Host: Donna Loring
Other credits: Technical assistance for the show was provided by Joel Mann of WERU, and Jessica Lockhart.
Music by Ralph Richter, a track called little eagles from his CD Dream Walk.
Wabanaki Windows is a monthly show featuring topics of interest from a Wabanaki perspective.
This month: Charles’ early life and the importance of his story as a hero and survivor of D Day in WWII.
Guest/s:
Harald Prins & Bunny McBride – Bunny Mcbride is an award-winning author and journalist whose work has focused on Indigenous peoples around the world. Harald Prins is a cultural anthropologist and longtime scholar of Wabanaki history. He and Bunny worked closely with Charles over many years. They helped place Charles’s life story within its broader historical and moral context. They shared a close personal and professional relationship with Charles Shay and helped bring his story to the world.
Jennifer Neptune is a member of the Penobscot Nation, is the Director of the Penobscot Nation Museum on Indian Island. A master basketmaker and cultural educator, she knew Charles as an elder and carries forward his memory through her craftmanship and storytelling.
James Francis is a member of the Penobscot Nation and serves as Tribal Historian and Director of the Penobscot Nation Cultural and Historical Department. He worked closely with Charles Shay and has helped preserve and share Penobscot history and memory for future generations.
Timothy P. Shay is the nephew of Charles Norman Shay. He offers a family perspective on Charles’s life, speaking to who Charles was beyond the uniform—as an uncle, a relative, and a deeply loved member of his family.
Darren Ranco is a member of the Penobscot Nation and a scholar of Native American studies. He knew Charles as an elder and community leader and has worked to ensure that Charles’s story is understood within the larger context of Indigenous service, sovereignty, and survival.
About the host:
Donna M Loring is a Penobscot Indian Nation Tribal Elder, and former Council Member. She represented the Penobscot Nation in the State Legislature for over a decade. She is a former Senior Advisor on Tribal Affairs to Governor Mills. She is the author of “In The Shadow of The Eagle A Tribal Representative In Maine”. Donna has an Annual lecture series in her name at the University of New England that addresses Social Justice and Human Rights issues. In 2017 She received an Honorary Doctoral Degree in Humane Letters from the University of Maine Orono and was given the Alumni Service Award. It is the most prestigious recognition given by the University of Maine Alumni Association. It is presented Annually to a University of Maine graduate whose life’s work is marked by outstanding achievements in professional, business, civic and/or Public service areas. Donna received a second Honorary Doctorate from Thomas College in May of 2022.
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