionally, financially, but also socially.
“My mother passed away in 1974, many years ago," he said. "It was difficult.”
Red Eagle said the Osage people also have their own unique traditions and customs when it comes to burying loved ones.
“According to our traditions, there's different ways to bury our people," he said.
He said one of those ways includes burying loved ones with four things: a feather, a blanket, food, and cedar.
“The reason why they put cedar in there is because of the tree cedar," said Red Eagle. "It stays green the whole year round."
He said that because of these specific burial traditions, it would be easier for Osage members to communicate with other Osages working at the funeral home.
In this way, discussing burial methods, location, and other practices that may get lost in translation with people outside the tribe will get across to those working at the funeral home.
Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear agrees wholeheartedly.
“Even though it's all sacred, this is special," he said.
He said a lot of trust is needed during times like these.
"You're taking care of the human bodily remains of a person," he said. "Family, friends are stressed and we do whatever we can to relieve that."
Chief Standing Bear also said he wanted to ensure people had the option to be laid to rest in their home of Pawhuska, Oklahoma.
“We've been here since 1872 after being pushed out of our homelands in Missouri and Kansas, and so we decided we're going to stay here," he said. "We want to make things, like I said, more comfortable for our people in times of grief, because it's the hardest time, and we all need to pitch together and help each other out."
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